Sam Houston 14 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon

This one has gotten all kinds of hype and there are dozens of batches around so I jumped on the KY-3 after passing on the first 2 batches. Nose - so right off the bat I'm kinda getting Barton'd out. I like their juice and I've had some really good stuff, but it's kinda also becoming boring when everyone is releasing another 12-14 year single barrel with similar profiles. I do get a bit more oak smoke and oak than some of these. Adds a nice balance to the apples and cinnamon spices I tend to find here. Vanilla notes but a thinner less creamy vanilla. Taste - Up front a lot of classic barton, sweet, fruity, then going into spices. The mid pallet starts to get a bit funky with old bourbon notes coming through and then the finish is more rye spice, a lot more old antique oak barrels. I'm really impressed with some of these notes here. I think these barrels they're blending (3 barrels in this batch) are really finding a way to push the complexity up in a very good way. Outstanding blending and down right tasty bourbon. I'm in for another at this price point to be honest with you. I just wish some other distilleries could get some 12-14 year stuff out at under 150 bucks and at reasonable proofs. 3.25, well above average, but not exceptional. I'd have to debate this vs cream of kentucky vs down home 12 year batch 2. Not sure where I scored all those, but this would be the one to get for the weller fans as it's sweeter and seems to be going in a similar direction as WLW. Not sure why I made that connection but here we are. Cream is more generic bourbon, but exceptional at that. And downhome is more oak and spice and a bit more complex and assertive. I'm clearly in the down home camp and I think it is the better whisky of the group in scoring as there's more to it, but that doesn't mean you'll like it more than this.

An ultra-aged bourbon that was done very well. For just under $120 I think this has amazing value. It drinks like a special occasion whiskey. Judging by the neck pour alone, the longer you let it open up in the glass your experience changes drastically. Sit with this one for about 30 minutes and watch it open up into a nice and complex sweet bourbon. Notes of Caramel, Vanilla, Leather, Tobacco, coconut, brown sugar. There are so many distinct notes in this one. An awesome bottle all around and worth the money.

Fantastic long finish