Heaven Hill Bottled In Bond 7 Year

Excellent pour on a cool night on the couch porch

A previous review’s comparison to Bookers is spot on, only it’s rounder, caramel and vanilla to the forefront, pecan praline and, like the same previous review suggests, apricot. This has been a bit of a controversial bourbon among reviewers, which would take a lot of space to discuss, but I’ll just note that some reviewers have panned it as being good, but nothing special, and a re-packaged version of a previously available cheaper Heaven Hill product. On the other hand, Whisky Advocate rated it the number 4 whiskey in the world in 2019. Probably, most folks would rate it somewhere in between. Personally, I like this whiskey a whole lot. It’s been snobbishly described by some reviewers as being “approachable” to the masses and for bourbon novices, but it’s drinkability is appealing enough to make you reach for it over the other open bottles in your cabinet. Simply stated, it has a very appealing taste.

Sweet and fruity with cherries and citrus. Honey, vanilla, and caramel notes.

Nose: There is a distinct dry, charred oak character jumping out, along with some toasted, fresh cracked black pepper. Chocolate covered strawberries and bananas. Clove, nutmeg, allspice. Vanilla and brown sugar are here too - absolutely classic bourbon, make no mistake. Salted, toasted nuts/seeds. The slightest herbaceousness. Letting it sit for a minute to match room temp and open up reveals more fruit - peach, apricot, etc. Salted caramel. Suddenly getting sweet cream - imagine the smell of any custard pie (like pumpkin) topped with whipped cream as you're about to bite down. And a faint touch of orange zest. Palate: Barrel-heavy, vanilla, brown sugar. Dry, but not overly so, with some excellent texture. Sweet orange, cream, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg all taking turns here. Hints of pre-packaged chocolate pudding, maybe a touch of new leather? The proof is evident, though isn't kicking me around. Well balanced overall, though maybe a bit less lower palate than I'd like. Mouthfeel is surprisingly light to medium-light. Finish: Finish starts with sweetened whipped cream and vanilla. Oak and tannin are around for the fun. Salted caramel shows up, along with a bit of ethanol. Toasted cereal grains and salted caramel come in, as well, with some faint black licorice. Very straightforward experience. Medium length. Other notes: The first time I had this, I was reminded of some of the 2018 releases of Booker's, as well as a few bottles of Knob Creek single Barrel 9yr. And I'm not mad about it. This leans into an oak-heavy bourbon profile which I personally tend to prefer. My gut told me this has a higher proportion of malted barley to rye and I was surprised to see I was right - 12% of the former to 10% of the latter. That can tamp down some of the spicier elements of a high-rye offering, though still retains some dimensionality that you get with, say, a wheated bourbon. This is an excellent execution of a straight-forward bourbon. It's not trying to do anything crazy or new, it's just a refined version of what you'd want. Well done.

Nice bite at the end! Smell is not overpowering despite strong proof.

Smooth burn smooth burn smooth