Kentucky is an odd land filled with lovely people. Being a transplant I found it odd initially that I could look people in the eye and not feel like someone would pick a fight with me. Nowadays (a word that seems apropos for KY) I’m accustom to conversing with complete strangers over bourbon, my belt or whatever. I’ve also learned that tracking down great bottles is a giant pain in the ass and often a waste of time if you can find the right bar. Enter a 1oz pour if this SFTB Blanton’s for $26. Most places in town would charge 5x that but tonight I got lucky. Out with friends, in the open air and a glass in my hand. Actually part of a dream flight - paired with a 2019 GTS and a 2019 WLW, the nose (comparatively and unfairly) was next to nothing. With time my senses returned (nosing WLW first ruined things a bit). Soft aromas of candy cigarettes, honey, sawdust/oak, apricot, marshmallow, bubblegum, cinnamon, allspice, cola, and lastly some faint spearmint. The palate was light and not as hot as expected for 129.2 proof. Flavors of sawdust, honey, apple pie, allspice, a bit if black walnut, marshmallow, clove, toffee, buttered rye bread all roll in and out slowly. This is so much better than standard Blanton’s it’s not even funny. It also has the most rye of any of these three pours and aside from that faint spearmint giveaway from the empty glass I would never have know. As far as bourbon hysteria goes - just don’t. It is probably as tasty or complex as an array of $100 to $200 bottles that are more readily available, which is a compliment. I have to believe that a handful of non-mashbill 2 products for around $60-80 can match or beat this but tonight is for tall tales and unicorns.