Jameson Black Barrel Proof

Nose: apples, toffee, maple syrup Palate: adds vanilla Smooth with a slight burn

Extremely smooth for the bite it brings

Disclaimer, I haven’t been drinking much whiskey lately so my palette is a little off. I’m a big fan of the standard BB, the extra char really hides the grain in the blend, the extra punch of vanilla and wood tannins are a very welcome addition compared to the base Jameson and it has a decent length. At times I’ve even recommended it over RB12 to people wanting to branch out in Irish whiskey. I was really excited to try the Black Barrel Proof, paying £50 at a local shop for it on first sighting. However, now I feel like I’ve been ripped off. All the things I loved in the standard BB aren’t present. It’s aggressively spicy and grain forward, the vanilla note is barely a whisper. I would liken it to a poorly blended budget bourbon. On top of that it’s very short, disappears in an instant leaving only a bitter dry note. Really disappointed by this one. I was pleased to see it added to the lineup. It’s higher proof and non chill filtering suggested Jameson may be taking held of what whiskey drinkers want but I highly suspect they have tweaked the blend to incorporate more younger grain whiskey. Worth a try alongside the regular in a bar but I wouldn’t recommend splurging on a bottle.

Nose: Smell of toffee apple, apple sponge cake with fragrant honey and maple waft with spiced vanilla , biscuit notes and a slight hint of berries Taste: Taste is similar, but you get a strong vanilla hit, followed by an immediate maple syrup taste. The spice comes through nicely to add a bit of depth. More spice than the standard BB Creamy at first but texture and flavor dissipates fast. Finish: A full mouth feel quickly goes and like all low value Jameson whiskeys the flavour and bite wears off to quickly This is a short to medium lingering whiskey. I was expecting a longer and a more fuller mouth feeling. Thoughts: The ABV could do with a 55% instead of a 50%. Compared to the standard black barrel, I would have preferred to save myself the extra €15 for this bottle and gone with the normal black barrel, it’s subtly better, but marginally. It doesn’t deliver based on all the hype. However if this flavour profile tickles your fancy, then go buy the west cork black cast at half the price. It’s on par with BB and in terms in similarity but also pricing, the west cork black cask is a must try before buying the BBP. Update: as a neat drinker, once I added a tiny drop of water, it opened up the whiskey a bit more and made it more enjoyable.