The Assembly may sound like a John Grisham novel about a cadre of shady judges dispensing summary justice. In fact, it is The Last Drop Distillers’ advisory panel, whose knowledge helps guide managing director Rebecca Jago to acquire the extraordinary casks in the independent bottler’s cellars. These experts are also invited to create signature blends for The Last Drop – the last one was a Scotch blended from 50+-year-old whiskies by former Chivas Brothers master blender Colin Scott.

In 2016, The Last Drop was acquired by Sazerac Company, under whose umbrella come many of the most highly rated American whiskeys: Buffalo Trace, EH Taylor, WL Weller, George T Stagg, Eagle Rare and Pappy Van Winkle’s. So, it is unsurprising that Drew Mayville, master blender of Buffalo Trace et al, is another member of The Assembly.

‘The day-to-day job of a blender is to ensure consistency,’ Mayville told Brummell at a recent dinner in London, ‘but I’ll let you in on every blender’s secret desire… to make something new and unique that you’ll be remembered for. Rebecca’s father, Tom Jago, achieved that more than once, but most famously with Bailey’s Irish Cream. The story of Buffalo Trace is all about experimenting in order to make better and better whiskeys, but the emphasis has tended to be on the distillation. When I first started there, I wanted to create a limited-edition bottling which would highlight the diversity of flavours available from different casks, where the sum is greater than the parts. So, I began hoarding small quantities of some of the best vintages over the years I’ve been at Buffalo Trace.’

Mayville joined the Sazerac Company in 2004, following 20 years with the now defunct Seagram, which culminated in his promotion to master distiller – so this isn’t a case of a blender fighting the distiller for credit.

‘When The Last Drop joined our group, that gave me a wonderful opportunity to create something unique from these highly limited vintage whiskeys I had hidden away.’

As is the way with any blend, there were many options to go with. The difference here is that these barrels could easily be released as celebrated single-cask releases. ‘I had more than 40 different whiskeys to work with and came up with dozens of iterations. When I had my shortlist, I shared it with The Assembly. I was very happy when Rebecca and I both agreed on our favourite, which is the one we bottled.’ Mayville has melded Kentucky straight bourbon whiskeys with straight rye whiskeys – which is where he has achieved the “new and unique”.

To those used to single malt whisky, made from 100 per cent malted barley, one of the things to get used to in American whiskeys is the “mash bill” – the mix of grains that starts the production process. Bourbon must be 51 per cent corn, while rye must be 51 per cent of the eponymous grain. A wheated bourbon is one that has wheat as the second largest proportion after corn. A straight bourbon or rye has to meet various criteria, but the most important is a minimum of two years ageing. The whiskeys in Drew’s Blend are considerably older than that.

The balance between the styles is masterfully poised. From the start, on the nose, the uncooked spices and spearmint freshness of the rye ping out of the rich fruit and vanilla cream roundness of the bourbon. There is a buttery first impression on the palate – Mayville attributes that to the wheated bourbons in the blend – but, again, notes such as orange peel, and dried and dark fruits jump out. Dark chocolate with hints of sweet spices swirl around as the finish dissipates.

The Last Drop Signature Blend created by Drew Mayville, 60.7% ABV, 1,458 bottles available, £3,100; lastdropdistillers.com