Tastes

Rich, dark amber color. Really grabs the glass, showing just a few slow-moving legs. Nose packs a whallop: cinnamon, leather, vanilla, dark caramel and a hint of mint or eucalyptus all tied in with an intense oak backbone. Notable rye contribution, but the barrel seems to own the show. Really warms the throat and chest, leaving behind a wonderfully long roll out of flavor. Front is rich with spices, and citrus notes, followed by a mid palate that shows some sweetness. Finishes is really long and drawn out with oak being the big player... Some spice and burnt caramel linger with tart berry and citrus notes in there, too. This is an outstanding bourbon, without a doubt. A few drops of water open it up some and brings out layers of sweetness in each phase. Undoubtedly going to be looking for another bottle of this to stash.

Golden straw color, like spring honey. Quite sticky. Really hangs on the glass with some sparse, slow forming, and slow running legs. Nose is definitely led by the corn: sweet with light caramel some vanilla and a bit of coconut. A hint of baking spice. Super soft mouth feel really coats the mouth nicely a bit of warmth at the back of the throat. Smooth transitions across the board. This one is subtle and nuanced. Vanilla frosting, milk chocolate, burnt caramel. Mid palate really shows the wood. Not heavily charred, but a pleasant Oakey dryness. A bit more baking spice on the way out. It's easy to tell that this is an older bourbon. It is very well balanced and subtle, but I can't see it gets me too excited.

Deep golden straw color. Lots of fairly fast moving legs. leaves a nice curtain on the glass. Congac immediately noticeable at first nose. Golden raisins, white grape at first, floral notes and then the rye comes in. Light spice and barn must with bright oak notes. Syrupy, soft mouthfeel, with sweet green grapes up front. Moves quickly onto spice and warmth on the palate and chest with dry white oak. Finish has the green apple rye character mingling with vanilla, golden raisins, D'anjou pears and dry oak. This is pretty neat... The cognac barrels definitely compliment the rye, creating balance and accentuating the bright fruitiness from the rye.

Dark copper with amber hues. Nose shows rye, dark caramel/brown sugar, tart and ripe fruit notes, jam, vanilla, cacao and sawdust. Incredible complexity... Front is quite rich, sweetness all over. Burnt caramel, brown sugar and vanilla come in, bouncing back and forth between oak, syrupy fruit, rye spice and chocolate. Warms the chest nicely. Drawn out finish is somewhat dry and pleasantly bitter/spicy. This is the first ECBP that I can really appreciate neat, but a few drops of water do stretch it out. This is incredibly complex and is me favorite ECBP to date.

Brick orange tinted/tarnished copper. Super sticky... Only a few slow moving legs. Absolutely hangs on the glass. Nose shows rye spice immediately, with cinnamon, clove and a hint of eucalyptus. Under those are caramel, light barrel char and a touch of vanilla. Soft mouthfeel, warms the palate... Plenty of warmth in the chest. Incredible balance up front, not too sweet. Leaf tobacco, burnt sugar and grilled sweet corn give way baking spice and vanilla frosting. Somewhat dry finish, with more tobacco, cedarwood and brown butter chocolate sticking around for a good while. This is excellent. Lots to enjoy over a long while... My favorite Knob Creek product for sure.

Dark straw color with tarnished copper tones. Sticks nicely to the glass. Nose is caramel, oak and rye with notes of coconut, tobacco and vanilla. Raisins in there too. Silky soft on the palate, a building warmth flows down the chest. My first impression is how nicely balanced this is across the board. Sweet and woody up front and midway. The Finish hangs on, drifting between a residual sweetness of ripe fruits and vanilla, and rye spices with dry oak. This is my favorite product from this company by a wide margin. I would unquestionably buy this again.

Amber tinted light copper color. Slow forming, but fast running legs. Nose is hot with no shortage of barrel, both char and wood. Some black cherry and a notable rye contribution. Soft mouthfeel, thins out quickly and carries a back and forth between dry wood, some caramel sweetness and something like cacao powder. Finish is sweet. Has notable milk chocolate, a bit more ripe fruit, vanilla and a hint of cinnamon. There's an almost salty dryness to it that I'm not terribly fond of. I'll revisit this over time, but I definitely prefer their other offerings, and would put a number of other bourbons before this at the price point

Pale golden straw color with many slow running legs. Nose: a burst of green apple, rye spice and barn must. A bit of a hit of heat Mouthfeel: coats quick, plenty of heat, a bit cloying. Front is not sweet at all. Wood shows up almost immediately. Mid shows lots of wood, and starts the fruit. Finish is good and fairly long: tart fruit, dry oak and light caramel. A hint of pine pops through there, too Overall: This is a rock solid rye. Very enjoyable, well balanced and interesting unto itself. Terrific value.

Tarnished copper. Runs off the glass quickly. Nose is barrel first with layers of oak: lumber mill, toasted, and charred. Some notes from the rye hidden in there with dark cacao and toasted coconut. Front is quite smooth and mouthfeel is somewhat oily, with sweetness coming after the heat. First noted flavors are slightly stale corn, dark chocolate and stored oak planks. Finish is all over the place, with all of it brought together. A few drops of water bring out lots of vanilla and magnify the toasted coconut. Really sweetens it up, without taking away that transition into the wood dominated finish. After some time, a bit of mint comes through. Although perfectly drinkable at Cask strength, I prefer it with a splash of water is it sweetens it up and add some real dimension. It's more interesting than the Big Winston and stretches out the experience. These folks are doing a great job. Whether it's the yeast they use, the water, or whatever most of their offerings have a similarity, but this one is definitely the most complex.

Plenty of slow legs, dark copper with amber hue. Nose is a massive hit of rye. Tart fruit, green apple, caramel, bright and spicy with the familiar rolled grain. Soft mouthfeel with a nice hit of heat at the back. Loads of caramel, vanilla, and a hint of ripe fruit. Mid palate seems mostly to come from the barrel. Finish rolls out slow and alternates between sweeter tones and barrel notes. Toasted oak, dark salted caramel, baking spice and golden raisins. Really good. Complex and inviting, long finish and well balanced.