Old Grand-Dad Bonded is made by Jim Beam from their high rye mash bill. It’s aged for at least 4 years and meets all of the legal requirements to be labeled as bottled in bond. If you’ve had the OGD 114 proof version and found it to be too hot, this could be a perfect compromise to keep the heat down and, yet, the flavor still be bold enough to keep it interesting. Most consumers should be able to find this bottle for under $25.
BSG REVIEW:
Color: Copper
Nose: Caramel, butterscotch, baking spices, oak
Palate: Caramel, oak, leather, mixed fruit
Finish: Long, caramel and baking spices
Old Grand-Dad Bonded started sweet on the nose with caramel and butterscotch sticking out before the baking spices and oak came through underneath. This bourbon tasted of caramel on the front end, but then transitioned to an oak and leathery mid-palate with a hint of mixed fruit to round it out with no one specific fruit flavor standing out. The finish was long and stayed on the caramel note, but the higher rye mash left the baking spices hanging around the longest as the mild Kentucky hug settled in for a while.
This is a solid choice for a daily sipper or even a cocktail if you so choose. I would say this bourbon would be a good candidate for an old fashioned on a hot summer day, but I was perfectly happy sipping it neat in a leather wingback with something to read on this cool Fall evening.
Jim Beam Repeal Batch is basically the same 4-year-old bourbon that is used for the standard white label offering, but there are a few differences that will make this one worth your time. The main differentiator is that this expression is non-chill-filtered and bottled at 6 proof points higher than white label. This was created as a commemorative offering celebrating the 85th anniversary of Repeal Day. It is supposed to result in a taste that more closely resembles the taste profile of their post-prohibition whiskey. Most consumers should be able to find this bottle for under $20.
BSG REVIEW:
Color: Golden with long, thin legs
Nose: Vanilla, popcorn, oak, almonds, clove
Palate: Oak forward, clove, butterscotch, cinnamon, corn
Finish: Oily, medium-long spice and honey
Jim Beam Repeal Batch starts of visually with some very long, thin legs down the side of the glass. The nose initially comes off with vanilla, popcorn and oak. After a few sips I also picked up some almonds and clove. The taste was very much oak forward with clove also on the front end. The transition back went from butterscotch and cinnamon to the familiar corn notes as it went down. The finish was oily and relatively long with a spiciness and some honey notes coming through at the very end.
I’m not usually a big fan of the entry-level offerings from Jim Beam, but this one has me intrigued enough to keep sipping. This is a well-done sub-90-proof offering that is sure to do well with consumers that don’t really want to move into higher proof bourbon, but still want a little more interesting experience than the old familiar college mixer in the white label bottle. I definitely recommend giving this one a shot. The price is right and I think they did a great job with the branding efforts for this throwback styling on the label. It makes this bottle look nice on the bar, too!
Class: KY Straight Bourbon Whiskey partially finished in wine & sherry casks
Proof: 94 (47% ABV)
Age: NAS (appx. 4-5 years)
Mashbill: 75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Barley
Legent is a Beam Suntory collaboration between Fred Noe, Master Distiller at Jim Beam, and Shinji Fukuyo, Chief Blender at Suntory. It starts its life as a typical Jim Beam bourbon. Some of the bourbon is finished in wine and sherry casks before being blended back in with more straight bourbon to create this unique offering of Japanese style blended whiskey using Jim Beam bourbon as its base. The bottle is very nice with an image of the facial profiles of both Fred and Shinji on either side of the black brush stroke down the center. It also has a large engraved wooden topper on the cork with both “Kentucky” and “Japan” across the top and “Two Legends One Bourbon” underneath. The price is right at $35 for a 750 mL bottle.
BSG REVIEW:
Color: Amber/Red-tinted
Nose: Peaches, raspberries, brown sugar
Palate: Molasses, brown sugar, plum and a little hint of peanuts
Finish: Short-medium length and dry, cinnamon and oak with a very light KY hug
I get all sugary sweet aromas on the nose, with peach and raspberry dominant notes. This is typical for me with the wine and sherry finished whiskies. The taste switches it up a little with a molasses and brown sugar front end that transitions to more of a plum fruit flavor before giving off a hint of peanut as it goes down. The finish is short to medium in length and dry, which I also typically get from wine finished whiskies. It finally picks up a little spice with the cinnamon and oak coming through at the very end. This whiskey doesn’t give much of a KY hug, but the dryness lingers on the palate and is all I can concentrate on after it goes down. Legent was a cool experiment, and at this price I would recommend giving it a try if you like wine and sherry finished bourbons, but I cannot say this would be a repeat purchase for me. The nose had me reeled in, but, ultimately the finish turned me away in the end.
Last month, I had the chance to go on a bourbon distillery tour trip to Louisville, Kentucky with 3 other gentlemen. We decided to take a guided multi-distillery tour provided by Mint Julep Tours. Our tour package included a tasting at the Barton 1792 distillery, lunch at a local eatery, a tasting and tour at the new Lux Row distillery and another tasting and tour at the Maker’s Mark distillery. Also, since we were making good time at all of the scheduled stops, the tour guide had our driver take us to a few extra unplanned places in between. Those extra stops included Heaven Hill, Willett and Jim Beam.
First Stop (Barton 1792 Tasting)
The day started with a 9:15 departure time from the Mint Julep Tours gift shop located at the Galt House Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky. We left the Galt House and headed out toward our first stop, Barton 1792 Distillery. Our tour guide, Charlie Robbins, was a fellow Stave & Thief Society Certified Bourbon Steward and was very engaging with the group during the drive. He was very knowledgeable and was able to answer most questions that were asked throughout the day.
