Batch No. B817-1; Date 03-07-17 (no idea what the date refers to) We don't often get Balcones products in NC, and when we do, this and Rumble are the cheapest offerings on the shelves. I picked this up last summer and have avoided it, it's just not my jam. For a product with a 6-month age statement the color and oak influence are insane. If you were unsure what happens in Texas heat, this is a prime example of what it can do. The nose is a cinnamon bun without vanilla frosting. It is sweet and bready, similar to Brown-Forman products, especially their double oaked offerings. It is sickly sweet on the tongue. Too sweet for my palate, and I have a gigantic sweet tooth. Most BF whiskeys I've had have balanced sugar, oak, and alcohol flavors. That sugar overpowers other nuanced flavors you may get if this was aged in a different climate or had a different mashbill. It tastes very malty to me with the classic malt funk replaced by oak and cinnamon bread. My opinion has not changed since I first bought the bottle. It is too damn sweet. It's kind of like George Dickel going off the rails and adding artificial sweetener to its GD12 or BiB. Actually for me the closest comparison is Rua American Single Malt. Yes I know this is corn and that is malted barley, but I think the similarities in flavor come from aging. Balcones has that Texas heat, Rua has NC heat combined with aging in small barrels. I think the flavor in both is primarily influenced by the oak barrels and not the new make itself. Because the Rua wasn't as sweet and had more complex flavors, I enjoyed it much more. If you are interested in corn whiskey I suggest trying something cheaper first.