Bimber Ex-Bourbon

Ever since I tried Cotswolds, I’ve been excited to try more English whisky and picked up a sample of Bimber’s ex-bourbon batch 1 that aged for around 3 years and was bottled at 51.8% ABV. The nose starts with a mild astringent and earthy mix of lemon juice, charred pineapple and wood chips then cocoa powder covered gooseberries and light florals followed by nectarines and tangerine orange that transitions to light baking spices and polyester with medium ethanol burn. The taste is a thin to medium mouthfeel starting with light creamy orchard fruits before quickly veering into a moderate bitter spice that slowly fades to lemon pith, charred pineapple and sawdust then cocoa powder covered golden raisins and light honeysuckle followed by white grapes, grapefruit and tangerine orange zest that transitions to light baking spices and polyester with medium ethanol burn. The finish is medium length starting with sour citrus and light florals that slowly fades to an earthy and mildly bitter profile. This is just far too sour and astringent for my palate that likely needs more time aging in the barrels to polish out those youthful notes. I’m more averse to sour flavors than others, so this would likely be more enjoyable for other palates than mine, but at a price of $150 near me, I’d much rather buy Cotswolds at almost half the cost that is a better fit for my palate.

Rating: 14/23 All I know about this is that it's 51.8% ABV and bourbon-cask-finished. N: This is nice. It's mellow and approachable with some sweet apple and tangerine mixed with some very mild maltiness, and a bit of an earthy funk that seems just a tad youthful, but provides some nice complexity. There's a little oiliness, but I don't get a lot of fusels out of it, though there are some of them giving a bitterness that melds with the earthy funk. A little tart dryness as well that makes me think kind of of like Clynelish or Kavalan Soloist Port (very different, I know, but they have this one similar character). Ah, there's a waxy lemon peel character. Overall, not superbly balanced, but its balance is quite good and the unbalanced parts add some interest. P: Sweet with a moderatel mouthfeel. There's a bit of a tart, dry waxiness that leads into some earthy funk. I do get a bit of burn throughout that borders on harshness, though I don't really get a brash alcohol flavor. It's a tad oily, but that's probably just the proof. I don't really get malt. I get lemon peel and some dry grain. Right now, I'd be guessing this was a single grain or blend, not a single malt. There is enough full sweetness here that it's probably some malt, but I think I would still have guessed that this was a (pretty good) blend. F: The flavors mellow out here, though the burn persists. I get a bit of grain ready to be harvested and then some fruity apple sweetness comes out. - Conclusion - This is pretty good, but it's far from blowing me away. Side by side with Signatory's Caledonian 29 (12/23), this less less power and wood behind it, but neither is that woody and this is more interesting, sweet, and approachable. Between the two, I'd take this. Which makes me think I should try this side by side with Compass Box Artist's Blend (13/23). This is a bit more nuanced, but it also burns more and doesn't have the same sweet milkiness that makes me think of Auchroisk. These two seem fairly competitive. I can also see someone preferring this over Knappogue Castle 12 (15/23) because the Knappogue Castle has that same easy drinking quality as the Compass Box, lacking in complexity, but being very tasty and approachable. This certainly lacks the robustness, maturity, and finesse of something like That Boutique-y Whisky Company's Auchroisk 19 (17/23). There's no way I can see this reaching that level. So this is definitely in the 13-16 range. I'm pretty skeptical of a 16, but a 15 is quite possible. I think I'm going to settle on a 14.Rating: 14/23 All I know about this is that it's 51.8% ABV and bourbon-cask-finished. N: This is nice. It's mellow and approachable with some sweet apple and tangerine mixed with some very mild maltiness, and a bit of an earthy funk that seems just a tad youthful, but provides some nice complexity. There's a little oiliness, but I don't get a lot of fusels out of it, though there are some of them giving a bitterness that melds with the earthy funk. A little tart dryness as well that makes me think kind of of like Clynelish or Kavalan Soloist Port (very different, I know, but they have this one similar character). Ah, there's a waxy lemon peel character. Overall, not superbly balanced, but its balance is quite good and the unbalanced parts add some interest. P: Sweet with a moderatel mouthfeel. There's a bit of a tart, dry waxiness that leads into some earthy funk. I do get a bit of burn throughout that borders on harshness, though I don't really get a brash alcohol flavor. It's a tad oily, but that's probably just the proof. I don't really get malt. I get lemon peel and some dry grain. Right now, I'd be guessing this was a single grain or blend, not a single malt. There is enough full sweetness here that it's probably some malt, but I think I would still have guessed that this was a (pretty good) blend. F: The flavors mellow out here, though the burn persists. I get a bit of grain ready to be harvested and then some fruity apple sweetness comes out. - Conclusion - This is pretty good, but it's far from blowing me away. Side by side with Signatory's Caledonian 29 (12/23), this less less power and wood behind it, but neither is that woody and this is more interesting, sweet, and approachable. Between the two, I'd take this. Which makes me think I should try this side by side with Compass Box Artist's Blend (13/23). This is a bit more nuanced, but it also burns more and doesn't have the same sweet milkiness that makes me think of Auchroisk. These two seem fairly competitive. I can also see someone preferring this over Knappogue Castle 12 (15/23) because the Knappogue Castle has that same easy drinking quality as the Compass Box, lacking in complexity, but being very tasty and approachable. This certainly lacks the robustness, maturity, and finesse of something like That Boutique-y Whisky Company's Auchroisk 19 (17/23). There's no way I can see this reaching that level. So this is definitely in the 13-16 range. I'm pretty skeptical of a 16, but a 15 is quite possible. I think I'm going to settle on a 14. Thanks to @PBMichiganWolverine for sharing this. I'm always curious to try other whisky from the UK outside of Scotland. Bimber seems like one to watch, though I can't say that I'm particularly enamored with its young product.

