Tastes

The now famous, Batch 12. 132.3 proof. Nose is powerful and infinitely complex; molasses, maple, brown sugar, black cherry, plum, barrel char, chocolate, cinnamon, leather, pipe tobacco, and dark oak almost mahogany. Yes, all that is really in there and in equal strengths. On the palate, just literally look at the components listed above in the aroma because they are all present on the tongue as well. This bourbon encompasses all that is "dark"; dark fruits, dark sugars, and dark wood. Flavors are rich and blend seamlessly. A splash of water to take it down a few proof points and this one positively sings. Finish literally goes on forever. Longest I have ever had by far. I hate to sound like a broken record, but everything in the nose/palate is also there in the finish before it finally subsides leaving you with some tingly menthol and chili pepper. Mouthfeel is thick and chewy. Kentucky hug is real even after the addition of water. Overall just a transcendent bourbon. And when you figure in the price? If there's anything out there that beats this for $60, I'd love to taste it. Will always attempt to have this on the shelf. If you find it and you have never had it, buy it. Case closed.

Nose is pungent and fruity with apple, berry, raisin, date, and plum all covered with vanilla icing. Additional notes of caramel, cinnamon, and oak. Very Buffalo Trace in the sense of fruit+vanilla+oak. Ethanol is ridiculously low given the proof. Palate is a little less sweet than the nose would indicate but still offers fruit with a dark twist in the form of blackberry, fig, black cherry, concord grape, and black currant. Vanilla/caramel from the nose provides a base for the fruits to shine. Flavors are super punchy. Finish brings plenty of heat along with pomegranate, fresh oak, black pepper, cherry, cinnamon, leather, and tobacco. There’s a blackberry note from the palate which lingers all the way through the finish which I enjoyed. Mouthfeel is where this one lacks a little; medium bodied and while I wouldn’t go so far as to call it grainy it is a little on the sharp side. A superior bourbon with only minor flaws and a great example of the Buffalo Trace profile turned up to 11 which may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but given the popularity of BT products seems to be favored more often than not. I managed to snag this one at straight retail of $59.99 way back in 2021, a feat that is laughable in today’s market. I feel that rating it at that price point three years later when most are paying $150+ secondary is kind of disingenuous, so I’m going to make an exception and take price totally out of the equation with my rating. 4.5 out of 5.

131.1 proof “Jason’s Favorite” pick from Fox Cigar Bar in Gilbert AZ. Nose is 100% on profile for Brown Foreman/Old Forster and is full of cherry cola, orange zest, chocolate, furniture varnish, soft oak, vanilla, sarsaparilla, pine, clove, and slightest hint of banana. Very enjoyable. Ethanol is noticeable but less than expected and not detracting. (It is 131 proof after all) Palate open with maraschino cherry, root beer, tobacco, raisin, toffee, orange peel, pepper, and flan. Flavors are robust as expected. Finish is a pretty jarring departure in the form of a major spice bloom with both cinnamon, ginger, clove, and chili pepper (ghost pepper, much heat not a lot of flavor) along with decently aged oak. Everything is felt under the tongue. Mouthfeel is full and viscous. Yeah, I like this a lot. The sweet/spicy profile worked for me, but I wish it was a smoother transition to the finish with elements of the palate carrying through instead of a quick roller coaster ride into Spice Mountain. That said, it’s bold and a little challenging and I like that. At $109 I paid for this would surely rebuy any variations of this expression I can get my hands on at a similar price.

“Momma’s” pick OESV aged 10yrs 6 months, 57.2% ABV Nose is full of vanilla and stone fruit (peach, plum, cherry) along with red delicious apple, blackberry, and just a touch of oak. Ethanol is basically non-existent, which is crazy given the proof. That said, the overall nose is a little tight/muted. Palate gets things moving in the right direction with the same notes as the nose but dialed up several notches. Fruit cocktail drizzled with vanilla icing along with chocolate fudge, flan, and a little butterscotch. It’s not the most complex, but very well integrated. Finish is long and lingering with Red Hots candy, white pepper, leather, and a definite oak presence suddenly appearing. Quite the contrast from the palate. Heat is there, but restrained. Mouthfeel is full bodied and extremely creamy which is a real highlight that greatly elevates the overall experience. Loved the lack of ethanol and velvety mouthfeel and while the palate and finish were also very good, it does suffer from a slight lack of complexity. That said, I am splitting hairs here as this is an excellent whiskey. I paid $119 and would do so again for any bottles of this expression.

Nose is full of hot baking spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice) and peanut. Some cherry cola as well. Ethanol is moderate. Palate matches the nose nearly precisely; if you like lots of spice and peanut, this is your whiskey. Also rum soaked raisin, caramel, and black pepper. Flavors pass “punchy” and enter the realm of “in your face”. From a guy who likes his flavors dialed up to 10, this is a 15. For 6-8 years old, this seems young as hell. Finish brings more of the same and is shorter than expected for the good parts (nut, baking spices, leather, oak) and longer than necessary on others (cinnamon/chili pepper spice) Mouthfeel is full bodied and oily which is the best part of this whiskey. Oof. Hot mess express. The oldest Larceny BP I own and reviewing it so many years later shows how the expression has matured and developed over the years as you can tell the whiskeys in the blend here were much younger than subsequent releases. I think I paid 59.99 which was great at the time given the price creep in bourbon, but honestly even at that price from days gone by I would not pay that for this specific release. Lowest rating I think I have given to an LBP.

