The BourbonGuy.com "Stuck at Home" Bourbon Brackets: Four Roses Single Barrel vs Wild Turkey 101 & Henry McKenna Bonded vs JW Dant Bonded

You know. I’ve been doing bracket type competitions for a long time. This is the eighth contest in seven years. You wouldn’t have thought that it would take a comment on the last post to make me realize that I could do all these rounds at once and have a completely blind competition. But it did. I started these as a way to try cheap bourbons that I hadn’t had before so I really didn’t have any preconceived notions about any of them. As I’ve included more and more bourbons that I’d had before, I guess it never dawned on me to change the way I run these.

Until now. Starting with the competitors in this post, this is not just a blind matchup of two known bourbons but is instead a completely blind competition. So what changes got made? Well, the main one was instituting another layer of blindness to the competition.

• I poured 200mL of each contestant into a sample bottle. I labeled each sample bottle with a 10 digit random code. (10 digits so it was just a garbage thing that my brain wouldn’t try to remember on the off chance I saw the bottle)

• I made a bracket that just had codes on it for my wife (she doesn’t pay attention to the brackets as we do this, she just tastes what is put in front of her). This way she knew which codes go against each other, but not what those codes represent.

• She then takes that bracket and chooses any of the contests that are available and pours us each a 1-ounce sample of each contestant. She places those samples on our tasting pads and leaves the room after recording in a notebook what code was placed on which letter.

• The tasting pads have four circles on them, labeled 1, 2, A, and B respectively. After she leaves the room, I choose whether to move number 1 to letter A or letter B (and then the other goes to remaining circle) and make a note of which bourbon I moved to which circle.

• She then reenters and if all has gone as planned neither of us knows what is in our glass beyond narrowing it down to one of the 10 remaining bourbons in the contest.

• Then over the course of Friday night through Monday night, we tasted the rest of the competition and … well, let’s just say we were amazed at some of the results when we had zero preconceived notions.

Now let’s get to it.

Wild Turkey 101 vs. Four Roses Single Barrel

Whiskey 1 (Wild Turkey)

Nose: Mint, Big Red cinnamon gum, vanilla, caramel, almond

Mouth: Warm and spicy. Notes of mint, dried grains, and oak

Finish: On the longer side of medium and warm. Dusty grains and vanilla

Whiskey 2 (Four Roses)

Nose: Nutmeg, cinnamon, raisin, and a slight antiseptic note.

Mouth: Spicy with notes of cinnamon and nutmeg, leather, mint and dried fruit

Finish: Medium length and sweet. Notes of dark chocolate, ripe fruit, brown sugar, and baking spice

Pre-Reveal Thoughts:

If we had chosen based just on the nose, # 1 would have been a clear winner. As a whole though, #2 is much more complex and enjoyable. I'd take a glass of either though. # 2 wins.

Reveal: So there goes the King of the Bottom-Shelf Brackets. Its first crack at the more expensive competition and DOWN GOES TURKEY! Four Roses Single Barrel advances.

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Henry McKenna Bottled in Bond vs. JW Dant Bottled in Bond

Whiskey 1 (McKenna)

Nose: Cinnamon, mint, lots of oak

Mouth: Caramel, vanilla, cinnamon, oak

Finish: Medium with lasting warmth. Dusty oak, ripe red fruits, and baking spice.

Whiskey 2 (Dant)

Nose: Caramel corn, cinnamon

Mouth: Butterscotch, cinnamon, dried grains, vanilla, caramel

Finish: Medium and warm. Lingering Butterscotch and dried grains.

Pre-Reveal Thoughts:

Not to knock #2, but #1 is just so much better. #2 is just sweet and heat. Nice in a glass when watching tv or to sip before bed. But #1 is much more complex and interesting. #1 wins.

Reveal: Well, I guess this shouldn’t be a surprise, Henry McKenna Bottled in Bond is more than twice the age and over twice the price. It should have won. And it did Henry McKenna Bottled in Bond advances.

