Baker’s 7 Year Single Barrel
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Serial No. 000185720
Warehouse CL-O (or CL-D)
Date Barreled: 01-2011
Barrel Age: 8 Years, 6 Months
53.5% ABV
$60
Website
We would like to thank Beam Suntory and Multiply for sending us a sample to review.
What the Distillery Says
Every bottle, as unique as the man it’s named for
From still to rickhouse to bottle, a lot of things happen with Baker’s® Single Barrel Bourbon. Weather, length of aging and rickhouse placement all shape the distinct notes and flavors of each barrel. See how and where your bottle was born.
Taste the difference between floor 5, rack 17 & floor 7, rack 21
\No two barrels of Baker’s are the same. Each is as unique as the man the bourbon is named for. Each barrel sits in its own unique place throughout our rickhouses, patiently aging for a minimum of seven years to extract the notes of vanilla trapped within the charred oak.
And with Baker’s there’s no batching or mixing. Each bottle is filled from one singular barrel. Which means inside each bottle is a big, bold bourbon, full of tiny subtle details that change barrel to barrel.
Every family has a rebel. Ours is baker.
He may be soft-spoken, but Jim Beam’s grand-nephew marched to his own drum. In his heyday, Baker would show up for work at the Clermont distillery on his motorcycle, wearing a black leather jacket and his wide-brimmed hat. When this sixth-generation distiller retired, his cousin Booker Noe created Baker’s Bourbon in his honor, inspired by his passion for bourbon and maverick nature.
Pull up a glass
There’s no wrong way to drink Baker’s – whether it’s neat, on the rocks or in a cocktail, you’ll notice strong, traditional bourbon cues, like oak, caramel and vanilla. Bottled at 107 proof, the flavors inside each single barrel really shine through. This full-bodied bourbon really stands out in any cocktail.
What Gary Says
Nose: Salted caramel, vanilla, charred oak, cocoa, bit of anise and clove.
Palate: Caramel, vanilla, cinnamon, pepper, peanut brittle with a bit of honey, followed by anise.
Finish: Moderate in length, drying with caramel and oak.
Comments: I tried this sample side by side with an older Baker’s 7 yr Small Batch (bought in 2019). In late 2019 Beam Suntory announced the change for the Baker’s brand, shifting from a small batch to a single barrel (including a 7 year – same age as the former small batch; and a 13 year). I was a fan of Bakers, with the age and proof hitting my sweet spots (although I wouldn’t have turned my nose up at a barrel proof version!) so was curious how the single barrel variety fared. As a single barrel, there is more variation – and their website actually highlights this point since you can key in your barrel number to get the barrel details. As a geek, I really like that, although I would recommend they put some of those details on the bottle itself. They do give you the age and warehouse, but not the floor/rack on the label. If I’m in the store, having to plug each serial number into the web-site to see which floor and rack the barrel was at (as their site recommends) is more effort than most consumers are going to put into it. Adding those few details to the bottle would be a big plus, and frankly – I’d still go to the web-site when I got home for the other info. The sample I received incidentally was aged on Floor 5, Rack 47 for those keeping score at home. But back to the bourbon – I found the sample I received to be incredibly similar to the small batch, which isn’t a big surprise. That’s good, since I’ve been a fan of the other, but if you’re expecting the single barrel to be wildly different, you may be disappointed (or may not).