Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Arrange bacon on a broiler pan so that the pieces don’t touch or overlap.

Brush healthy amounts of bourbon and maple syrup on the first side of each piece of bacon.

Generously sprinkle on and pat down brown sugar into each piece.

Turn bacon over and repeat this process on the other side.

Lightly sprinkle the second side with red pepper flakes.

Combine any leftover bourbon, syrup, and brown sugar to baste the bacon with as it cooks.

Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes, turning the bacon over after the first 10-15 minutes and basting with your bourbon/syrup mixture.

Remove the bacon from the oven when the candied coating becomes shiny and the bacon has turned a reddish brown color.

Remove bacon from the broiler pan almost immediately and cool on a cooling rack.

Adjust the bacon after 5 minutes or so until completely cooled to keep the candy coating from setting up and sticking to the rack.