There are plenty of ways to make a whiskey interesting. Age it for a decade or more. Put it in an unusual cask. Add a little rye spice to the mix. Or, apparently, send it on a 27-month tropical vacation with a pineapple rum barrel and see what happens.

That last option is the approach behind the new Victoria Pineapple Barrel Finish Whiskey from Bardstown Bourbon Company, a Kentucky-exclusive release that takes the idea of barrel finishing somewhere decidedly warmer. Inspired by one of rum’s most distinctive maturation traditions, the whiskey explores a flavor that’s notoriously difficult to find in American whiskey … genuine tropical fruit.

The whiskey starts with a custom blend of 10- and 11-year-old bourbons and 11-year-old rye, which is then married and matured in Caribbean-sourced pineapple rum casks. But Bardstown didn’t simply park the whiskey in the barrels and wait for the tropical magic to happen. Fresh Victoria pineapple was added to the casks, mirroring the process used to create the original rum that once occupied them.

The result is a 106-proof whiskey that still knows it’s bourbon and rye, but clearly spent some time thinking about becoming something else. The first sip brings tropical fruit, rye, spice and allspice, followed by pineapple, cherry and toasted oak. As it develops, vanilla crème and toffee join the party, creating a whiskey that’s layered and lively without losing the depth that comes from mature American whiskey.

And for the record, the goal wasn’t simply to make a whiskey that tastes like pineapple. As Dan Callaway, Master Blender at Lofted Spirits, explains, the idea was to understand what made those rum barrels so special in the first place. The result is a tropical character that sits alongside the whiskey rather than taking it over, with the rye and spice helping keep things grounded.

The Victoria Pineapple Barrel Finish is also the first release in Bardstown Bourbon Company’s new Finishing Series, an evolution of the brand’s limited-edition collaborations. The packaging gets a creative upgrade, too, with original artwork created for each release. Louisville artist Margaret Archambault created this year’s artwork, translating the whiskey’s tropical flavor profile into a visual piece that will also be part of Bardstown’s upcoming national Discovery and Finishing releases.

With fewer than 350 nine-liter cases produced, this is very much a Kentucky-only treasure hunt. Victoria Pineapple Barrel Finish Whiskey arrives July 24 at the Bardstown Bourbon Co. distillery and Louisville Tasting Room, along with select Kentucky retailers, with a suggested retail price of $139.99.

So, no, this isn’t pineapple whiskey in the sense that someone decided bourbon needed a tropical fruit makeover. It’s a mature bourbon and rye that took a rather unconventional route to discover a little tropical character of its own. And if nothing else, it’s proof that sometimes the best way to find a new flavor is to let your whiskey take the scenic route.