Low budget whiskey review, an occasional series. Part 3
Last edited Thu Jul 23, 2020, 06:29 PM - Edit history (1)
Today's pour is Jim Beam Bonded Bourbon.
Jim Beam Distillery gives us the classic White Label Jim Beam Bourbon and the Knob Creek line of whiskeys.
In car maker terms, the Jim Beam White Label is a Chevy Cruise and the Knob Creek Single Barrel Select is a Cadillac Escalade.
The Jim Beam Bonded would be a Buick Sedan nicer, but still a budget-ish choice.
The term "Bonded", or as it is more commonly labeled "Bottled in Bond" has a very precise legal definition and can apply to any American Whiskey, not just Bourbon
Over and above what standards a whiskey must meet to legally be sold as "Whiskey" in America, Bottled in Bond whiskey must be barrel aged no less than 4 years. It has to be distilled in one production season, produced under the direction of a single master distiller, and it must be bottled at exactly 50% ABV (100 proof)
The Bonded liquor laws were one of the very first Consumer Safety laws in the world - Passed soon after the civil war to try to eliminate dangerous sometimes poisonous rotgut being shipped and sold as "WHISKEY" back in the day.
Ok, school is dismissed let's drink liquor now.
I poured an ounce and a half shot into a stemless wine glass to sniff it a bit - It isn't a very complex nose, sweet, some oak and a bright ethanol presence.
I let it sit 5 minutes while I wrote the introduction and smelt of it a second time after that 5-6 minute rest.
The ethanol had faded and there is a faint candied fruit with some brown sugar in the mix that the alcohol vapors hid at first and the wood is still there.
Not gonna lie - It is pleasant - no foul odors or sharp spiky aromas, but it's simple.
The whiskey is middle dark brown, about as brown as apple juice. The legs (the strings that form on the glass as you swirl the whiskey) are long lasting and plentiful - This is a pretty oily liquor
Trying it neat at room temperature gives more of a wood and char flavor than you'd expect, and not nearly the level of brown sugar as I expected from the smell.
The flavor lingers with a long slightly sour finish and the mouthfeel is great. The whiskey coats the inside of you mouth easily.
There is not as much burn as I expected from a 50% alcohol sub $20 fifth of whiskey.
I added an ice cube - I'll taste it cold but with the ice still in the glass, then I'll let the ice melt and taste the resulting watered down whiskey
Cold - OOOOHH Daddy likes. The sourish lingering taste in the finish sweetened up quite a bit - the wood tannins became more present and the fruit sweetness spiked up. This is a sour mash that likes the rocks
Watered and cool - Tastes like the 80 proof Jim Beam White Label with a bit more oak.
Gotta say that on the rocks is the play here - it was delicious cold but rather average watery.
This bottle cost $19.50 at the Class Six - about $4 more than regular Jim Beam and about $2 more than Evan Williams Bottled in Bond.
It is definitely worth the modest up charge over the regular, and it is splitting hairs trying to pick between this bottle and the Evan Williams BIB.
Tell ya what - try them both for less than the cost of a single bottle of a heavy hitter like Old Forester 1920 or about half the price of any decent Scotch
= new reply since forum marked as read
Used to be cheap until I stumbled across it, and of course it went from low twenties, to last time I came across a bottle, it was in the high thirties.. 