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The BourbonGuy.com "Stuck at Home" Bourbon Brackets: Round 1, Knob Creek vs. Johnny Drum and Old Forester vs. Very Old Barton

If you are like most Americans, you are stuck in the house right now. The novel Coronavirus has most of us living under a Stay-at-Home order. If you’re like me, this isn’t a huge change. I mean, I hardly ever leave the house anyway. Mostly what is has meant is that my wife is working from home. But she is in her office in the basement while I’m in my office upstairs. We hardly ever see each other during the day unless I am delivering her a coffee refill.

Huh, starting to sound like working from home has gained her an assistant. I wonder how much that pays…

Anyway, this is the first competition in the Stuck at Home Bourbon Brackets. The brackets created because I can’t leave the house to go whiskey shopping and I don’t want to sit on the phone asking the poor guy on the other end which of the many things I’ve never reviewed that he has on the shelf in order to place a delivery order.

First up, is our division one, number four seed Johnny Drum Private Stock versus number five seed Knob Creek.

Johnny Drum is a product of the Willett distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky. Long known for their prowess in sourcing barrels, they started distilling their own juice early on in the last decade. Now that their own distillate has started to come of age, they are using that in some of their brands. Not having followed up with Willett lately, I have no idea if Johnny Drum is one of those.

Knob Creek is a product of the Jim Beam Distillery in Clermont, Kentucky. It was a founding member of the Small Batch Collection and one of the first Small Batch bourbons to be advertised as such. It is supposed to regain its nine-year age statement soon, though this particular bottle doesn’t have that yet.

Johnny Drum vs. Knob Creek

Note: These were tasted blind in the following order. The tasting notes may be a bit strange as these were tasted at the same time and may have influenced one another.

Whiskey 1-Knob Creek

Nose: Oak, mint, almond, nutmeg and a hint of brown sugar.

Mouth: Dry and spicy. Nutmeg, cinnamon, mint and dried grains.

Finish: Hot and of medium length. Mint, nutmeg, oak and a hint of fruit.

Whiskey 2-Johnny Drum

Nose: Toffee, strawberry jam, and a hint of oak at the end.

Mouth: Lots of caramel and cinnamon. Ripe red fruit.

Finish: Warm and on the longer side of medium length. Lingering Strawberry jam.

Pre-Reveal Thoughts:

This is an interesting set. Both are good but one is sweeter and fruitier and one is much drier. Usually, when we do these head to head, the sweeter one wins. But in this case, I am enjoying the spicy dryness more than the sweet strawberry jam notes. I'm picking whiskey 1 to move on.

Reveal: Whiskey 1 is #5 Knob Creek. Whiskey 2 is #4 Johnny Drum. Knob Creek wins. I get Knob Creek for $25 and Johnny Drum is almost $10 more for a 750 mL. Neither of these are terribly expensive, but it is interesting to see the lower price come out on top. Though when the lower-priced option is from the largest producer of bourbon on the planet…maybe not so surprising.

Very Old Barton 100 proof vs. Old Forester 100 proof

Note: These were tasted blind in the following order. The tasting notes may be a bit strange as these were tasted at the same time and may have influenced one another.

Whiskey 1-Very Old Barton 100 proof

Nose: Mint, cotton candy, ginger

Mouth: Warm and spicy with cinnamon, vanilla, caramel, and oak

Finish: Warm and of medium length with a pleasant oaky bitterness.

Whiskey 2-Old Forester 100 proof

Nose: Toffee, mint, Cedar, vanilla

Mouth: Thick mouthfeel. Sweet with a lot of caramel, cinnamon, nutmeg, cedar

Finish: Warm and medium length with an antiseptic note of mint, caramel, and oak.

Pre-Reveal Thoughts:

The antiseptic notes on whiskey two just aren't sitting right with me today. On another day the thick and sweet mouthfeel might be enough to carry the day. But today at least, Whiskey One is tasting oh-so-good. Whiskey One advances.

Reveal: Whiskey one is Very Old Barton 100 proof. Whiskey two is Old Forester 100 proof. Very Old Barton wins. Talk about an upset! When I travel to Kentucky, Very Old Barton 100 proof is often available for less than $15. When available, it is my “drinking back at the campsite” bourbon while I stay in Kentucky. $12.99 is a whole other level of value. I put it in the brackets because I was originally basing this competition on 100 proof versions of what was in the Bottom-Shelf Brackets, but I really didn’t expect it to hang with the more expensive competition. I should have guessed that this delicious bourbon wouldn’t disappoint.

