10 - 12 YEAR OLD BOURBON TASTING

This month’s theme: 10 to 12-year-old Bourbons, all from Kentucky. Included were expressions from most of the major distilleries.

* FLIGHT ONE *

Expression 1
 Eagle Rare 10 

Distillery: Buffalo Trace 
 

Background: Introduced in 1975, ER10 started off as an 101 Proof Big Batch Bourbon and remained that way until 2005.  Since then it's not only dropped to the current 90 proof, but there was about a 10 year period where the regular release was Single Barrel.  While currently back to being a vatting, Single Barrel releases are available as Store Pick Exclusives, like this one.

Stats: Single Barrel #316 bottled exclusively for K+L Wine Merchants (California).  ABV = 45%. Bottled 2017. 
 And actually an 11 Year.

Tasting Notes: Smooth and full flavored. 
 The smaller percentage of rye in the mashbill reduces the spice notes and accentuates the vanilla.  Could be the best value going right now for a 10 year bourbon.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Pour?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	YES

Expression 2
 Elijah Craig Small Batch 12 

Distillery: Heaven Hill 
 

Background:  
This used to be the best value going for aged statement bourbon, but the 12 Year was phased out in 2015.  The Small Batch 94 Proof is still around, just no age statement.  If you find a dusty 12 year on the shelf, do not hesitate to pick it up.

Stats: ABV = 47%.  Bottled 2013.
 

Tasting Notes: Spicier, so guessing higher percentage of rye in the mashbill.  And the rye notes definitely reveal themselves on the finish.  Bigger overall flavor range compared to the ER10. Classic.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	YES

Expression 3
 Michter's 10  

My overall favorite
from both flights

Distillery: KBD? 
 

Background: Michter's was originally distilled in Pennsylvania from the 1950s thru the 1980s.  Prior to that the Distillery was known as Bomberger's and before that Shenk's, dating back to pre-Revolutionary War days.  The current Michter's brand was resurrected in the 1990s albeit in Kentucky.  While Michter's has two in-house distilleries currently producing a variety of their products, single barrels like this are still outsourced, most likely from Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (KBD) aka Willet.

Stats: Single Barrel #17B280. ABV = 47.2%. Bottled 2017. 
 

Tasting Notes: Balanced nose. Excellent range of flavor.  Smooth rye notes throughout.  Nice char yielding a range of vanilla notes.  Pretty damn tasty. A touch of licorice and coffee.  Complex!

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	YES

Expression 4
 Henry McKenna 10 

Distillery: Heaven Hill 
 

Background: Hidden gem.  Ten year old Single Barrel for around $30?  How does it stay on the shelves these days??  Perhaps its recent win for Best Bourbon at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition will change that.

Stats: Single Barrel #3008. ABV = 50%. Bottled 2016. 
 

Tasting Notes: Spicy Creme Brule nose.  The rye spice is nice but a little sharp.  Pumpkin spice finish.  At around 50% ABV, i consider adding water to taste, but not needed with this smooth bourbon.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	YES

* FLIGHT TWO *

Expression 1
 Weller 12 

Distillery: Buffalo Trace 
 

Background: Wheated Bourbon with same mashbill as the Van Winkles.  AKA Poor Man's Pappy.

Stats: ABV = 45%. Bottled 2016 
 

Tasting Notes: Even after this one jumped to over $100, it was still one of those i wanted on my shelf at all times.  But during this tasting, it came across pretty light probably due to the previous selections in the tasting.  Or perhaps my tastes have evolved?  At any rate, I tasted again on its own and while still light, there was more of the corn sweetness, wheat softness, and somewhat lingering finish that I do enjoy.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	NO

Expression 2
 Van Winkle 12 

Distillery: Buffalo Trace 
 

Background: The notorious Van Winkle Family Reserve "Lot B" was first released in 1992, the year after the one and only "Lot A".  1992 was also the year the infamous Stitzel-Weller Distillery closed.  Van Winkle distillate was then mostly sourced from Bernheim until 2002 when Buffalo Trace took over.

Stats: ABV = 45.2 %. Bottled 2015
 

Tasting Notes: What better way to follow up Poor Man's Pappy, than with Pappy itself!  (Well, the 10- and 12-year Van Winkles aren't exactly "Pappy's" but you know what I mean.) This one has a bigger range than the Weller, more robust.  Still, I prefer the higher proof 10 Year Old Rip Van Winkle.  

