Booker's Bourbon Batch 2021-03 "Bardstown Batch"

About a year ago, I walked into a restaurant that was shutting down at the end of the day. There was indication this was happening from the outside, but the bartender made it pretty clear that there was essentially a fire sale behind the bar. This was my first pick. There wasn’t much left so I got the second pour free as it finished the bottle. What a great choice. And the rest was history. I knew I needed a bottle if I was lucky enough to find one in 2023. And here we are. Nose: Classic Beam peanut brittle. Brown sugar, cocoa, and caramel. Raisin and dried apricot. Plum skin and cola. Toffee, vanilla, and butterscotch. Very citrusy and has almost a seltzer pop. Like a Sprite. A tad bit of steak. Mint. Black pepper and pipe smoke. Cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Palate: More peanut brittle. Steak as well. Roasted almond. Caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, and toffee. Chocolate syrup. Cocoa, pipe smoke, and peppercorn. Orange citrus. Rye spice. Ginger. Red hot tamale. Cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and oak spice. Finish: Peanut brittle. Brown sugar, caramel, toffee, vanilla. Pumpkin spice. Ginger. Cinnamon, ginger, black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. This was as good as I remember. Maybe the best nose I’ve ever gotten on a bourbon. It’s certainly up there. It’s a unique profile for a Booker’s overall—it reminds me of some of the batches from 8-9 years ago that got me into the brand. For $100, I was quite glad to find this so late in the game. It’s not the oldest or the highest proof Booker’s batch, but is easily one of the most remarkable. I’m always impressed with this stuff. 5/5.