Tastes

Thick, viscous legs. Nose holds true to Makers, very fruity with added cinnamon, cardamom and allspice. The palate brings the oak forward strongly. Honestly, not a lot of depth. Finishes bitter. I dont pick up the profiles usually present with toasted oak. First impression is 2024 was clearly superior. Ice lets the fruit and sweetness come forward. Overall, shallow and disappointing. Hopefully this bottle will improve with a little time.

Nice legs. Nose is mild, fall spice and fruit. Just a hint of anise. Palate hits with black pepper, peanuts, and a little woodiness in the background. Comes off a bit tannic, bitter. A trace of pure sugar flashes for a moment. The finish stays peppery and woody. This has never been a favorite of mine, but it makes a good entry in Jim Beam blind tastings. Letting it sit with ice mellows it, but still not something I would drink purposefully, just for tastings. I'm not thinking of a cocktail this would fit nicely in. This bottle will last a long while.

Barrel #12935 Thick, long legs in the glass. Light caramel cake and hay nose. Medium deep amber color. Viscous, coating the tongue nicely. Palate is sweet, peppery, and oaky. Reads a little minerally which doesnt surprise me (Tennessee). Finish lingers longer than I expected based on proof, mostly oaky tannins, probably over oaked which is always a risk with older aged American whiskey. As a sourced 17 year old, I didnt actually expect this to be great (if you had a dynamite 17 yr old whiskey, would you sell it?), but I did expect the flavors to be more complex. Overall disappointing, but not a bad pour, just not worth the asking price. Adding a cube of ice cut the tannins nicely, turning them more towards cinnamon and clove. Probably how I'll be drinking this bottle. Coming back to this bottle after letting it air out a day. Nose is the same with the addition of cherry. Palate definitely adds cherry and a hint of chocolate and coffee. The mineral flavor pushes the flavor towards cherry cough syrup, however. Finish fades into root beer candies.

Thick oily legs in the glass. Nose has leatjwr and barn hay, with a hibt of pecans, and candied apples. Especially considering the proof, not much burn. Overall, very nice nose. Palate brings fall spices, hot cinnamon candies, and black pepper, making the perimeter of the tongue tingle. Sweet pecans make an appearance as the heat fades. Finish lingers with a tinge of smoke. Ice mellows the heat and lwts fruit come forward. A nice sipper, and surprisingly mellow for 129 proof.

Very thick in the glass, a quick swirl coats completely. Great nose, brown sugar, apple, caramel, spice forward with cinnamon, cardamom, and allspice, and a hint of leather as well. Palate is not initially as complex, reading hot pepper, prunes, and bittersweet chocolate. Finish is thick on the tongue, emphasizing the bitter chocolate. I broke up some ice and dropped a couple small pieces in and did a quick swirl. This brought the fruit from the nose into play and eliminated the bitter effect, while letting the spice come forward by way of clove. Finish is shorter, obviously, but very nice. I'll be drinking this bottle in a rocks glass.

Been trying to nab this during KY trips for years, and never caught the distillery right, so I was quite happy when BF announced they'd be selling it nationally. I saw it at Costco for 11% under SRP to boot so almost bought two but decided to try it first, realizing it was now goingvto be readily attainable. A quick swirl shows this will be a nice oily drink with long legs. The nose is quite nice, prunes, sour cherries, leather, and a nice sweetness. Surprisingly, I'm not getting a lot of oak tannins. That missing oak and tannin is definitely present on the palate, too much so. Adding ice and giving a rigorous swirll ebbs the tannin, but doesnt bring any flavors forward. For me, this is more over oaked than double double oaked. I prefer double oaked at a fraction of the cost. What I'd really like to see is batch proof double oaked. That may be worth the SRP price tag.

Nice viscosity in the glass. Nose is high proof, with prunes, chocolate, baked apple, and a touch of allspice and nutmeg. Palate is hot, brings fall spices and pepper. Fruit is in the background fading into chocolate which comes on strong in the finish along with pepper before fading. Very nice.

Nose is minty. The palate is distinctive. I get herbal notes as suggested, but definitely minerally, chocolatey, and minty. Pretty mild profile and smooth (I hate this term but it fits). This is not hot at all. Nice finish does present a little pepper. Overall, a nice whiskey that I think is under rated.

Light amber color, nice legs. This is my second pass at the bottle. First impression was straight up caramel with a hint of fruit. This time, I'm picking up banana bread soaked in sweet caramel sauce. The palate still hits hard with caramel, accompanied with cinnamon and white pepper. I can also find apple in the background. The finish lasts quite a while, fading into a soft salted caramel, a touch astringent along the way. This is good but a bit one note. Swirling in an ice cube brings the fruit forward and backs off the pepper, leaving you with more of a carameled apple profile.

Damn you Brown Foreman! When they sold the brand to Sazerac, I was a bit nervous this bottom shelf gem would not live up to the precedent. When I finished my last bottle, I didnt rush out to buy another. I saw it on sale recently, so took the plunge. Wow, this whiskey sucks! Nose is light turpentine and a lot of Elmers glue. Palate is the same to the point I spit it out.Not only way young, but bad profile to boot. Trying to see if it's useable as a mixer. I keep adding more and more ginger ale (Vernors, best ginger ale ever), but not masking the bad whiskey. I think i'm going to have to toss this. I won't drink it and if i serve it in cocktails, friends will not come back. Sazerac, why buy the name if you are just goung to kill it? Your name can't overcome this shit, even to the BT Youth.