Nine and a half is a number Barrell Bourbon should embrace. It’s the age of the company’s 19th batch of bourbon. Wow… we’re at 19 already. It harkens to some of my favorite batches. Notice I didn’t say ‘best batches.’ Each batch of Barrell Bourbon is intentionally unique, featuring a different flavor profile than the batch before. So far, it’s been a winning strategy.
Barrell Bourbon Batch 019 comes from whiskies distilled in Kentucky and Tennessee and aged 9.5 to 14 years. It’s bottled at cask strength, as always. In this case it’s 109.4 proof.
The nose is full of praline, grilled corn-on-the-cob, green pepper, and butterscotch. Taste-wise, we’re looking at buttered corn and roasted peanuts upfront. Some fruit sweetness arrives mid-palate along with a hint of spice. A touch of dried herbs mingle with oak tannin and leather on the back palate, leading to a long, warm, and slightly dry finish.
I really appreciate the lack of inherent sweetness on this whiskey. It’s a nice change of pace. There’s an interesting earthiness here, most likely due to the 14-year-old barrels that make up part of this batch. What we have here is a big, oily bourbon full of dried fruit, herbs, peanuts, and oak spice. What’s not to like about that?
Fifteen minutes after taking my last sip, the finish is still with me. That’s the mark of good whiskey. Recommended! 8.5/10
Thanks to Barrell Bourbon for the sample. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.
