Tag: Bonds

Old Grand-Dad, Bottled-in-Bond

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Maker: Jim Beam, Clermont, Kentucky, USAold-grand-dad-bonded

Style: High rye bourbon

Age: NAS (at least 4 years old)

Proof: 100 (50% ABV)

Appearance: Copper with long sticky legs.

Nose: Caramel, butterscotch blondies fresh from the oven, alcohol, cumin.

On the palate: Medium bodied and sweet. Burnt caramel, butterscotch, clove, lavender.

Finish: Corn syrup, dark toffee, fairly hot, long and warming.

Parting words: Old Grand-dad is an old brand, one of the classic “Olds”, the others being Crow, Taylor, Forester, Charter, Fitzgerald and a few others. It was one of the brands Beam acquired when they bought out National Distillers in 1987, the purchase which made them into a major player in the spirits world. While Olds Crow and Taylor were changed to the standard Jim Beam yeast and recipe (some might say they even “trashed” those brands), Beam continued to use the same recipe and even the same yeast strain for Old Grand-Dad. Other variables like proof off the still and into the barrel and warehousing did change though.

At any rate, Old Grand-dad’s vital statistics may have changed somewhat, but it is still one of the best bargains and best kept secrets in the bourbon world. For every poseur on a waiting list for Pappy Van Winkle there are 10 cases of Old Grand-dad being purchased and enjoyed by people who know the value of a solid, unpretentious whiskey. Old Grand-Dad BiB is recommended.

Wild Turkey American Spirit

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Maker: Wild Turkey, Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, USA (Campari)

Age: 15 y/o

Proof: 100 (50% ABV)

Notes: Bottled-in-Bond

Appearance: Auburn with thick, viscous legs.

Nose: Alcohol, peanut butter, leather, citrus blossom. A little grassy with water.

On the palate: Full-bodied and velvety. Alcohol, black walnut, oak, papaya. Water brings out fruity notes. Kiwi, cherry, apricot.

Finish: Warm, woody, some char. Burns in the mouth for a long time.

Parting words: This is the first entry in my occasional series of reviews of so-called dusty whiskeys. American Spirit was a limited edition offering that was discontinued a few years ago (can’t find exact dates). There still should be some in the wild, but they originally sold for around $100. I got mine on sale as a neighboring state was closing the brand out a couple years ago.

Packaging wise, American Spirit teeters on the edge of gaudiness. The pine box the bottles comes in resembles a coffin and the label is a little cheesy with all the gold and script, not to mention the faux tax strip and pompous paragraph on the inside of the coffin lid. The bottle itself is elegant with a smart wooden stopper.

In the grand scheme of things, this is a very good bourbon. It’s very dry and very much in the Wild Turkey house style. It’s not as sought after as Wild Turkey Tribute or the old split label 12 y/o editions, and there’s a reason for that beyond scarcity. Next to those, American Spirit doesn’t hold up well. But on its own terms it’s very good and worth a recommendation although the high price keeps it from entering highly recommended territory. If you haven’t had many of the old Wild Turkey special releases, it’s worth getting.

Col. E.H. Taylor Old Fashioned Sour Mash, Bottled in Bond (1st edition)

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Maker: Buffalo Trace, Frankfort, Kentucky, USA (Sazerac)

Age: 9 y/o

Style: High Corn Bourbon

Proof: 100 (50% ABV)

Appearance: Copper with thick lumbering legs

Nose: Slightly yeasty, but not unpleasant. Hint of tobacco, spearmint.

On the palate: Medium bodied, bit of caramel, spearmint, and tarragon. Sweeter with a splash of water. Homemade marshmallows, Alpine Mints.

Finish: Fairly short, some caramel, vanilla. Longer and mintier with water. Leaves behind a nice tingle in the lips.

Parting Words: First, I should mention the bottle and the canister this came in. Both are beautiful. They’re similar in design, busy and slightly campy, but very well designed. I know I’m a sap, but I got a little choked up to see the Old Taylor “Castle” Distillery gone from the right side of the label, replaced by a vintage picture of the O.F.C. Distillery (nka Buffalo Trace).

The Old Taylor castle is one of the greatest (if not the greatest) derelict distilleries in Kentucky. If you are visiting Woodford Reserve distillery, turn left out of the parking lot and keep driving down McCracken Pike through the woods and horse farms. You’ll think you’re lost, until a massive castle-like distillery looms up on your left side. Right next door is the Old Crow distillery. Park on the right side of the road, look around and take a lot of pictures. Trespassing is, of course, illegal.

At any rate, this new Old Taylor, made at E.H. Taylor’s first distillery, is the first in the series of high-end bottlings under that name from Buffalo Trace, who acquired the brand from Beam in 2010 (I think). Buffalo Trace representatives have said they want this line to be for rye-recipe bourbons what Van Winkle has become for wheaters. They have a long way to go.

This first edition was made using an older method of creating a sour mash. Instead of adjusting the ph in the mash tub, the mash was allowed to sit in the holding area before going into the still for a few days until proper sourness was achieved. This shows up in some of the sourdough notes I picked up. The second release was single barrel, the current release is the “Tornado Survivor” edition, which I hope to acquire and review in a few weeks.

At any rate, Taylor Old Fashioned Sour Mash is not bad, pretty good, actually. The problem is the price. I’ve had Binny’s  selected bottles of Buffalo Trace bourbon that were as good or better than this, but at half the price. I don’t think it’s fair to give this a non-recommendation since I did enjoy it, but I can’t bring myself to be enthusiastic either. Col. E.H. Taylor Old Fashioned Sour Mash gets a mild recommendation.

 

Thanks to John Burlowski for helping me acquire this bottle.

Review: Rittenhouse Rye Bottled-in-Bond

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Maker: Heaven Hill (distilled at Early Times Distillery, Shively, Kentucky)

Age: NAS (by law BiBs must be at least 4 y/o)

Proof: 100 (50% ABV)

Color: dark copper

Nose: Creamy caramel with a hint of dry wood and potpourri

On the palate: dry by tempered with some sweetness. A nice hit of cedar on the back end.

Finish: Dry, but lacking much in the way of woody notes. Just a pure, dry rye spice with some friendly heat lingering for a long, long time.

Parting Words: Rittenhouse BiB is my benchmark rye. It is everything a standard Kentucky-distilled rye should be. It’s firmly in the “barely legal” category, with a lot of corn character balanced with the spicey, fruity rye influence. It’s good for sipping, and cocktails and even works mixed with coke or ginger ale. But that’s what Beam Rye is for.

Review: Very Old Barton, Bottled-in-Bond

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Maker: Tom Moore Distillery, Bardstown, Kentucky (Sazerac)

Age: 6 y/o

Proof: 100 (50% ABV)

Color: surprisingly dark given the stated age.  Caramel.

Nose: Oak, alcohol, caramel corn, brown sugar.  With a splash of water, the wood comes on even more strongly.  This edition is certainly woodier than I remember.

On the palate: Corn, sweet caramel, turbinado sugar, tiny tang of maraschino cherry.  Like in the nose, water brings out the wood, and even some spice that was submerged before. The cherry is also easier to pick out.

Finish: sweet and hot like a teenage summer fling. I am also getting the faintest hint of graham crackers out of the finish, but I’m not sure what to do with that. Let’s ignore it and stick with the teenagers.