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	NO

Expression 3
 Rebel Yell 10  

Distillery: Luxco (Heaven Hill/Bernheim) 
 

Background: Another wheater with roots at Stitzel-Weller.  Luxco now owns the brand, but the juice is produced at Heaven Hill/Bernheim.  Traditionally a No Age Statement bourbon, the 10 Year Single Barrel was first released in 2016.

Stats: Single Barrel #5083200. ABV = 50%. Bottled 2016.
 

Tasting Notes: Licorice Char.  Blackberry.  With water, it becomes softer as expected without losing the long finish.  A pleasant surprise.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	YES

Expression 4
 Evan Williams 12 

Distillery: Heaven Hill
 

Background: Exclusively produced for the Japanese market, but can also be found at the Distillery shop in Kentucky. 
 

Stats: ABV = 50.5%. Bottled 2016.
 

Tasting Notes: More licorice notes.  Not as big a range as I'd hope for a 12 year at 101 Proof, but still great mouthfeel. Corn Sweet and Rye spice.  Woody finish.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	NO

Expression 5
 Elijah Craig Barrel Proof 12 

Distillery: Heaven Hill
 

Background: First released in 2013, the Small Batch Barrel Proof still exists as a 12 Year Age Statement.  But for how long?? 

Stats: Batch #A117. ABV = 63.5%. Bottled 2017.


Tasting Notes: Rich and powerful, just as you would expect from this 127 Proof monster. 
Flavor just keeps going and going.  Really growing on me.  A bit of water helps open it up further.  Butterscotch!

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	YES

[Tasting conducted with the Sneaky Trips Tasting Group which consists of Whisk(e)y Enthusiasts ranging from Beginner to Advanced.  Tastings are held monthly and are usually 8 Expressions based on a particular theme.]

Chill-Filtering Whisk(e)y 

Why is this still a thing?

Recently, there was a big summit in Kentucky.  Meeting were all the heavy hitter whisk(e)y producers worldwide.  The emergency session came about to resolve the unexpected taxes and tariffs recently implemented or that were imminent.  Now, sure that’s important stuff what with cost of booze to the consumer.  After all, I’m a serious consumer.  But why didn't they take advantage of the situation and discuss equally important issues - like putting an end to Chill Filtering!

Chill Filtering is a process that takes place just prior to bottling, removing elements from the spirit that can make the whisk(e)y cloudy when cooled via water, ice, refrigeration, etc.  Whisk(e)y makers don’t want customers being turned off by their product due to cloudiness, so they’ve been utilizing this method for many, many years.  And I get it - as a kid, I’d choose clear apple juice over cloudy.

But here’s the thing: whisk(e)y drinkers aren’t 8 years old. Flavor is not affected in the least. Moreover, the cloudiness goes away when the whisk(e)y warms back up.  And most whiskies that would even need chill filtration are mixed with soda, so what’s the point??

Actually, I have a better solution.   Let’s just set the minimum alcohol by volume (ABV) for whiskies at 46%. Chill Filtration is effective on whiskies with ABV between 40-45%.  However, those at 46% ABV and higher do not benefit from the purely cosmetic process as the increased alcohol content is enough to prevent cloudiness when cooled. 

So, how did we get to the 40% minimum ABV, anyway? Basically, an inexact science came up with the percentage for taxation purposes.  Some sort of starting point was required, at some point, the United States settled on 40% for all distilled spirits.  (See Code of Federal Regulations Title 27 Part 5). 

WRONG WAY
Dalmore dropped the ABV
of their 12 Year from
43% to 40% in 2007  

Other countries, however, set their own standards, but for the most part, the bare minimum for a spirit to be called whisk(e)y is currently forty percent worldwide. One reason for this as cited by Charles MacLean in his the book on Scotch, Miscellany of Whisky, “is that there is a sharp falling off of aroma and flavour if it is bottled below forty percent.”  That strikes me as random nonsense, but whatever.  By that logic, if you add any water to your Dalmore 12, Redbreast 12, or Basil Hayden's (all 40% ABV), you will be in some sort of no-longer-whisk(e)y danger zone.  Let Nature decide! And Nature's Forecast is...

* 46%+ Clear Skies with no chance of Cloudy *

C'mon, whiskeymakers - you go to a lot of trouble creating beautiful concoctions and then storing your spirit in oak casks for years! Why water it down… or rather “cut” it, to use industry vernacular, to the bare minimum required by law??  We know what Stan from Chotchkie’s would say. 

