Bourbon

Knob Creek 12 Year Bourbon

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Knob Creek 12 Year
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

50% ABV
$60
Website
Knob Creek 12 Year Bourbon

What the Distillery Says

Full proof for full flavor. An honest Pre-Prohibition style bourbon.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Rich fudge and caramel (like freshly baked turtle brownies), walnuts, charred oak, brown sugar, nutmeg, hint of graham cracker and leather.
Palate:  Rich dark chocolate with caramel, nutmeg, cinnamon, oak, vanilla, brown sugar, cracked pepper and a hint of peanut brittle.
Finish:  Moderately long with drying cocoa, oak and baking spices.
Comments:  Launched initially as a limited offering in 2019, this is now part of the standard offering. Wow – I’ve long been a fan of Knob Creek, and was disappointed when they dropped (although recently brought back) the 9 year age statement. Older single barrel offerings showed how this whiskey carries a few extra years well. I get a brownie flavor I really love, and while I’m not a big fan of a lot of oak – this is pushing that envelope without going over. The Beam house style with a peanutty-note is either missing, or really faint (which I’ve noticed that as the bourbon ages and the proof goes up, that distinction seems to fade). Fans of Knob Creek definitely need to give this one a try – damn solid bourbon.

Rating: Must Try

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Barrell Bourbon Batch 027

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Barrell Bourbon Batch 027

57.85% ABV
$90
Website
Barrell Bourbon Batch 027
We would like to thank Barrell Craft Spirits and Ro-Bro Marketing & PR for sending us a sample to review.

What the Blender Says

Barrell Bourbon Batch 027 started with 6-year-old fruit forward barrels from Tennessee and 5-year-old spice forward barrels from Indiana. After these were blended together, 13 and 15-year-old barrels with more wood tannin and depth were layered in and a select number of 9-year-old barrels with a higher rye content were blended in for spice and assertiveness. Finally, 5 and 8-year-old wheated bourbon barrels were added to soften the batch, brighten the front palate, and solidify a cohesiveness to an otherwise extremely complex flavor profile.

  • A blend of straight Bourbon Whiskeys
  • Distilled and aged in Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana
  • Selection of 5, 6, 8, 9, 13, and 15-year-old barrels
  • Aged in American white oak barrels
  • Bottled in Kentucky
  • 115.7 proof cask strength bottling
  • Mash bill: corn, rye and malted barley

FLAVOR NOTES
Many bourbons just taste like caramel, some older bourbons taste like oak, but this — this bourbon is a cherry bomb. At times bright and juicy, at others, brooding and oxidized, but while there are many flavors to be found, cherry stands above them all.

​Neat
Appearance: Carrot.
Nose: Supporting notes that span sweet desserts, woodsy herbs, and rich oils, but their presence is an afterthought to the singular and intense focus of this whisky’s nose, and that focus is squarely on old, comforting cherry. The oak is sweet and nutty, displaying amaretto and sweet, raisonated grapes. Deeper bass notes of sweet potato pie, walnut shells, and freshly ground coffee flesh out the aromatic register. The influence of rye is subtle here, potpourri, earl grey tea, and bouquet garni whisper at the periphery.
Palate: The candied texture that falls short of syrupy and a just-gentle tannin suggest minimal oak extraction but significant concentration over long years spent slowly evaporating in a rickhouse. Like the nose, a bright, juicy acidity puts the focus squarely on a note of cherry so monumental that almost nothing else breaks through. A bit more floral than the nose, candied violet and lavender are just able to peek through, along with a steely minerality. Eventually, some oxidized notes evoke an old oloroso sherry, among them hazelnut, molé sauce, and stewed mushroom.
Finish: A gentle, yet complex finish that makes one imagine a flavor wheel in thin air. This mysterious yet fruity bourbon leaves the palate with blood orange, rosehip, hibiscus, and sumac.

With a few drops of spring water
Lychee, pineapple and honeydew melon emerge, and heather, sage, and cigar smoke lend a welcome complexity. This is followed by baklava, Boston cream pie, and a creamy brown ale, which lends a subtle hoppy note to the finish.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Caramel, cherries, roasted walnuts, musty oak, herbal notes of fennel and dried mint with a hint of lavender.
Palate:  Sweet and thick with cherries and honey, vanilla, pepper spice, oak, raisins, cinnamon, and chocolate fudge.
Finish:  Moderately long with caramel and sour cherries.
Comments: Another really well done blend.  Cherries are definitely a prominent note, but to be clear this isn’t one dimensional in any way/shape/form. There is a sherry-like sweetness that I really like, which seems to intensify with a bit of water.  Continue to be impressed with the blending by the folks at Barrell Craft Spirits, and like that they’re not looking for “consistency” across batches.  I liked this almost as much as Batch 026, but if I had to pick a favorite, that one won by a bit – but I can’t see anyone being disappointed in either.