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Bottom-Shelf Brackets 2020: Round 1: Buffalo Trace vs. Old Forester 100 proof

Tonight we finish Round 1 of the 2020 BourbonGuy.com Bottom Shelf Brackets. Tonight’s competition is between Division 2 Number 2 seed Old Forester 100 proof and Number 3 seed Buffalo Trace. By a strange coincidence, this is a repeat matchup of last year. In that competition, Old Forester won. Let’s see if my taste buds (and the producers) are at all consistent from year to year.

So here we go. First up: the Pride of Louisville, the first Bottled Bourbon, let’s welcome to the stage: Old Forester 100 proof!

And their opponent is the Pride of Frankfort. The bourbon that’s so good they decided to name the distillery after it: Buffalo Trace!

We strive to have a clean competition so these were tasted blind in the following order. Tasting notes are from before the reveal and may be a little unusual since they were being tasted at the same time and may influence one another.

Whiskey 1 (Buffalo Trace)

Purchase Info: $24.99 for a 750 mL bottle, Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Details: 45% ABV.

Nose: Dried mint leaves, vanilla sugar, cinnamon.

Mouth: Vanilla sugar, caramel, cinnamon, oak.

Finish: Medium length. Mint, cinnamon, oak.

Whiskey 2 (Old Forester 100 proof)

Purchase Info: $24.99 for a 750 mL bottle, Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Details: 50% ABV.

Nose: Bubble gum, almond, citrus peel.

Mouth: Almond, cinnamon, clove, hint of orange.

Finish: Longer side of medium. Almond, cinnamon.

Pre-reveal Thoughts: Whiskey number one is sweeter and a bit of a cinnamon bomb. Whiskey number two is super enjoyable in a holistic way. The "heat" or "burn" is better which adds to the enjoyment of the product. Which ultimately is what decided this one. I like the flavor of whiskey one better and if it had the heat of whiskey two, it would be the clear winner. But it doesn't and this is close enough that I am weighting overall experience higher than just flavor. So whiskey two is the winner here.

Post-Reveal Thoughts: In another case of proof making the difference in a head to head matchup Old Forester 100 proof advances to Round 2, just like last year. Buffalo Trace put up a good fight in this one, but the Old Forester brought the heat and that made the experience more enjoyable.

Make your guesses and check back next time to see who comes out on top.

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Bottom-Shelf Brackets 2020: Round 1: Elijah Craig vs. Maker's Mark

I’ve had suggestions that the first two rounds may have been unfair contests due to the difference in the proof of the contestants. Well, those concerns should be put to rest tonight as we feature a pair of contestants that are only 2% ABV different from one another. Round 1 of the 2020 BourbonGuy.com Bottom Shelf Brackets continues with Division 1 Number 2 seed Elijah Craig versus Number 3 seed Maker’s Mark.  

First up, the formerly twelve-year-old release from Heaven Hill. Now non-age stated but claimed to be around eight years old. Named for the man that Heaven Hill’s marketing department claims is “the Father of Bourbon,” please welcome to the stage: Elijah Craig!!!

And their opponent, the bourbon that once advertised itself as “it tastes expensive because it is” but is now available in the sub $25 range. Please welcome one of my favorite bourbons: Maker’s Mark!!!

We strive to have a clean competition so these were tasted blind in the following order. Tasting notes are from before the reveal and may be a little unusual since they were being tasted at the same time and may influence one another.

Whiskey 1 (Maker’s Mark)

Purchase Info: $19.99 for a 750 mL bottle, Blue Max, Burnsville, MN

Details: 45% ABV.

Nose: Spearmint, nutmeg, vanilla, caramel.

Mouth: Follows the nose with mint, nutmeg, vanilla, caramel.

Finish: Longer side of medium. Spearmint, caramel, nutmeg.

Whiskey 2 (Elijah Craig)

Purchase Info: $21.98 for a 750 mL bottle, Ace Spirits, Hopkins, MN

Details: 47% ABV.

Nose: Oak, cinnamon, strawberry candy.

