geologyjane
Knob Creek Small Batch Bourbon (NAS)
Bourbon — Kentucky, USA
Reviewed
October 8, 2019 (edited January 28, 2020)
Between a busy travel schedule for work and simmering over the new tariffs on some of my favorite things, I’m getting behind on my whisk(e)y reviews.
I did a simple lineup of 3 budget bourbons (about $25 or less) earlier this week. Let’s see how Knob Creek’s Small Batch Bourbon stacked up.
Mashbill: 75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Barley
ABV: 50.0%
Price: $25.99
Nose: Rich, sweet, and spicy. Amber honey, vanilla, leather, cream, almond paste, dark cherry. Herbal notes. Intriguingly complex.
Palate: The nose didn’t mislead. Lots of flavors and textures here. Rich, full, sweet, and spicy. Toffee, rye spice, almond paste, cherries, a touch of mint, and oak. A little bit of herbs and salt. A nice flavor profile, but a touch rough on mouthfeel and execution. A splash of water tamed the unevenness a bit but brought more bitter notes forward for me.
Finish: Warm and sweet, then drying astringency with whiffs of cherries. This dram hangs around.
A bit brash and rowdy, this bourbon doesn’t go down as smoothly as many others I’ve had, so despite its relative complexity at this price point, that (and the bitter off-note) hurts its score a little bit. It’s a decent dram, but I’d reach for other bottles* in this price range before this one.
3.0 ~ 76 ~ Average
*As the great equalizer in my tasting, Eagle Rare 10 won against the Knob Creek and the other 2 bourbons I tasted when I added it to the competition. Tough VFM to beat!
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@geologyjane I used the same logic. Bought their Whisky Show Caol Ila 9 yr old and Ben Nevis one.
@PBMichiganWolverine - I tried to prioritize things that a) I have a really hard time finding on shelves nearby me and/or b) things I may not want to gamble on at 25% more. I didn’t go with anything too crazy, but I did pick up some Glenglassaugh’s and Glendronach’s I’m excited about.
@geologyjane nice. What did you get ?
@jonwilkinson7309 @PBMichiganWolverine - I did the same also. If that info is accurate, I’m crossing my fingers that my order gets here before the 18th...
Appreciate the heads up, @BDanner! I see store picks of Four Roses and Eagle Rare fairly regularly but I haven’t seen a store pick for this yet. I’ll keep my eyes peeled...
@jonwilkinson7309 funny—I did the same thing. From TWE, I placed an order for their Whisky Show Caol Ila and BenNevis, along with some samples.
@PBMichiganWolverine Bushmills is made in Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK. Jamesons and most of the rest are in the south, the Republic.
Great review! I've been simmering too, but trying to distract myself by writing reviews and reading true crime books that I find far more pleasant than the current news. And while the tariffs mean closing the wallet and saving some cash on scotch purchases for at least a while, I felt the need to place an emergency order with The Whiskey Exchange after I received the following response from them on Twitter - Hi Jon, It will most likely impact everything that lands in customs on or after the 18th… it has not been confirmed yet on how we will be proceeding from now on but we will make sure all our customers will be made aware! I looked at the official list of tariff products today (after my order was placed) and noticed one iteresting thing - The list calls for tariffs on "Single-malt (or straight) Irish and Scottish Whiskeys" produced in the UK. So apparently the Spice Tree Extravaganza that I included in my order was not emergency purchase material (as a blended Scotch). I don't think I'll regret it though.
@Richard-ModernDrinking so none of the Irish malts are made in the UK part of Ireland I assume...all are in N. Ireland
@PBMichiganWolverine The tariffs targeted UK single malts. Irish whisky is made in the Republic of Ireland.
@geologyjane Great review. I never understood why Distiller merged the old 9 yo and the Small Batch into one entry. I would assume that these two bottles score differently...
@PBMichiganWolverine @geologyjane the Single Barrel is still 9, but store picks can be any age from 9 up. Some 14 and older if you’re lucky.
@BDanner didn’t they have a 14 yr old at some point? It wasn’t priced too badly either
@BDanner - I would love the opportunity to taste the 9 yo (or a revival of it). Reading the tasting notes of others seems to confirm this.
@PBMichiganWolverine - my current understanding is that select single malts from Northern Ireland are subject to the tariffs while the majority of the rest are being spared. As with all things these days though, TBC.... 😞
I’m hoping they follow through with their plan to return the 9yr age statement. Going NAS hurt the profile on this whiskey more than others.
@geologyjane wait...they’re leaving out Irish but not Scottish / British? Are the Irish ones made in Northern Ireland ?
@PBMichiganWolverine - true! My silver lining may be that most Irish whiskies will be spared from the tariffs. As my first love, I can’t resist imbibing in more single pot still delights...
Those new tariffs have a silver lining...I won’t be buying much more UK whiskey after Oct 18...will help the budget 😊