Nice aroma, has a lot of power. Too wild maybe. Spicy finish

Bimber Ex-Bourbon / 51.8% ABV Batch 01/2020 Nose - (w/o water) Sweet tropical spices & unripe tropical fruits, tropical vanilla, ripe fruit "funk" sweet, sharp dusty grain sweet/sugar/syrup funk (w/ water) Softens it up a bit, but no major impact Taste - (w/o water) Hot dusty grain heat/tingle, tropical honey, tropical vanilla, baking spices, dried apples, unripe banana/plantains (w/ water) Reduces the heat a bit & reduces the baking spice vibe a bit, but retains the odd sweet yet unripe fruit funk Finish - (w/o water) Lingering floral fruity sweet "funk", unripe bananas/plantains, gentle heat (w/ water) Pretty much the same, but without the heat Score - 80/100 Final Thoughts - This was quite interesting as it really reminded me of the cask strength Amrut, but without the heat. It has this very unique nose & taste which I hate to describe as this funky tropical barley. It's got this sweet "funk" to it that isn't unpleasant, but isn't pleasant either. It has a tropical vibe while at the same time having this dusty barley & I hate to say it artificial, but not quite splenda sweet. It handles water quite well where it just softens the ethanol burn & that's about it. Would I drink it if offered? - Maybe Would I specifically order it? - Maybe Would I buy a bottle? - No NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Hard to find a redeeming quality

Beautiful, sweet and spicy, has a kick in the mouth, but smooth on the throat. Love this adventurous young whisky

Exclusive Summerton Virtual Whisky Festival sample. A total of 8 barrels will be released following the festival a 1,948 bottle run. This is a whisky that’s far removed from a typical Scotch whisky. The influence of the ex-bourbon cask is extremely prevalent. The nose is bready and woody. Upfront it’s very full bodied for such a young whisky, extremely fruity and with sweet vanilla. There’s a good amount of pepper on the finish, but it mostly leaves you with a sweet and honeyed aftertaste. It’s a nice dram and it bodes well for some future more aged releases.