Mouth: Cinnamon, oak, butterscotch.

Finish: Medium length. Cinnamon, old-fashioned strawberry candy.

Pre-reveal Thoughts: I really like both of these. A lot. I am going to have to be super nit-picky in order to come up with a winner. There is a very slight sharp "punky" oak note to number two that number one does not have. Even this isn't so much of a flaw as a preference. And I prefer number one by a very slight margin.

Post-Reveal Thoughts: Close one tonight. Had to really nit-pick to choose a winner. And picking that nit lead to an upset. Number three seed Maker’s Mark advances over Number two seed Elijah Craig.

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Bottom-Shelf Brackets 2020: Round 1: Knob Creek vs. Very Old Barton 86 proof

Tonight we get a fun one, at least for me. Round 1 of the 2020 BourbonGuy.com Bottom Shelf Brackets continues with Division 2 Number 1 seed Knob Creek versus Number 4 seed Very Old Barton 86 proof. This is fun for a couple of reasons. First, this is the first time Knob Creek has been in the competition and it only got the number one seed on the basis of a coin flip. Secondly, it is going up against a former Bottom-Shelf Champion in Very Old Barton.  

So here we go. First up, the formerly (and soon to be again) nine-year-old founding member of the Jim Beam Small Batch Collection. Named for the river that Abe Lincoln grew up next to, please welcome to the stage: Knob Creek!

And their opponent is the most widely distributed release in the Very Old Barton family. Winner of the 2016 edition of the Bottom-Shelf Brackets, please welcome one of my favorite inexpensive bourbons: Very Old Barton 86 proof!

We strive to have a clean competition so these were tasted blind in the following order. Tasting notes are from before the reveal and may be a little unusual since they were being tasted at the same time and may influence one another.

Whiskey 1 (Knob Creek Bourbon)

Purchase Info: $24.98 for a 750 mL bottle, Ace Spirits, Hopkins, MN

Details: 50% ABV.

Nose: Toffee, crisp apple, nutmeg.

Mouth: Spicy and warm. Caramel apple, baking spice, vanilla.

Finish: Medium length. Cinnamon, oak, anise.

Whiskey 2 (Very Old Barton 86 proof)

Purchase Info: $16.99 for a 1L bottle, Viking Liquor Barrel, Prior Lake, MN

Details: 43% ABV.

Nose: Mint, cotton candy, oak.

Mouth: Cinnamon, nutmeg, mint, oak.

Finish: Medium length. Vanilla, cinnamon, hints of oak.

Pre-reveal Thoughts: I like the flavor on #2 slightly more than on #1. But #1 has a better mouth experience due to higher heat. This is much closer than our typical 1 vs 4 matchup. In the end, I think Whiskey #1 is more pleasurable, even though I had to spend way more time than I expected to find out.

Post-Reveal Thoughts: Close one tonight folks. And it might have been even closer if the proofs were equivalent. Knob Creek wins and is moving on to Round 2. The last time Very Old Barton was in the competition, they won it all. Will Knob Creek do the same? Only time will tell.

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Bottom-Shelf Brackets 2020: Round 1: Wild Turkey 101 vs. Four Roses

The time is finally here! Let’s get down to the competitions. Round 1 of the 2020 BourbonGuy.com Bottom Shelf Brackets opens with Division 1 Number 1 seed Wild Turkey 101 versus Number 4 seed Four Roses. 

This is a battle of Lawrenceburg, Kentucky’s favorite sons. First up is the flagship product of the Wild Turkey distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, and tonight’s favorite. It is a two-time winner of the Bottom-Shelf Bracket contest in 2017 and 2019, winning both times it has appeared. Please welcome to the stage: Wild Turkey 101!

And their opponent is the entry-level release at the cross-town Four Roses distillery. Coming in a whopping 21° proof deficit. Please welcome fan-favorite mixer and wearer of the beige label: Four Roses Bourbon!

We strive to have a clean competition so these were tasted blind in the following order. Tasting notes are from before the reveal and may be a little unusual since they were being tasted at the same time.

Whiskey 1 (Four Roses Bourbon)

Purchase Info: $19.99 for a 750 mL bottle, Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Details: 40% ABV.

