dhsilv2
Little Book Chapter 4: Lessons Honored
Blended American Whiskey — Kentucky, USA
Reviewed
September 16, 2020 (edited September 28, 2020)
So I sat on this bottle a few weeks to let it open up, and I've now had it 3-4 times and i had a healthy amount the last time i had it. I also shared this with 4-5 other people so this bottle is WELL opened up vs most I'd expect (bar pours excluded) and yeah I got it pretty much right as it came out in kentucky. I think you can see the blend here on distillers but it's YOUNG and it's an odd blend to say the least.
Nose - So on the nose we get a classic beam dusty nutty element, but it quickly turns to a rye fruity and spicy mix, but then finishes beam bourbon again. This very much reminds me of elements of a knob creek bourbon AND a rye and even gives me hints of bookers. It's odd as the sweetness is in the middle of the nosing and not up front or at the end. It's a bit floral and while in a way it's a mix of everything you expect it's just not "right"? Water teases out a nice apple cinnamon finish, not sure I saw that coming.
Taste - So instantly the first impression is that this is SWEET. The second impression is that it is YOUNG. The last impression is that it is HOT. It's almost a buttery nutty honey upfront, there's apples and pears and then dusty corn, nuts, hay, oak, oak smoke, and a waxy ethanol/corn whisky finish. Water enhances a funky oak note I'd omitted before but now can't miss. There's a caramel and funky oak thing really all through this one. Candy corn.
So I have to it to these guys for a unique whisky. The brown rice, the mix of younger bourbons and older (relatively speaking) rye is a new one for me.
I'm torn at giving this a terrible score for being weird or giving it a decent score for being....well...weird. I'm at 2.0 as I think this is unique and I don't hate it. I just don't like it. For 130 bucks save your money for something else, go find a little book 3 which is way better bourbon or american whisky?
Anyway, this is the first little book that I can't recommend. I however don't want to say it's a pass if you're super adventurous and have deep pockets for your whisky. But maybe try at a bar if possible? I know some places these sit and others like here they fly off the shelf.
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@PBMichiganWolverine strange to say that about batch 2 which was a rye blend and VERY outside of the beam profile, even included candadian rye. Batch 3 is by far the standout, much MUCH older whisky than bookers which is why it was so much more nuanced and complex, though the batch 2 was as well. 1 I only had one pour of. I'm about as vocal a hater of bookers as there is, but I wouldn't compare any of these with that swill. Though this one isn't really better than bookers, but it's at least more nuanced and complex. Bookers is a one trick poney and not even a good one imo.
I’ve had their Little Book batch 1 or 2, I forget. But just like Booker’s, this is just all heat for me. It’s all individuality I know, but personally I like a bit of nuanced complexity.