Knob Creek 12 Year Small Batch Bourbon

👃Nose: traditional bourbon with a touch of funky-earth Mouthfeel: full Complexity: medium Finish: long 👅Taste: heavy baking spices 80/100

Birthday gift. Was no disappointed.

Remember the (usually magnificent) 120 proof Single Barrel Select store picks that you could get between 2018 and 2020 for around $60? That sometimes were aged 13, or 14, or even 15 years? That were usually rich and creamy and sweet and dry and exquisitely balanced? Well, this is not that. But it is pretty damn close. Nose is caramel and vanilla and Bit-O-Honey smoothly moving to dried peanuts and toasted oak. Not what I would call exciting, but also much better than most other readily available American whisky. Palate is rich and creamy and sweet. It doesn’t so much coat your mouth as it does climb up your tongue. Dark caramel, brown sugar, burnt honey, fresh nougat and maraschino cherries burst across the palate. When you think it’s heading toward too sweet, it shifts to dry, dark chocolate and the wood finally makes itself known with just a little oaky ash and tannic astringency. Finish is medium-short, and closes with a pleasant caramel note. A nice, flavorful, and balanced drink. Equally suited for generic end of day relaxation, quiet contemplation, or a special occasion shared with friends. Two caveats: 1) This needs air. It needs time in the glass and also gets markedly better with oxidation in the bottle and 2) I’ve seen this on shelves for $120, and it is emphatically not $120 whisky. If you can find it for under $80, I do recommend.

Nose: vanilla, oak, maple Taste: spicy finish, vanilla, oak, nut meg , brown sugar or maple