Kentucky Senator Bourbon Release #1 (Alben W. Barkley)

15 year bourbon. Huge vanilla notes. Feel the burn at the roof of the mouth. Long legs on the glass. deep amber color, looks like an aged bourbon but has hints of youth in the flavor. Smooth finish with oaky flavor and cherry

To change things up, @Bourbon_Obsessed_Lexington sent me a series of samples that have either shapes or some code on them to prevent me from being able to know what they are until after I’ve tasted them. This turns out to be my last sample of this set that I saved to last due to the X on it. The reason I saved it for last is due to me being a little kid instead and believing that this is some sort of buried treasure that Lex marked with an X on it. Time to crack it open; channel my inner bourbon instead of rum drinking pirate and find out if this was the best of them all. The nose starts with See’s candies peanut brittle along with a balanced oak spice that then fades to caramel apple pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, macerated cherries and candied orange peel then light baking spices of ginger, cloves, leather and rustic reclaimed wood furniture with medium ethanol burn. The taste is a medium mouthfeel starting with dark chocolate Reese’s peanut butter cups with a mild oak spice that fades to sautéed caramel apples with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, macerated cherries and candied orange peel then a medium drying oak spice mid-palate before fading to light baking spices of ginger, cloves, leather and rustic reclaimed wood furniture with medium ethanol burn. The finish is medium length with dark chocolate Reese’s peanut butter cups, candied Granny Smith apple, macerated cherries, candied orange peel, leather and medium tannic oak. This is fantastic polished bourbon that brings in those traditional bourbon notes but with creamy peanut butter candy, but has a slight higher oak spice than I would like and the notes are more dialed back to create a softer, gentler, creamy bourbon than a big, bold, brash flavor bomb like a Bookers or Garrison Brothers Cowboy. In a side by side with the Saint Cloud 7 year(4.5), the Saint Cloud has a better balance and really highlights the higher oak tannins in this one, but this is much better than my Bardstown Goodwood Walnut Brown Ale finish(4.0) with more of the sweet nutty flavors and a better balance coming out on the comparison. Alas this was not my favorite of the series, but was indeed worthy of some buried treasure expedition to uncover this tasty treat which is, rip open this decoder and it is none other than……………………… Kentucky Senator 15 year. A huge thanks to @Bourbon_Obsessed_Lexington for all the samples as this was a lot of fun and I found a few new favorites as well as a new skill of being able to proof down whiskey to my ideal proof without ending up with some caramel water anymore.

Well balanced, sweet, warmth. Notes: pour in a flight at the Bluegrass Tavern, Lexington KY, Jul ‘21

I'm really a fan so far of that 78.5% corn mash bill 15 year distillate and well at 190 this one hurt but didn't require as much lube as most. Nose - I'm just getting good fudge and caramel with some vanilla icing. I'm sure I'm smelling oak but I can't even focus on it over that other note. Taste - So this opens up just sweet, not real distinct notes. There's oak and spice that come in and then we transition to these beam like esters and fruity yeasty elements with some peanut butter hints (more artificial candy peanut butter). Going back I start to pick up some more distinct caramel up front with just a good bourbon character. The oak on this one is very high. And this isn't a BTAC or pappy where the sweet offsets it. No this is powerful, full bodied, likely near CS intense bourbon. This ain't for your starter, it's for someone who's spent years with bourbon and know BOLD flavor from young ethanol. I know it's only 107 proof but this has a kick. I think I liked the lost soul more, but this remains a really nice bourbon. So vs that 12 year rare perfection I just did? Oh yeah, I'm going to likely bottle kill that over priced bottle trying to compare it. Well, it's got a lot in common with this in terms of mouth feel. It's hot and bitter and bites and yes it's big boy bourbon. This however despite being bold it's much more pleasant to drink. Just like the old carter, they are both just nice upfront mouth feels that are warm and creamy and rich. The Rare Perfect turns bitter and sour really fast. Too fast. There's a funk on the Rare Perfection that's not making me happy either. While the Senator is intense and oaky it's well done. All this said great older bourbon isn't this tannic either. The oak elements aren't over oaked in that sense that they hide and hurt the overall flavors (that's what I don't want) but instead make the whiskies both more intense and a bit more challenging to drink. I'm at a 2.75 for this senator. I'm saving room to come back and move this to a 3.0 or 3.25 but for now I think 2.75 is right. Above average and into the very good area but not great and certainly not exceptional. 190 for the bottle? I think this is 120 dollar bourbon all day. I'd be ok paying 150 and would consider buying again down the road. I don't hate it at 190, but I'd not buy it again.

So, it comes in the same bottle as Old Forester’s Whiskey Row series... must be good. This appeared locally and sold out instantly at $200 a bottle. It is labeled as a small batch KY bourbon (distilled and aged in KY). At around 1300 bottles I would guess this amounted to around 8-10 x 15 year old barrels depending on volume loss. The mash bill is the mysterious 78.5% corn, 13% rye and 8.5% malted barley that has shown up in numerous other $100+ NDP bottles as of late with age statements around 13-15 years. There is story to be told regarding the chosen KY senators that will adorn each batch. This, batch #1, is named for Alben W. Barkley (who also served as VP under Harry S. Truman). Of note he was a prohibitionist and anti-gambler. I can’t once again help but see the irony in the use of the Brown Forman Old Forester bottle... Enough with the bottle already. I’ve been fooled before. Especially by overpriced NDP offerings. Number one offender was Sam Houston KY-3 (over-oaked Barton bananas at a low proof, the latter of which showed all of its flaws). There are others but in the interest of time the question today is - considering VFM would I buy this again over OF 1920? At first crack there are striking similarities. A cannon of cherries and oak blast the nose. There is underlying butterscotch, peanut brittle, allspice and floral notes. This hits the palate above the labeled 107 proof with a viscous feel, a dance of honey and apples that weren’t on the nose as much and then a tannic leather turn to show its age. Back on the nose I can appreciate the leather. Subsequent sips bring around more cherries, bright citrus (orange and lemon zest), tobacco, brown sugar, and a dance between acidic and tannic. Odd, but the lengthy finish is full of citrus fruit and wood while vanilla notes take a back seat. Ok, so this is not over-oaked, proofed down 1920. It could be Brown Forman, Beam or Barton but is akin to the first more than the others for me. The long finish though... so much citrus, wood, leather and a hint of banana? What is King of Kentucky like? Based on descriptions I imagine fans of that offering would be pleased with this one. Would I buy this over 4 bottles of 1920? That would be a very, very hard sell to do it again. That said, I enjoy this quite a bit. I’m afraid it won’t be for everyone and wonder what others who scooped it up so quickly we’re expecting. 1920 would be more of a crowd pleaser while the tannic elements here might be off putting for some. Also drinks above its proof - although I’m once again in favor of this. I (likely) won’t go for another backup bottle but don’t have much on my shelf that rivals it. If you have $200 lying around and have tried everything else then I say go for it. If you’re still exploring the $40-60 range and prefer Buffalo Trace or Basil Hayden then consider passing.