The Barton 1792 Distillery recently made headlines for the unfortunate 2-stage collapse of one of their barrel-aging warehouses. You can’t actually see the fallen warehouse from any public areas, but we did get to talk about it a little while we were enjoying a few samples of their Barton Bourbon Ball Cream liqueur, Very Old Barton bourbon and 1792 Small Batch bourbon.
Second Stop (Heaven Hill Gift Shop)
By finishing up a little early at Barton, we had the chance to stop by the Heaven Hill Bourbon Heritage Center and gift shop before lunch. This was a quick stop, but we did have time to look at the displays of old distillery equipment and several dusty, partially evaporated bottles of old bourbon.
Lunch (Kurtz Resaurant)
After the Heaven Hill stop, it was time for lunch at Kurtz Restaurant in Bardstown, Kentucky. This is an old-fashioned local eatery that has been serving homestyle Southern meals and classic cocktails since 1937. I had the Kurtz family-recipe cole slaw, Kentucky country ham special and the bourbon bread pudding for dessert that were all delicious.
Third Stop (Willett Gift Shop)
After lunch, we had a a little extra time for another unplanned stop at the Willett Distillery. We had just enough time to visit the gift shop and take a few pictures of some of the buildings on the property.
Fourth Stop (Lux Row Distillers Tour)
Next, we were on our way to our first distillery tour at the newly opened Lux Row Distillers in Bardstown, Kentucky. Lux Row just opened for public tours starting in Spring 2018. Lux Row is responsible for such products as Rebel Yell, Ezra Brooks, David Nicholson and Blood Oath. You can find my review of Blood Oath Pact No. 4 here.
This new distillery sits on a 90-acre site that was previously the Ballard farm. The 200-year-old Ballard House is a stone structure that still remains on the property. You will see the house, and potentially a peacock (or seven), as you pull into the parking lot. This home is included on the National Register of Historic Places, and is being renovated with a new roof and stone exterior refurbishment.
Lux Row’s walking tour reveals their every step in the whiskey making process. We got to see everything from fermenting to distilling to aging through their 18,000-square-foot facility. Lux Row uses two mash bills: wheated, for brands like Rebel Yell and David Nicholson 1843, and ryed, for brands like Ezra Brooks and David Nicholson Reserve. For the distillation process, a 43-foot-tall Vendome Copper & Brass Works copper column still was installed in a silo-style room on the side of the new distillery. When fully complete, they plan to have six barrel-aging warehouses. We got to tour the first completed barrel warehouse, while construction was still being completed on the second.
After completing the walking tour, we were brought to the tasting room to try four samples. Three were selected by the distillery, with a chocolate pairing for each. Finally, the fourth sample was our choice (though Blood Oath was not on the list). The first three bourbons were: Rebel Yell, Ezra Brooks and David Nicholson Reserve. For my fourth sample, I chose the Ezra Brooks Straight Rye Whiskey. After the tasting, our tour was over and we headed into the gift shop. I found out that if you buy Blood Oath Pact No. 4 at the distillery, you can choose to take a bottle signed by the creator and master blender John E. Rempe for no extra charge. Obviously, I chose the signed bottle!
Fifth Stop (Maker’s Mark Distillery Tour)
Now we were off to the fifth stop and second distillery tour of our journey: Maker’s Mark Distillery in Loretto, Kentucky. On the drive to the distillery, we passed the barrel-aging warehouses that are off-site from the distillery itself. Upon arrival, all Maker’s Mark Ambassadors are greeted for the tour with an Ambassador’s pin to wear while on the property. This allowed us to recognize other Ambassadors and we occasionally got a comment, or even a thank you, from an employee of the distillery. The Maker’s Mark Distillery property is a beautiful sight to see in person. Photos can’t really do it justice.
In 1954, Bill Samuels, Sr. baked several loaves of bread with different combinations of grains to try to find a flavor profile that he wanted to call his own. He used those experiments to ultimately arrive at the Maker’s Mark mash bill that uses red winter wheat instead of a spicier rye as the secondary grain. The Maker’s Mark product lineup includes: Maker’s Mark, Maker’s 46, Maker’s Mark Cask Strength, Maker’s Mark Private Select and Maker’s White (only available at the distillery). Maker’s Mark has one of the most recognizable bottles on the shelf. With their iconic red-wax-dipped top, it easily stands out in a crowd of other products.
After making it through the walking tour of the fermentation, distillation, barrel aging, label making, stave finishing and bottling processes, we were brought to one of four tasting rooms. Maker’s Mark allows you taste all five of their offerings before you walk through the beautiful Dale Chihuly glass-ceiling-art hallway on the way into the gift shop. In the gift shop, if you buy a bottle (or almost any other item), they will let you hand-dip it yourself into the signature red wax. I purchased a bottle of Maker’s White to dip since it was the only product that is available for purchase exclusively at the distillery.
Sixth Stop (Jim Beam After Hours Drive)
By the time we left Maker’s Mark, it was the end of a long day. However, the tour guide and driver decided to swing through the Jim Beam property in Clermont, Kentucky after closing time so we could get a glimpse of one more distillery property on our way back to the Galt House in Louisville.
The End of a Great Day
Our tour bus arrived at the Galt House Hotel at around 6:15 p.m. We gathered our belongings and started walking back to our hotel through all of the concert-goers in the crowed streets near the Yum Center. I had so much swag (and bourbon) in the bags I was carrying that the cops working vehicle and pedestrian traffic were even asking if I had brought any bottles back for them! Yeah, it was a good day.
Keep an eye out for a later post where I will talk about working on completing the Urban Bourbon Trail and visiting a couple of Whiskey Row distilleries while in Louisville. Cheers!
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