Jim Beam Single Barrel Bourbon (95 Proof)

This is amazing. Lots of oak, vanilla and spice. Smooth and wonderful finish.

Well take me out to the ball game... that's my first thought with the peanutty nose here. More peanut and caramel on the tongue. Initial flavor fades to a bit of a harsh alcohol burn. An ok pour, but not one I will be going back to.

BACKGROUND: Jim Beam Single Barrel, Beam’s first offering in the single barrel genre, was initially announced by Master Distiller Fred Noe in late 2013 and began appearing on store shelves in March of the following year. Though the bottle carries no age statement, Noe said at the time of its announcement that the bourbon would be aged between four to seven years and selected from the barrels used to produce Jim Beam’s white label and black label expressions. According to Beam/Suntory, less than 1% of Beam barrels qualify for single barrel bottling, and each is “strictly hand-selected…with care to ensure a unique profile and premium quality that make for a perfectly crafted bourbon.” While the single barrels chosen for Booker’s, Knob Creek, and, most recently, Baker’s come from the choice center cut positions of the warehouse, the Beam SiB barrels are selected from the top, bottom, and sides. Visitors to Beam’s gift shop at the American Stillhouse distillery in Clermont, Kentucky could purchase and hand-bottle their own Single Barrel bottle, but I am unsure as to whether this option is still available. Jim Beam Single Barrel is bottled at 95 proof and made from a mashbill of 77% corn, 13% rye, and 10% malted barley. Though many single barrel offerings from other companies are non-chill filtered, this one does go through that process. Each bottle carries a hand-written label denoting the barrel from which it was bottled. My bottle came from barrel JB7244. A 750ml bottle of Jim Beam Single Barrel retails for $34.99. NOSE: The nose presents the undeniable scent of fresh peanut brittle along with navel orange, oak, and a dose of good, ol’ Jim Beam musty funk, which is one of my guilty pleasures. PALATE: The palate largely mirrors the nose with oak, orange citrus, peanuts, caramel, and, believe it or not, a bit of buttermilk biscuit. It seems to be a very front-forward palate on the tongue. FINISH: The finish is long and offers a surprisingly big Kentucky hug for a 95 proof bourbon. The orange citrus on the palate becomes lemon citrus on the finish, perhaps because of some oak tannins. Big, booming notes of black pepper are also dominant in the finish. FINAL ASSESSMENT: As noted in my previous reviews, I am a big fan of Beam’s premium, higher-end, and more limited bourbons, so I had big hopes for Jim Beam Single Barrel. While it is much better than the regular 80 proof white label Jim Beam, it is also not quite as good as the Distiller’s Cut or Beam Bonded. Jim Beam Single Barrel is all-at-once enjoyable and unremarkable. It is a flavorful bourbon, but not one that prompts me to rush out to purchase more bottles.