For starters, I don’t usually note the color of the whiskey because in my mind it’s very much “who cares?” but I have to say this color is extremely light, kind of a copper/straw color. Nose brings vanilla, a very green oak, toasted cereal grains, grass, pear, lime, and golden apple. There’s zero ethanol (a plus) but also very simple and muted (a minus) Palate offers the vanilla and apple from the nose, along with honey, cotton candy, almond, and toasted coconut. Very bright. There’s some complexity here, but the flavors are lacking in richness. Finish is short with marked barley (almost beer like), green tea, white pepper, sour apple, and young oak. There’s an earthy note I can’t quite put my finger on (beet?) Mouthfeel is super light, airy, and soft. Also quite dry, which worked for me. While there is nothing offensive here there is also not much to write home about; it’s…”nice”. Light and fruity but also somewhat dull. Almost like a starter kit into the world of American Single Malt, which is fine but i favor a more robust product. At $60, there is zero chance I would rebuy given what is on the market for that price (Rare Breed comes to mind)

The first ECBP to feature less than a 12yr age statement and a pretty low proof to boot; how will this measure up? Nose offers some standard vanilla/caramel along with cedar, apple, orange peel, cinnamon, spun sugar, nutmeg, and hay/grass. Ethanol was quite pesky, detracting a bit from the experience. Palate offers some immediate tannic oak followed by cinnamon bear candy, nutmeg, caramel dipped green apple, subtle vanilla, golden raisin, and cherry. Not a lot of mid-palate action going on here; everything comes quick and at the very front of the tongue. Finish is very long and bitter dry oak along and more spices adding allspice and clove to the cinnamon and nutmeg from the nose/palate along black pepper, lime, chili pepper, and a hint of peppermint. Super spicy. It’s not alcohol heat, but the spice just overpowers. Mouthfeel is slick and oily. A more spicy and tannic profile than I am used to from these releases. While it’s certainly a good whiskey, I am missing the sweeter notes present in other releases. Is it the age? The proof? I’m not certain, but I feel this is a sub par release. At 89.99, it’s still merits a 4.0 (which should tell you something about the quality of the series) but just not a top tier release.

Batch 242 108.2 proof. Aroma offers cashew nut, date, fig, tobacco, old furniture, leather, sage, honeydew melon, caramel apple, and a hint of smoke. Slight bit of ethanol but overall complex and delightful. Oh wow. Palate brings more nut (now macadamia and hazelnut) along with wine, dried fruits (raisin/fig), pipe tobacco, black cherry, and toffee. Definitely tastes like there’s some quite old whiskey in here. Flavors are rich, robust, and so well integrated it’s almost hard to pick out individual notes. Just know it’s delicious. Finish is medium with plum, sherry wine, dark chocolate, citrus zest, and just a touch of nutmeg. There is also wood tannins but it’s hard to just say “oak”; it’s like layers of different woods. Tobacco and leather notes linger. Zero heat. Mouthfeel is full and buttery smooth. I know I used leather, tobacco, fig, and nut several times, but chalk that up to the cohesiveness of the profile, as these elements are present throughout the experience. Phenomenal. 6 out 5. At $199, I regret nothing and would rebuy. It’s that good, and that unique. The king of finished whiskey.

Nose is perkier and fruitier than most expressions from this series while still retaining core elements; Macintosh apples, caramel, spun sugar, stewed pear, vanilla, barrel char, and sweet, mature oak. Ethanol here is real, but other than that it’s a great nose. Palate brings zero fruit from those nose and throws us deep into toffee, caramel, praline, peanut brittle, burnt ends, and iced cinnamon roll. While there is nothing wrong with this palate, it was a bit of bummer since the aroma promised a truly unique experience that never came. Lacks some richness and depth. Finish brings a quick hint of apple but then it immediately sandblasted away by a blast of baking spices in the form of cinnamon, allspice, clove, and ginger along with tons of chili pepper, oak, and leather. Man this sucker finishes hot; I think my tongue is melting. There’s a hint of honey as the spicier notes fade which I found enjoyable. Mouthfeel is full and chewy, but slightly grainy with the spiciness here making things seem harsher than they should and it’s nowhere near creamy enough to balance. I do enjoy this series, but this one might be a little sub par in my opinion as I found the flavor profile to be a little too simplistic and the finish way too hot to be considered top tier. At 99.99, the combination of slight overpay coupled with a disappointing overall experience makes this probably the first Larceny BP to fall short of rebuy status.

Nose brings brown sugar, molasses, dried apricot, furniture varnish, barrel char, cashew nut, maple, an appealing smoked oak note, and a hint of pencil eraser. Ethanol present thooughout which was a bit of a bummer since the aroma was otherwise enjoyable. Palate offers the brown sugar and wood varnish from the nose along with apple, vanilla, cinnamon, candy corn, smoke, and flan. Almost no mid-palate at all; rushes to the finish. Flavors are not well integrated and clash with one another. Finish brings some slight improvement in the form of cotton candy, grape must, pink peppercorn, clove, molasses, sour apple, and oak which turns toward bitter astringency. A long slow peppery/spicy burn lingers after everything else fades. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, but pretty grainy which unfortunately I have found to be a trend with Texas whiskey. While this is held is decently high regard in whisky circles in my area, I found it to be kind of weird and disjointed with plenty of off notes. Not the best example of the Texas style, as Balcones has several expressions which blow this out of the water. Like your typical teenager, this is young, weird, and unruly. At 69.99, it’s extremely hard to justify a rebuy.