Yellowstone Kentucky Straight Bourbon 9 Year (2019 Limited Edition)

A very excited moment for me indeed. I don't want to type too much unnecessarily just so I can get to this bourbon. The color is very great here, maybe even a little darker than is to be expected given the proof and 12 year being the max age. I called the distillery directly for some more information on this prior to purchasing, and the gentleman shared that he gets a lot of cinnamon on the nose. I believe that, even if I had not had that phone call at all, I would certainly agree with him. The cinnamon is stewed a bit, like you might find in a hot toddy. In addition to this, I get strong oak and dust notes, which I usually find mostly in cask strength bourbons, but not necessarily higher age (although it makes sense). The only thing I feared with this is coming true during the first taste; the lower proof (in my opinion) causes all other subsequent tastes to seem watery and distant a bit. I'm exaggerating a little, but I definitely believe limited editions like this should always be full proof (after all, this would make it even more limited edition). Despite this, the dusty notes make up most of the body, with plenty of deep caramel and other general high age bourbon notes. That cinnamon from the nose is here, but it seems to be split to a little on the initial taste and a little on the finish. Surprisingly, contrary to my earlier diss, the finish is very long and hot, and makes the proof seem much higher than it is. Given that Limestone Branch kind of wipes the board clean each year for their Yellowstone Limited Edition and does something completely different the next, there can really be no model of comparison here. If we're going off the original Yellowstone, then this seems like a completely different distillery. Even if the mash bill is the same (and there's no evidence to suggest it wouldn't be), the dusty flavor and feeling of finding an attic whiskey reminds me of a similar product from one of the other Beam affiliates, albeit with that one being a much higher proof and yet less age. I've had a few super high aged bourbons (15 year + in my book), and this one has a similar flavor while also getting away with a lower proof. All in all, this was a very excellent addition and a perfect example of "If it ain't broke..."

Oak, caramel and brown sugar

Really good bourbon. On the nose lovely spiceness with caramel and vanilla. Taste: what comes first, oily brown sugar and medium to long warming finish. Good whiskey. Tried sample from TWE.