Old Tub Kentucky Straight Bourbon

This was on sale and grabbed a bottle for as an affordable sipping bourbon, when I want to have a drink without putting any thought into what I am drinking (or very little thinking about it). A sipper when winding down work week on a Friday. I like those complex scotches or whiskies. But sometimes I just want to unplug while sipping and just roll with the flow. The nose is light with a sweetness and as astringency. Karl corn syrup, corn flakes, caramel, peanut brittle sprinkled with baking spices of cinnamon and nutmeg. The ethanol is ever present, hovering over the aromas. The body is oily and slightly dense. The flavors are washed out by the alcohol and what is detectable is vanilla extract, cinnamon, salted peanuts and wood spices. Add a little water to reduce the ethanol. The peanut brittle and vanilla are pulled forward. This is preferable with water/ice. This is a finish of ethanol, vanilla and light oak char and black pepper spice, all of which runs briefly. Did expect this to be a genie in a bottle? No. This is exactly what I expected it to be. An affordable dram for simplicity to have for impromptu occasions or social gatherings. For the price, it’s not bad, but all things considered, for the same reasons and occasions, Wild Turkey 101 is more robust and probably the better choice. [$25][82/100][Tasted: 11/22/20]

This is an unusual bourbon for me. On the nose I mostly get an earthy grass, like hay. But there is also something sweet hiding in there that reminds me a little of vanilla ice cream. Tasting, the sweet caramel and vanilla show up front and center. Then that grassy flavor shows up very heavy and just a little bitter. There’s a dark fruit in there too, but it’s not too sweet and not tart. Unlike many of the other Jim Beam products I’ve tried, there’s no real oak flavor and I kind of miss it. The finish is dry with a long alcohol burn. Not my favorite. This bourbon is good, but not great. It’s different from most of the other bourbons I’ve tried. It tastes very good and very interesting. There are several flavors in there I can’t quite place. But the alcohol burn at the end is unpleasant. However, the addition of a little water or ice tame that burn pretty well. For the price, this would be a great summer time sipper on ice on a hot day. Unfortunately it only became available in my state in November.

Great price, full flavored but a bit rough around the edges.

Hard to beat the value. Buttery slick, brown sugar, stone fruit, pepper, cinnamon, vanilla, floral softness

Pine forest, oak, oily... smooth!

Enjoying a pour neat from a buddies house Nose - never had a bourbon I don’t like the smell of but here we are. Ethanol burn, oak and char. Taste - sweet up front nice honey and cinnamon. The middle and finish are very robust with a lot of oak and char. Not much going on here. Overall - won’t be adding this to my collection. Nose is bad, bottle branding is ok, name is about as bad as it gets and makes me think was this put in an old tub before bottled?

Charred cinnamon. Not bad but definitely not a budget bourbon I’m excited about.