1792 Bottled in Bond Bourbon

Thanks Zach

1792 Series (2 of 10): Bottled in Bond Did you know: You can have Bottled in Bond vodka? I didn’t think this was possible, as the BiB act stipulates that you have to age the spirit in wood for at least 4 years in a federally bonded warehouse. Turns out: you could line the wood with something to prevent the spirit from making contact. Boom. BiB vodka. Nose is oddly plain. There was a lot going on in small batch, but not so here. There’s sugar, banana, yeast. Caramel. Very reminiscent of Jack or Woodford. Body is completely different, and I’m grateful. There’s caramel apple, jello, fruit punch, watermelon, cherry, sangria. Bubblegum. Delightful. Finish lingers with mild cinnamon and Hawaiian Punch. That last note is so good here. This is possibly an even bigger juice bomb than the small batch, and I tend to prefer this proof point. However, the nose is weaker somehow, and the small batch is a bit smoother. Overall, I think I prefer small batch. Still a solid bottle. Looking forward to the next on-deck: Bottled in Bond store pick, aka “yellow label 2.0”

On the noise a lot is going on with this one. I get some fruitiness, but it’s quickly overtaken with fresh baked cinnamon raisin bread, and bubble gum. On the palate there is some sweetness up front like bubble gum that has been in your mouth for a while. Also some rye spice and vanilla in the mid palate with a very slight oak note on the end. Also a tart green apple at the end. Overall not a bad pour, but I think I like the small batch just a little bit more.

N: Sweet corn, sawdust, oak, and soap. There's a syrupy red fruit. Dashes of banana and citrus here and there. Feels like there's some other good stuff in here, but hard to pull it apart. But it is not a particularly dynamic nose. P: Oaky with chocolate and banana. Dark chocolate bitter at the front of the mouth, but plenty red fruit sweetness at the sides - interesting contrast. Caramel, toffee, vanilla, and cherry. Finish brings red fruit, dark chocolate, oak, vanilla, bit of allspice, and mild chili pepper heat. This is a good step up over the small batch, but it's still sort of a par for the course BIB. It's not really special, I mean. I'd probably prefer Knob Creek 9 to this - they're certainly competitive, at least. And I guess that makes it hard to understand why this is so hard to find and frequently gets a markup. Anyway, at retail it's a reasonable value, but I still think it's maybe $5-10 overpriced (to put it more in line with the KC9). But I may also just be in the camp that finds the Barton profile unimpressive. So, YMMV. _______ Please come join a bunch of regular Distiller reviewers are chatting spirits in real time on Discord: https://discord.gg/4nfePCdyKM. (If the link is expired, post a comment and I will post a new one.)

For some reason banana just seems out of place in a bourbon. The initial nose is exclusively banana runts, not even real banana fruit. Give it time in the glass and it will evolve into banana bread and baking spices. On the palate, banana bread, cinnamon and maybe a hint of oak if you want it bad enough. Seems hot for 100 proof. If you love bananas, this bourbon is for you. If you love bourbon, find something else.