Lost Lantern 2026: Broad Branch Bourbon, Dread River & Reservoir Rye

Four TTB approvals filed June 4–5 point to an imminent release wave from Vermont indie bottler Lost Lantern — adding a new state (Alabama), a new distillery partner, and Lost Lantern's first bourbon from a familiar North Carolina collaborator, all in one cluster.

2026 Single Cask No. 3: Broad Branch Distillery — North Carolina Straight Bourbon

Broad Branch has appeared in Lost Lantern's lineup before via rye, but the back label is explicit: this is "our first bourbon from this rising star North Carolina distillery." The mash bill tells a local-grain story with one wrinkle — 84% North Carolina-grown corn, 10% NC-grown malted barley, and 6% Washington-state rye, a three-state grain trail for a bottle planted firmly in the Blue Ridge tradition. Eight years in Winston-Salem, 200 bottles, bottled exclusively for Barrel Shoppe. The label calls out dark chocolate, lemon zest, and baking spice on the nose, with oak, leather, and blackberry crumble on the palate — "dense, complex, and powerful." The filing lists ~60.0% ABV, though COLA proofs often shift before release.

2026 Single Cask No. 5: Dread River Distilling Co. — Alabama Straight Bourbon (Burlington Wine & Spirits Exclusive)

Dread River makes its Lost Lantern debut, and with it Lost Lantern notches its first-ever Alabama whiskey. The distillery is named for a fabled underground river beneath the city and bills itself — and the label repeats this — as the first distillery in downtown Birmingham in a century. The mash bill is 60% white corn, 30% winter wheat, and 10% malted barley; the label's legal age statement reads 8 Years Old, though the body copy describes "aged for 6 years in a 53-gallon barrel" — a discrepancy worth flagging. Legal statements control over body copy, and the gap may reflect secondary maturation in a different vessel, but it's not explained on the label. At a provisional 64.0% ABV (128 proof), this is well into hazmat territory. 200 bottles, exclusively for Burlington Wine & Spirits; the label notes dried lemon zest, orange marmalade, and oak on the nose, with pomegranate, apple crisp, and dried fruit on the palate.

2026 Single Cask No. 5: Dread River Distilling Co. — Alabama Straight Bourbon (Unwind Bottle Shop Exclusive)

A companion Dread River filing — approved one day earlier on June 4 — carries identical specs: same 60/30/10 mash bill, same 8-year age statement, same provisional ~64.0% ABV, same 200-bottle count. The sole difference is the retailer: this one goes exclusively to Unwind Bottle Shop, which also received Lost Lantern's first-ever Reservoir Distillery bottling earlier in 2026. Both Dread River runs saying "1 of 200 bottles" and landing in the same release wave strongly implies two distinct single barrels from the same distillery, consistent with Lost Lantern's actual single-cask practice. Two different barrels, two retail partners, released in tandem.

2026 Single Cask No. 5: Reservoir Distillery — Virginia Straight Rye Whiskey

Lost Lantern's second Reservoir Distillery bottling pivots from their debut 100% corn Virginia Straight Bourbon (released earlier in 2026) to a 100% rye — and the cooperage is the headline: 7 years in a 10-gallon barrel. At that vessel size, wood-to-spirit contact is dramatically accelerated, and the profile the label describes reflects it fully: pineapple, peach, rich grain, and full oak on the nose; plum, leather, and deep oak on the palate — "a big, bold rye with as much complexity as power." Reservoir's 100% single-grain mash bill philosophy holds across both Lost Lantern bottlings. 120 bottles (the most limited of this batch), provisional ~60.0% ABV, exclusive to Burlington Wine & Spirits. Distilled and aged in Richmond, VA.

Four states, four labels, one new partner distillery — Lost Lantern's 2026 Single Cask waves show no sign of slowing down.