Tastes

Dump date: 3-5-2020 Barrel: 386 Bottle: 406 Warehouse: H Rick: 51 One of the more corn-forward Blanton’s I can remember on the nose, with a hint of sweet mint and tobacco. Taste: orange zest, vanilla baking spices, hints of cherries. Finish: medium, with the dominant note being traditional rye spice...Not quite a peppercorn but close.

I’ve had some great bottles and pours of this over the years but much like the last few Blanton’s, this seems rushed, young, and not the “young Pappy” it was even three to four years ago. Nose: muted caramel, sweet cornbread, vanilla baking spices, hint of dusty barn smell Taste: cherries come through more than any other note and the rest are just too far in the background Finish: a glimmer of the Weller of old comes through at the end, everything comes together for a medium finish with some pops of traditional Weller flavors. I don’t know if the bourbon noobs pushing demand for this and Blanton’s for instance have diluted the stock at Buffalo Trace, or maybe I’ve just had several consecutive subpar bottles. But I can’t give this higher than a 3.5/5. Which is a shame because I’ve had pours of Weller 107 that easily hit 4 to 4.5 stars for me.

This is a single barrel store pick review. Barrel: Party Center, Louisville, USA (2020) Nose: very loud and rich nose, easy to pick out standard BT notes of cherry, candy corn, hint of mint and oak Taste: rich cherries, butterscotch, caramel, hints of vanilla. Quite sweet. Finish: despite the great nose and taste, the finish is very short. However, overall this is one of the better single barrel Buffalo Trace picks I have had.

If you like Beam, you’ll love this. This reminds me a lot of the discontinued Heaven Hill Bonded 6-year. Which is great because that was a fantastic value bourbon and bottom shelf hidden gem. This bottle I found for $22 which is a great deal for the whiskey that’s in it. Nose: sweet and fruity, hints of orange zest and eucalyptus, candy corns and cherries, plus oak Taste: rich classic Jim Beam, just more oomph, a bit oily Finish: medium, mint and baking spice that lingers Hard to argue with a $20-something bottle that tastes like a $40.

This is a store pick. Age: 11 years (Bardstown) Rickhouse: U Floor: 6 Barrel: 5256743 Liquor Barn Selection (2020) Nose: honey, dust, oak, caramel, leather Taste: rich with heavy nutmeg, hints of butterscotch and a little vanilla Finish: decent amount of bite compared to previous bottles of this I’ve had. And a medium finish. Being this bourbon is one year younger than what used to be the standard Elijah Craig 12-year, I had high hopes for this one. It’s a little flat in my opinion. The nose is very nice but it doesn’t deliver by the finish. Will have to come back and revisit this after a few weeks of the bottle being opened. However, at $30 for a fifth from a single barrel, 11-year-old bourbon is very hard to complain about.

tldr: I don’t know if I’d pay more than retail for this (about $65 in KY) but it’s definitely good at its price point especially considering the lack of 12-year options on the shelves. Nose: sweet honey, raisins, cinnamon, hunts of grass and hay...oak finally comes in at the end but it’s by no means an oaky bourbon even at 12 years. Taste: spicy nutmeg and other baking spices, hint of peppercorn and one last hint of honey Finish: medium finish, very little bite This reminds me a lot of Old Forester 100, which is way cheaper and super easy to find. That just doesn’t have the complexity of the KC12yr. But both are excellent bourbons.

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a 12-year-old whisky for less than $40 that’s better than this one.

Very rich and pleasant but a light finish. Nose: typical Balvenie, extra vanilla, brown sugar (very bourbon like) and some bready notes Taste: bright and zesty Finish: short to medium 17-year double wood is my favorite but this one is a bit better than your standard Balvenie 12

While the standard iconic Jack Daniels is sweet, a little spicy, full of bananas, and thin, this offering is definitely an enhanced version of that. A small batch upgrade, if you will, like going from Heaven Hill 6-year to Elijah Craig—same recipe, same distillery, better barrels. Nose: candy corn, butterscotch, bananas, oak, leather & tobacco Taste: rich and with a little spice, hints of honey and sweet tea, maybe even caramel Finish: medium at most, with a lingering corn syrup sweetness