Nose: Spearmint Candy, Cinnamon.

Mouth: Cinnamon, Caramel, hints of generic fruit.

Finish: Gentle and short. caramel and cinnamon.

Whiskey 2 (Wild Turkey 101)

Purchase Info: $18.49 for a 750 mL bottle, Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Details: 50.5% ABV.

Nose: Brown sugar, caramel, a yeasty smell kinda like fresh-baked bread.

Mouth: Warm in the mouth with toffee and cinnamon.

Finish: Medium length. Warm cinnamon and nutmeg.

Pre-reveal Thoughts: Whiskey 1 has a cooler and thinner mouthfeel than whiskey 2. Guessing that the relative proof is showing its hand here. The flavor profiles are much more similar than I had expected but whiskey 2 is the clear winner.

Post-Reveal Thoughts: No upset tonight folks. The higher seed (and higher proof) wins in this one. Wild Turkey 101 wins the Battle of Lawrenceburg and is moving on to Round 2.

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George Dickel No. 12

Last month I did an audit of all of the posts I’ve done in the last eight years of doing this site and I realized that there’s one glaring omission. Dickel. It turns out that I’ve really only done a couple of Dickel releases. The 9- and 14-year-old private barrels from back in the day, the Dickel number 8, and Dickel Tabasco.

I did the Tabasco version before I did the number 12, the Barrel Select, or the rye. The Tabasco! Now to be fair they sent me the Tabasco Dickel, but still. For shame!

Well, I’m going to right at least one of those wrongs tonight. (Another will be coming soonish since I have it in the closet ready to go.)

George Dickel No. 12

Purchase Info: $25.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Blue Max in Burnsville, MN

Price per Drink (50 mL): $1.73

Details: Non-age stated. 45% ABV

Nose: Cinnamon, orange peel, and chewable vitamins.

Mouth: Caramel, vanilla, spice. Has a nice heat to it.

Finish: Medium length with lingering notes cinnamon, mint and chewable vitamins.

Thoughts: I can not believe that with as much whiskey as I buy for this site, I've never had this before. I've been missing out! If you like, or can at least get past, the chewable vitamin notes (which I personally enjoy) then this is a very tasty "everyday" whiskey. And one that I need to start grabbing more often.

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New Richmond Rye Cask Strength

Way back in 2012, I stumbled upon a semi-local distillery. At the time, the Minnesota tax system was set up so that only the largest distilleries could afford a license. And so, aspiring craft distillers jumped the border in order to pay a license fee that was about 1/30th the size. So when I say semi-local, think about an hour and a half away. And this particular distiller paid homage to that border jumping by naming his first whiskey “Border Bourbon.” I reviewed it back in 2012, but there really isn’t much point in linking you to that since in the intervening seven and a half years, that young bourbon has grown up into a fully mature one. The website says four years old, the branded shelf-talker said five years old. So It’s somewhere in there.

But I’m not here to talk about the bourbon from 45th Parallel Distillery. No, when I stopped off to check out a couple of cross-border liquor stores recently, I noticed that there was a Cask Strength version of their rye on the shelf. I’d had exactly one bottle of their rye and wasn’t impressed with it to ever review it. It was just too young for me at the time. Well, guess what? This guy has grown up too. And seeing a 120 proof version on top of it made me think it was just about time to give this semi-local product another look.

New Richmond Rye Cask Strength

Purchase Info: $59.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Chicone’s Liquor Mart, Hudson, WI

Price per Drink (50mL): $4.00

Details: Non-age stated (over 4 years old). 60% ABV.

Nose: Mint, vanilla bean ice cream, and cedar.

Mouth: Hot and Spicy. Mint, vanilla, cedar, and cinnamon.

Finish: Long and warm. Notes of mint, cinnamon, and cedar.

Thoughts: I’m very glad that I stopped to stretch my legs on my way back from Wisconsin. I’ve even more glad that on a whim I decided that a liquor store was the appropriate place to do so. I grabbed this during a fit of nostalgic curiosity and I am glad I did. It is quite good (and quite drinkable neat despite being 120° proof). Heck, even my wife who doesn’t like rye as much agrees that this one is going on the "special shelf" so we don’t go through it too quickly.

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