Booker's Bourbon Batch 2016-04 "Bluegill Creek"

Bookers (Bluegill Creek Batch) 6yrs, 5months.  64% abv. Bookers is the one of the 4 premium Jim Beam small batch bourbons and is barrel proof.  It’s an excellent example of just how good Jim Beam bourbon can be.  The smell is really nice with burnt sugar, caramel, brown sugar, oak, mint. The taste is awesome, even sipping it neat you get a blast of flavor. Caramelized Sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, oak, toffee.  For being barrel proof this is really enjoyable neat or with some water.  The finish is long with the same Brown Sugar with some Cinnamon, Spice, Burnt Toffee Sugar and vanilla  Bookers is great, it’s certainly my favorite of the premium Jim Beam line. I have sampled multiple batches and some are better than others but  I haven’t come across a bad Bookers yet.   Overall Grade: A

I am so happy to have had a chance to enjoy this gem. Booker's is my jam. So amazing. This is just fantastic. Spicy peanut butter cream, light smoke and toasted notes like toasted bread. Perfect Kentucky hug. Few drops of water enhance the spice. Lovely lovely

Pours a clear golden orange color, nice legs. Smells intensely of oak with some caramel and vanilla pitching in, some earthy tobacco type notes too. With water, some cinnamon spice emerges. Taste is rich and sweet, lots of caramel, toffee, oak, and vanilla, some spice kicking in too, maybe cinnamon? And booze, tons of booze. Mouthfeel is full bodied, rich, and yes, boozy af. I mean, yeah, I have a baby beer palate, but this is pretty tough. But tasty, and not the worst heat I’ve experienced. A little dry in the finish as well. Overall, a little hot, but it’s a really good bourbon. Beer Nerd Musings: I haven’t had anything specifically marked as a Booker’s Bourbon barrel aged beer and I don’t see many out there either. Allagash apparently made a Booker’s aged variant of their Curieux, but I must admit, the tripel style is not my favorite way to showcase a bourbon barrel treatment. Still, I’d assume this would make for a pretty good barrel for beer aging… but then, what wouldn’t?

Very uncut. Not smooth but lots of flavor. Gets better as I drink it.

Strong and good, have to let it open up but I enjoyable and complex, lots of spice

Tasting neat. (Unsure if this is the bottle in the distiller database but this is a 128 proof pour). At 128 proof it can feel long and heavy. May be easier opened up. Sweet tones both in nose and taste come through, especially after initial burn. Complex bourbon, would like to try again.

Delicious smokiness, heat matching the proof. Enjoyed neat with smoked beef brisket.