Some distilleries get it.  In 2007, Glenmorangie upped the ABV on all of their core whiskies from 43% to 46%.  Springbank has been doing the same thing for years.  Suntory and Nikka both experimented with Non-Chill Filtered (NCF) versions of some of their core expressions, Hibiki 17 and Taketsuru 17 & 21, respectively. And while many cask strength bourbons are NCF, definitely not all.  Basically, the label HAS to indicate “Non-Chill Filtered” to guarantee that it actually is NCF. 

Unlabeled NCF
According to K&L, their
Single Barrel #139 is NCF
but is unlabeled as such

Labeled NCF

I was shocked to learn that the regular Weller Antique 107 (53.5 ABV) IS Chill Filtered.  It absolutely doesn’t need to be as it is well over the threshold.  There are a handful of “Store Pick” Single Barrel bottlings of the Weller 107 out there that are NCF, but that has to be specifically requested by the store purchasing the barrel and its contents.  You’d think they’d get a discount for saving the distillery the time and labor, but probably not.  Plus, the store has to remember to tell those responsible at Buffalo Trace to label it “NCF” (or UCF…) 

Labeled UCF

That’s right, even bottlers cannot get on the same page on how to describe the absence of this process.  Some whiskies that are not chill filtered are described as Un-Chill Filtered (UCF) just as often as NCF.  Independent bottler Signatory Vintage has a whole line called the Un-Chill Filtered Collection. Even the terminology is a mess!

Another factor to take into account that not all Chill Filtration processes are the same – they can vary from distillery to distillery.  Ugh.  Just get rid of it all together, already! Contact your whisk(e)y representative today and demand an end to Chill Filtration!!

Until then, check the ABV, check the label - support whiskeymakers who do the right thing! And once this chill filtering issue gets resolved, what say we tackle the caramel color additive?  Looking at you, Scotland!

Further Reading:
https://www.bourbonbanter.com/banter/ncf-nobody-checks-first/#.W025fNhKiu7

https://www.bruichladdich.com/faq/bruichladdichs-guide-chill-filtration/

LOCO FOR LOGO

Multiple Choice Time. Can you guess who this happy little fellow is?

A. 8-Bit Flower Emoji

B. Enemy from 1980s Legend of Zelda

C. Suntory Corporate Logo from 1990-2004

D. All of the above

I might argue the answer is D, but, actually, it’s C. The above logo appeared on Suntory bottles during the aforementioned time period, making it one of the key factors to use when determining a bottling date. 

Suntory Lion Crest Logo
from a 1989 release
 of Hibiki Whisky

Suntory’s prior logo, the Lion Crest, dates back to at least the 1950s.  So, if your bottle of Yamazaki 12 or Original Hibiki (No Age Statement) has the Lion Crest, you know it’s from before 1991. 

But it’s that Flower/Zelda crest that has an interesting, and slightly complicated, back story. Especially, when it’s official name is the Hibiki Crest – and that it isn’t directly related to Hibiki Whisky!

Hibiki Whisky was launched in 1989 celebrating the 90^th Anniversary of Suntory.  If this Hibiki Crest debuted at the same time, that would make sense, right?  But as you can see from above right image,  the initial 1989 offering sports a Lion Crest logo.  It probably wasn't until 1991 that the Hibiki Crest actually appeared on a bottle of Hibiki.

Meeting in Middle:
Lion Crest and
Hibiki Hanzi

After some research, I discovered that the Hibiki Crest was actually created even earlier for Suntory.  Back in 1986,  the company commissioned artist/designer Takenobu Igarashi to develop corporate art for the Suntory Music Hall. 

The concept appears to have been a merging of the then current Lion Crest and the Chinese Hanzi Character of "Hibiki."  Hibiki translates to echo, music, sound, reverberation and space - perfect for a concert hall.  

The powers that be at Suntory must have fallen in love with the Hibiki concept.  Only a few years later, they adopted the name for their first premium blended whisky.  And shortly thereafter the Hibiki Logo became the entire company's corporate identity from 1991-2004. 



In 2005, Suntory's corporate logo was changed to the current text based format and has been in place ever since.

The less said about the BeamSuntory logo, the better. The companies merged in 2014. Aside from one special in-house edition of Hibiki 12, the combined logo has not appeared on their Japanese Whiskies. 

Finally, while Hibiki 12 Year and 17 Year whiskies may be discontinued, the happy little Hibiki Crest lives on at the Suntory Music Hall.