Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Mashbill – 72% corn, 18% rye, and 10% malt
Age – NAS; KSBW is at least 4 years
Proof – 90.4
Other – The whiskey is also triple distilled and has a low proof when it enters the barrel to mature for at least six years.
Price Paid – $37.59

Color – Light to Medium Amber

Aroma – Surprised by the amount of ethanol at first as this is pretty low proof. Once we go past that notes of honey, vanilla, light baking spices, hints of oak.

Tasted Neat –  Very light and with limited viscosity. Similar to the nose, there is vanilla, honey, orange zest, and a woodiness. The finish is dry with pepper and oak.

Tasted with dried cranberry – The cranberry brought the orange zest very forward, less sweetness, and the finish is also lighter.

Tasted with a pecan – Tobacco leads the way but there is also strong wood notes and a light hint of cocoa powder.

Tasted with dark chocolate – Very similar to when it was tasted neat except that the chocolate has added a creaminess.

We both liked it best with the cranberry as it had a very nice brightness; however, due to the tobacco notes, we might want to taste it with a cigar as well.

1974 James B. Beam 100th Kentucky Derby Decanter

Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Mashbill – 75% corn, 13% rye, and 12% malt (estimated based on today’s Jim Beam white label)
Age – 100 months (8.33 years) when bottled in 1974
Proof – 86
Price Paid – Gifted from Family Collection
Other – From “A Guide To Jim Beam Bottles” by Cembura & Avery: The 100th anniversary of the famed Kentucky Derby Classic is honored with a bottle bearing cameos of the first winner Aristides in 1875 and Cannonade in 1974. Red roses fill the numerals. The back list the names and dates of previous winners. Height 7.5 inches. Originally sold for $10.00.

Color – Dark Amber

Aroma – Lovely nose … sweet and rich at the same time. There is a nice wood note with caramel, buttered popcorn, and baking spices and perhaps a hint of fruit.

Tasted Neat – Caramel and oak with a vanilla custard and cinnamon. The fruit from the aroma seems to be dried apricot and there is a hint of citrus as well. The finish lingers nicely with cinnamon and oak. It has a lot more character and complexity than we typically see today in an 86 proof bourbon.

Tasted with dried cranberry –  This took away the sweetness and brought the baking spices forward with more woodiness.

Tasted with a pecan – Very rich as the caramel turns darker and the wood became quite dominant. The finish is black pepper and oak.

Tasted with dark chocolate – The caramel returned and there is cinnamon more mid-palate. Finishes with a strong woodiness and cinnamon.

Neat would be preferred but with the pecan was very nice.

Evan Williams Kentucky Derby Festival 2023

Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Mashbill – 78% corn, 12% malted barley, and 10% rye
Barreled 10/27/15; Bottled 01/20/23; Barrel #5
Age – 7.24 years
Proof – 119
Other – Dipped in iridescent teal wax. The bottle also features a special face label with the Kentucky Derby Festival logo in teal and gold, and each bottle comes with a 2023 Pegasus Pin in an envelope. Only 800 bottles were released.
Price Paid – $84.79

Color – Medium Amber

Aroma – Vanilla, cherry, floral, and perhaps tea.

Tasted Neat –  Caramel, honey, vanilla custard, and a hint of cherry. The finish has nutmeg and a light mint.

Tasted with dried cranberry – This really brightened it up. Now there is citrus coming forward such as orange or lemon zest, still with a hint of cherry and the finish is very nice and with a pleasant cinnamon.

Tasted with a pecan – Now there is chocolate covered cherries with nutmeg and an additional woodiness. Very nice.

Tasted with dark chocolate – The cherry got really bold in the middle with a hint of chocolate but there wasn’t much of a finish.

This is a great bottle and we liked it neat but some of the other options were also very interesting.

Discussion and Final Notes

Cheers,
Rebecca & Wayne

Photos by Rebecca Herman McBrayer

Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey:
Such whiskeys have all the requirements of bourbon: Made in the U.S, distilled at <= 160 proof, barreled at <= 125 proof, aged in new, charred oak containers, bottled at >= 80 proof.

Straight bourbon means it is aged at least 2 years (and must have an age statement if less than 4). In addition, to be Kentucky Straight Bourbon, it has the additional requirement that it must be produced and aged at least 1 year in the state of Kentucky.

For additional information on bourbon requirements, please read this post – Bourbon Whiskey.

NOTE: The bourbons in this review were purchased by us. We were not compensated by the spirit producers for this review. This is simply our opinion based on what we tasted on this day. Please drink responsibly.