This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 11 I first had Bakers standard at Jim Beam. I didn’t like it at all, but I don’t remember why. I also wasn’t a huge fan of any bourbon at the time, and the only one of the machine squirts I actually enjoyed was Kathleen’s Batch. A lot has changed, and this bottle is an 8.5 year aged single barrel version. When I bought it, I honesty thought it was the one being sold all over secondary (Baker’s 13). Was a bit disappointed when I figured it out, but still intrigued. Before I bought it I asked a shelf-stocker at my honey hole if this was a noticeably different flavor profile from Bakers 7 Small Batch, and he wisely shrugged and said, “You should buy it and come back and let me know.” So here we are. The nose is floral and fresh. There’s a honeysuckle sweetness there too, and a bit of lemon. It’s a really solid nose. The flavors on the body don’t stand out as strongly as some bourbons, but I think that’s less a statement of flavor fullness and more of flavor compatibility. The lemon is there, but as it is in lemonade; no bitterness. Sweetness come mainly via a syrup note, but I can get powdered sugar instead at times. Finish is mild on flavor, but buzzes the bejesus out of your lips and back of tongue. I like that combo a lot. A slight bitterness kicks in on the backend via a sweet tea note. The one word that summarizes this drink: compatibility. It doesn’t make any crazy bold attempts, but it pulls in a lot of enjoyable notes that work together well. Just finished 2 fingers, going to go pour another 2. Very happy to have this bottle, and I will likely buy another if available once this runs out. Additionally, I would like to formally apologize to the Baker’s line for all the shade I’ve thrown over the past 1.5 years. I may have told an employee at Jim Beam that it tasted like Glenmorangie Lasanta had an unwanted lovechild with Knob Creek, and I especially apologize for that. You’ve produced something excellent here. Let’s makeup under the mistletoe. ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 20 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments.