Bourbon

Old Bardstown Bottled In Bond

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Old Bardstown Bottled In Bond
50% ABV
$22 – $25
Website

What the Distiller Says
Tasting notes courtesy of Bill Thomas, Jack Rose Dining Saloon
The nose is “Fun Dip” candy, that sugary stick dipped into cherry flavoring. The palate is a cherry hard candy, an oily mouth feel, vanilla caramel candies and notes of oak. This is the best value in Bourbon for 2016.
Please Note: This Bourbon is exclusively available in Kentucky.

What Gary Says
Nose: Vanilla wafers, grape bubble gum, young malt, a hint of anise with a sharp oakey solvent note.
Palate:  Tart cherries, caramel, a fruity/grape juice note with cracked pepper; a thin mouthfeel.
Finish:  Short and dry with pepper.
Comments:  I’m a fan of bottled-in-bond bourbon. While four years old may still be on the young side, there are a lot of solid bourbons that carry the bottled-in-bond designation. This didn’t remind me of any of them. Honestly, if given this blind and asked to guess what it was, “bourbon” wouldn’t be one of my first three guesses! Some have posted the mashbill for this as having 15% malted barley, which if true is a higher barley content than most other bourbons out there – and may account for the unique aroma and flavor. I’m not sure I can say it is exactly off-putting, since I particularly enjoy finding unique and interesting drams to ponder over! But if you’re looking for a classic bourbon profile – I think many might be disappointed.
Rating: Probably Pass

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Wild Turkey 101 – 8 Years Old (Dusty, 1984 Decanter)

/ / Bourbon, Review, The Collector's Cabinet /

Wild Turkey 101 – 8 Years Old (Dusty, 1984 Decanter)
50.5% ABV
$80
NOTE: This was a decanter I purchased in 2014 in Georgia with an exceptional fill level and decanted.


What Gary Says
Nose:  Rich salted caramel, oak, allspice, brown sugar, dark chocolate, vanilla, a hint of cinnamon and smokey fall leaves.
Palate:  Sweet but sharp, deep caramel bomb with honey, vanilla, some bitter chocolate notes, cinnamon, nutmeg, a hint of clove and pepper.
Finish:  Moderately long and drying with cracked pepper spice.
Comments:  I love older Wild Turkey, and this decanter was not an exception. Buying a sealed decanter is a gamble – it is difficult to tell how full it is, or if the contents will be drinkable. I’ve seen a few that were fairly full but clearly contaminated (looking dark like coffee and smelling “off”). I was very fortunate; this had less than 5% loss in the 30 years it spent in the decanter, and its color was a lovely dark copper. The risk of a low fill or contaminated contents is the only reason I wouldn’t rate this a ‘Must Buy’, since there is absolutely some risk you have to accept. But when you get lucky – it is well worth it!
Rating: Must Try

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Four Roses OESQ

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Four Roses Single Barrel Private Selection
Recipe OESQ, 10 years and 4 months old 

53.6% ABV
$55 – $80
Website

What the Distiller Says

The Recipe:
OESQ is currently only available as a private selection bottling at the distillery gift shop or possibly at a local liquor store near you. This particular bottle was a Wine Palace in Livonia selection, purchased in December 2014.

Unlocking the recipe codes goes like this…

“O” starts all of Four Roses’ recipes and only means that it is made by Four Roses in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky.

“E” mean that this is the lower rye content of the two mashbills that Four Roses uses, specifically 75% Corn, 20% Rye, and 5% Malted Barley

“S” means that it is Straight Whiskey by U.S. Regulatory definition, again all their products carry this designation

“Q” distinguishes the yeast strain used. This specific one impacts more of a floral character onto the distillate

What Gary Says:

Nose: Floral fabric softner, fruitcake, rice pudding over oak.
Palate: A warm sherry sweetness gives way to hot cinnamon candy; some notes of pecans and chocolate.
Finish: Moderately long and drying, with a pepper spice bite at the end.
Comments: The ‘Q’ yeast was one of the harder ones for me to find, and has always been hit or miss for me. Every ‘Q’ selection I’ve tried had unmistakenable floral characteristics, and this one is no exception. I really like this particular bottle. I don’t often get sherry sweetness in bourbon, so that makes it uniquely interesting.

Rating: Stands Out

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Four Roses OESK

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Four Roses Single Barrel Private Selection
Recipe OESK, 9 years and 7 months old

58.2% ABV
$55 – $80
Website

What the Distiller Says

The Recipe:
OESK is currently only available as a private selection bottling at the distillery gift shop or possibly at a local liquor store near you. This particular bottle was a Liquor Barn selection, bottled 8/12/2013.

Unlocking the recipe codes goes like this…

“O” starts all of Four Roses’ recipes and only means that it is made by Four Roses in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky.

“E” mean that this is the lower rye content of the two mashbills that Four Roses uses, specifically 75% Corn, 20% Rye, and 5% Malted Barley

“S” means that it is Straight Whiskey by U.S. Regulatory definition, again all their products carry this designation

“K” distinguishes the yeast strain used. This specific one impacts more of a slightly spicy character onto the distillate

What Gary Says:

Nose: Vanilla, caramel, cinnamon dusted creme brluee, oak, cigar paper and sublte hints of fruit salad; a tad hot/harsh neat.
Palate: Warm sweetness that sharpens quickly, tart cherries  on vanilla wafers with cinnamon and honey, a spicy pepper bite at the end.
Finish: Moderately long with trailing pepper spice.
Comments: This bourbon definitely improves with water. The nose still has oak, but the cinnamon is tamped down and I get an interesting malted milkball note. This bottle is a solid representative of the K yeast. Personally I prefer the OB mashbill over the OE mashbill (more rye, less corn), but there isn’t anything objectionable about this pour. I bought this bottle as part of my quest to own one bottle of all 10 possible recipes, and I’m glad I did that. With any single barrel, there will be a some variation – although this is the only OESK I’ve ever owned. I’ve had several OBSO and OBSV picks over the years, and while the recipe does stands out – some are better than others.

Rating: Stands Out

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Early Times Bottled-In-Bond

/ / Bourbon, Review / ,

Early Times Bottled-In-Bond

50% ABV
$23
Website
Early Times Bottled-In-Bond

What the Distiller Says

Early Times, a brand of Brown-Forman, introduced limited-edition Bottled In Bond Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky. The spirit is a tribute to the 75th anniversary of the original Early Times bonded bourbon recipe, the company says. Early Times Bottled in Bond Bourbon follows the guidelines of bonded bourbons and is crafted with pure water, a high corn mash bill and a proprietary yeast strain. The distillate rests in new, charred American oak barrels for a minimum of four years, resulting in a smooth and complex bourbon rich in taste a character, it says. The 50 percent alcohol-by-volume spirit offers flavors of caramel corn that melds with shortbread cookie coated with a hint of chocolate and oak with a trace of cinnamon spice, it adds. Available in Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Oregon, Bottled In Bond has a suggested retail price of $22.99 for a 1-liter bottle.

[NOTE: I couldn’t find a direct reference on Brown-Forman’s web-site, so the above information is from Beverage Industry Magazine’s post. The same or very similar content was found on multiple other sources.]

What Gary Says

Nose:  Thick and rich, brown sugar, freshly baked brownies, vanilla, caramel, toasted oak.
Palate:  Rich sweetness (but not overly so), vanilla, salted caramel sundae with notes of chocolate and some oak.
Finish:  Moderately long and wet, a bit peppery at the end.
Comments:  I really like this bourbon – hands down my favorite new whiskey I tried in 2017 (excluding any unicorns/limited editions). Is it a complex, thinking dram? No, but damned if this isn’t one of the more satisfying new bourbons I’ve tried in a while. Rich and intense flavor – and I don’t know that you could beat it for the money. My only regret is only buying just the one bottle when I saw it (thinking “Hey – a liter bottle will last longer, right?”) If you’re like I was, recalling the disappointment that was Early Times 354 bourbon, I think you’ll be rewarded by giving Brown Forman another chance (I mean – not like they don’t know how to make delicious bourbon!) For the money (did I mention this is a 1 liter bottle?), this is an absolute “Must Buy”. I can’t imagine anyone buying this blind and feeling like it was a mistake.

Rating: Must Buy; Great Value

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