This is my official deep dive into Jefferson’s. Feel free to skip ahead to the tasting, because there are going to be a bunch of these cheesy intros, all copy/paste. ~~~~~~~~~~ Concept: I walk into a liquor store and see like a billion different Jefferson’s bottles, yet my knowledge of them is minimal. My perception is that I typically don’t care for their stuff, but somehow, before choosing to start this experiment, I already had six different Jefferson’s on my shelf. How did they invade my house? ~~~~~~~~~~ Methodology: Step 1: Jefferson’s Very Small Batch. Patient 0. Where it all started? Never had it, so a damn good place to start. This one was bought specifically for this experiment. Step 2: Jefferson’s VSB vs Jefferson’s Reserve (Very Old Very Small Batch). I already had this one. How did this get in my house? Step 3: Jefferson’s VSB vs Jefferson’s Ocean. Is it a gimmick? Again, how did this get in my house? Step 4: Jefferson’s Ocean standard vs Jefferson’s Ocean wheated mash bill. Repeat house question. Step 5: Finished Jefferson’s. I got rum, Sauternes, and Prichard Hill. Let’s do this. Step 6: Blind taste test with all 7. Hell, throw in Chef’s Collaboration. (Seriously, how?) So there’s 8. Can I pick them out based on steps 1-5? Are there any standout Jefferson’s expressions, or is it all marketing? The stakes are so low, the tension is palpable. ~~~~~~~~~~ Disclaimer: Starting this, I don’t much care for Jefferson’s in general. There’s this weird gummy-bear-ness that I can’t shake. Hoping to find my Jefferson’s product by the time this is over. ~~~~~~~~~~ Jefferson’s Reserve, aka “Step 2” Okay, so THERE’S the Jefferson’s I recall not liking. I knew it had to be there somewhere. On the nose, there’s some form of jelly. I usually say grape, but it’s more of a raspberry right now. There’s vanilla and oak too, but that jelly is dominant. Body is back to grape jelly. It hits in full force. Midway through the body there’s a mustiness that creeps in. I’d have to call it a dust flavor. Don’t love it, but it’s familiar. I think I’ve had it before in some Elijah Craig variants. It fades away as the dram goes on. There’s a bit of fresh cedar too. Finish is very mild in feel, with a peppery taste and a pleasant tongue burn. Bit of cedar carries through, but the pepper is the main star. So this dram has that grape jelly flavor that I negatively associate with Jefferson’s, but it’s far more palatable than it was in other versions I’ve had previously, particularly the Sauternes finish. I don’t hate this drink, but I do find it very interesting that it’s not as good IMO as the cheaper basic option. It’s also unfortunate for me that so many of these little bastards on my shelf are variants of Jefferson’s Reserve. Assuming the blending is similar before the cask finish, I’m still hoping the cask finishes can tone down that jelly flavor.