Evan Williams 1783 Small Batch Bourbon

N: Sweet corn heavy early, but it gives way to lighter berry notes (strawberry even?) and some caramel covered banana. Not a lot of depth and a good dash of ethanol, but okay for the price point. P: Caramel with vanilla deeper in the background behind that. Sweet corn, honey, and maybe some stone fruit. Cinnamon starts to build strong with the second sip. Maybe a few other baking spices in there complicating that. Definite oak tannin and heat, but no particularly noticeable bitterness. Finish brings more caramel, some herbal notes, some mineral notes, middling heat, and finally, late in the finish, a little black licorice. Back in May, a local shop here ran a deal where if you bought three of these puppies, you could get bottle of ECBP for about normal retail. I'd never had these before, but I figured the deal could also be worked out the other way: buy an ECBP (at the normal markup) and get three of these for free. The numbers were fairly close. Anyway, clearly I pulled the trigger. And now I'm just past halfway down on the third bottle. (Barely touched the ECBP btw - not for any particular reason, just has worked out that way.) I've actually quite enjoyed these bottles. It's a good amount of flavor for the price point. The profile is pretty classic bourbon, well executed. It doesn't require much thought or effort to enjoy and so it makes a nice weeknight pour. It's paired really nicely with a few cigars. I really can't think of anything bad to say about it. I can say there are definitely better, more complex, more interesting bourbons on the market, but none that I can think of sub-$20. Closest I can get is my beloved Buffalo Trace, which usually runs $22-26 around here. The BT is a definite step above this, but it also sometimes disappears from shelves for a few weeks at a time. This would make for an easy and obvious substitute in my rotation for the BT. And I think that's a pretty solid compliment. _______ Please come join an unofficial Distiller community on Discord: https://discord.gg/VSmCvzAQfH. We chat spirits (and other things) in real time while being a great resource to each other for recommendations, finding deals, and generally enjoying the journey together. (If the link is expired, post a comment and I will provide a new one.)

Drinks pretty hot for the proof point. Vanilla and raisins - brown sugar notes reminiscent of an oatmeal raisin cookie

Reminiscent of a Bulleit. Average bourbon that doesn’t stand out but not bad to sip on.

Wow!! Delicious!! Very happy with this one

Worth the price in today’s market for a daily drinker. Not bad to have around for a quick glass or to offer a non enthusiast guest. Cinnamon, wood, finish of oak. Good starter taster and a good price point for the novice.

At $20/bottle, this is fantastic

Not my favorite flavor, but went down well, not much burn