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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Barrell Bourbon Batch 026

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Barrell Bourbon Batch 026

56.32% ABV
$90
Website
Barrell Bourbon Batch 026
We would like to thank Barrell Craft Spirits and Ro-Bro Marketing & PR for sending us a sample to review.

What the Blender Says

Barrell Bourbon Batch 026 was created by combining 9, 10, 11, 13 and 15-year-old barrels in several blending steps. The first was a fusion of 9-year-old high rye barrels peppery and pointed on the palate, 10-year-old oak forward barrels, and sweet, toasty 11-year-old barrels for mouthfeel and classic baking spice notes. The second balanced citrus forward 10, 12 and 15-year-old barrels with spicy, floral 9-year-old high rye barrels. These two blends were gradually co-mingled resulting in an intriguing bourbon that dances between fruit and spice long into its finish.

  • A blend of straight Bourbon Whiskeys
  • Distilled and aged in Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana
  • Selection of 9, 10, 11, 13, and 15-year-old barrels
  • Aged in American white oak barrels
  • Bottled in Kentucky
  • 112.64 proof cask strength bottling

FLAVOR NOTES
Like a well-aged Sauternes, a complex array of fresh, dried, and cooked fruits dominates the aroma, supported by pungent florals and a delicate layer of barrel-spice. The palate is concentrated and extractive, having pulled quite a lot of sugar and peppery spice from the cask. Water tames it, bringing forth a panoply of tropical fruits on the nose and creamy desserts on the palate.

Neat
Appearance: Pumpkin pie.
Nose: Immediately bright and fruity, smelling of white peach, creamy coconut, and prickly rhubarb, followed by dried or cooked fruits, among them golden raisin, candied grapefruit peel, and roasted red pepper. Pungent florals are intermixed, notably rosehip and meadowsweet. As one’s nose adjusts, richer, sweeter notes of beeswax, toasted almond, and tiramisu arrive. They sit atop a dusting of allspice, spearmint, ginger ale and charcoal.
Palate: A bit brash, but well balanced and with only modest tannin. Initially the flavor is dark and complex, on molasses, black cherry soda, and root beer barrel candy. The palate is rounded out by slate, salt, green apple and a little horseradish.
Finish: Advances the cooked-fruit theme put forth by the nose, cycling through candied grapefruit peel, grape jam, cardamom and allspice. It fades with a mineral tingle of iron and wood smoke.

With a few drops of spring water
Tropical fruit aromas become the focus, particularly starfruit, pineapple, and limoncello. Geranium and vanilla lend to the exotic feeling. The palate grows richer and silkier, with toasted pumpernickel, quince paste, mocha and horchata.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Salted caramel, vanilla, graham cracker, hot cocoa with marshmallows, raisins, oak, hint of cedar, touch of honey with mint, allspice and nutmeg.
Palate:  Thick and spicy with citrus zip, caramel, honey, bit of maple syrup with apples and tropical fruit notes.
Finish:  Moderately long, thickly sweet with chocolate and coconut.
Comments: Quite a complex pour – one that I really enjoy simply nosing and pondering.  Another shining example of the blending skills of the fine folks at Barrell Craft Spirits.  I’ve yet to try a batch I didn’t think was damn fine (with some being more in my wheelhouse than others).  And I remain equally impressed with whomever does their tasting notes (reading them after making my own, I often find notes I didn’t nail but think “Oh yeah – THAT was there!”).  I tasted this along side Bourbon Batches 018 & 027, and of those three – this was my favorite (although I wouldn’t turn away any of the others!)

Rating: Must Try

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Barrell Bourbon Batch 018

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Barrell Bourbon Batch 018

55.78% ABV
$90
Website
Barrell Bourbon Batch 018

What the Blender Says

Barrell Bourbon Batch 018 is a cinnamon bomb of a bourbon. We began with a juicy and tropical 11-year-old blend and layered in more structured and spice-driven 14 and 15-year-old barrels to give this batch a serious amount of character and bite.

