It's been a while since I've had this. I keep a bottle or two in the liquor closet in case friends would like a nip, but I've not developed much of a fascination for it. I think my last taste of BT was in 2016 or thereabouts... I was in a local LS just a day or two ago and they had BT 1 liter bottles for $28 - 1 per customer - and I figured it might be a good social isolation candidate for revisitation. I'm half way through that bottle, here's my update.
Tasted neat from a glencairn. The nose is much sweeter than I recall. Vanilla, caramel, slight ethanol, touch of latex paint. It's not off-putting., but after spending some time sniffing, tasting and contemplating I have to say the nose, while not objectionable, isn't really impressive. With this being under $30/liter I'm not expecting miracles, but I fail to see why people will chase this and take selfies with their "trophy" when it's really no more impressive than a Woodford or a Dickel. Just based on the nose, I expect a sweet and inoffensive profile but I'm not geting any trace of magic.
On the tongue this is a sweet bourbon with a short(ish) finish. It's got some nice candy notes and a good bit of vanilla and some solid barrel oak. The finish is definitely off. There's a sour or bitter note to the finish that just leaves me cold. It's an okay whiskey, but I just can't bring myself to love it. I have the same reaction to Gentleman Jack and Woodford Reserve. Nothing wrong with them, but there's nothing to excite, either.
Everyone knows what this tastes like, so let's cut to the chase. I'm not going to wax poetic about it, it's boring. As in, this isn't a great whiskey. It's not complex, it's cloyingly sweet, it has a short, sour finish. It's a solid drink for its price point, but I"ll buy Evan Williams BiB, Evan Williams Single barrel, or Jim Beam BiB before I'll buy this again.
My scale is 1 to 5 and a median whiskey should score a 2.5. Most big name, mass market bottles are going to land between 2 and 3. Over 3 is good. 4 and above is truly superb. This is an okay whiskey, completely average in every way. I'll even give it an extra quarter point for great marketing.
28.0
USD
per
Bottle
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While I certainly like this better than y'all I have to admit each time I get a bottle my score goes down a little. Thinking I prefer other mashbills
@MarkZ we're looking at the world through the same pair of glasses.
And I’ll go ahead and say that base Woodford is a lot better in my opinion. It doesn’t have that unpleasant finish. And gentlemen jack at least has the banana bomb going for it with a very smooth finish. Both would be preferable to Buffalo Trace.
This is dead on. It’s almost become a cult favorite, and I’ve noticed the majority who favor it haven’t really stepped out of their whiskey comfort zone. This is a boring whiskey with a terrible finish that leaves you wanting to almost toss it out. It’s a cocktail whiskey at best.