  • A blend of straight Bourbon Whiskeys
  • Distilled and aged in Tennessee and Kentucky
  • Selection of 11, 14 and 15-year-old barrels
  • Aged in American white oak barrels
  • Crafted and bottled in Kentucky
  • 111.56 proof cask strength bottling
  • Mash bill: corn, rye and malted barley

FLAVOR NOTES
A blend of straight bourbons with all the comfort of your favorite Old Fashioned — sweet and rich with notes of honey, orange and cherry. Coffee and tropical fruit on the palate lead into an earthy finish that invites thoughtful contemplation as the whiskey continues to evolve.

Neat
Appearance: Wildflower honey with brassy highlights.
Nose: Opens rich and fruity, on orange liqueur and maraschino syrup, with underpinnings of cardamom, juniper, and incense. With air, a note of sweet vermouth arrives then evolves into concord grape jam and mint shisha. Slowly, exotic notes of papaya, finger lime, and gooseberry lift above the milieu.
Palate: The flavor of wildflower honey joins the orange liqueur and sweet vermouth from the nose but these sweet flavors are balanced by tangy pomegranate and strawberry. Subtle notes of dark chocolate and kahlua lend it depth.
Finish: Unexpectedly earthy, with cardamom re-appearing alongside almond, cappuccino, and sumac.

With a few drops of spring water
The fruit grows brighter, introducing notes of tangerine zest, mango, passionfruit and coconut, while mineral notes of limestone and tonic water add even more lift.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Caramel, blood orange, vanilla glazed donut, sandalwood, pecans, cherries, oak, bit of dried mint and vitamins.
Palate:  Fruity with cherries, orange, grilled peaches, honey, bit of chocolate, caramel, mineral note with a hint of sweet vermouth.
Finish:  Moderately long and drying with pepper spice, oak and an earthy mineral note.
Comments: A pretty solid blend. The presence of Dickel is a bit more prominent in this one compared to some others, so if you don’t care for that vitamin/minerality often found there, this might not be your favorite blend.  With some water the mouthfeel thickens nicely, and I got more floral notes on the nose as well.  I reviewed this side-by-side with two more recent batches (026 and 027), and this was my least favorite, and was still pretty good.

Rating: Stands Out

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Booker’s 2020-03 “Pigskin Batch”

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Booker’s “Pigskin Batch” Batch 2020-03
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

6 Years, 7 Months, 7 Days
63.65% ABV
$90
Website
Booker's 2020-03 "Pigskin Batch"
We would like to thank Beam Suntory and Multiply for sending us a sample to review.

What the Distillery Says:

The third release of the Booker’s® Bourbon 2020 Collection is Booker’s Batch 2020-03 “Pigskin Batch.” This batch is a nod to 6th Generation Master Distiller Booker Noe’s love of American football, which eventually became a whole family affair.

Booker was a good football player back in the day, playing both tackle and kicker on his high school team. He was quick for his size — standing 6 feet 4 inches tall and weighing close to 300 pounds — and strong from working as a farm hand growing up. Although he ultimately never pursued a college football career, he was talented enough to practice with the team when he attended the University of Kentucky as a freshman – a rare honor in those days.

Anyone who knew Booker knew his love of football. Whether it was his favorite team on the television or his son and grandson playing in the backyard, Booker loved watching a game and made the sport into a true Noe family tradition.

TASTING NOTES

Like all batches of Booker’s Bourbon, Booker’s “Pigskin Batch” was selected by 7th Generation Master Distiller Fred Noe to ensure it upholds the qualities and standards that his dad set for Booker’s Bourbon more than 30 years ago and that fans of the brand have come to know and love. Uncut and unfiltered, Booker’s “Pigskin Batch” has a beautiful light brown color. The aroma contains brown sweets and slight vanilla notes. The flavor is big and bold with a finish that is long and warm.

Booker’s “Pigskin Batch” is best enjoyed neat, over ice or with a few drops of water.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Salted caramel, vanilla crème brûlée slightly over-roasted, heavy oak, pecan praline, peanut brittle and chocolate.
Palate:  Rich mouthfeel with heavy caramel, spice notes of nutmeg and pepper kicking in with dark chocolate, oak and a bit of orange.
Finish:  Moderately long, drying with dark chocolate, oak and citrus spice.
Comments:  A really nice pour. I don’t have all of the various batches from 2020 to try to compare against, although in a blind side-by-side against 2018-04 “Kitchen Table” and 2013-06, I did find I preferred this one (which is props as I really liked 2013-06, one of the initial ’roundtable’ batches). The variation is subtle from batch to batch, and I found this one to be more on the sweet side, with a bit less spice and oak. Takes water really well, although I don’t mind it at bottling proof. The streak of “hadn’t met a Booker’s I didn’t like” remains unbroken!

Rating: Must Try/Stands Out

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