Blanton’s Single Barrel Bourbon Review

This is another review I did as part of the Reddit whiskey network series of community reviews. This particular review was for /r/bourbon.

There is perhaps no more iconic whiskey in all of bourbon than Blanton’s. The brainchild of former Buffalo Trace master distiller Elmer T. Lee, it is said to be the world’s first single barrel bourbon (though it’s important to note that “single barrel” actually carries no legal significance). At the time of its release in the mid 1980s, the concept of a off-the-shelf premium bourbon was virtually nonexistent so Blanton’s is considered a quintessential product in the history of our beloved native spirit.

Rather than regurgitate information on the brand, if you are interested in reading more about Blanton’s (particularly how it’s aged), I’d encourage you to read Red White & Bourbon’s excellent writeup on the subject: Blanton’s Single Barrel & Warehouse H.

No age statement; 46.5% ABV; Barrel No. 5, Warehouse H, Rick No. 53; $60

Nose: Vanilla, light fruit, caramel, wood, slight soft spice. It’s a nice, classic bourbon smell that’s not too sweet, not too woody, and not overly hot.

Taste: Upfront is lots of caramel wood sweets and also some fruit notes like peaches or pears. The finish is pretty sweet as well and while there is some oak, it’s definitely not wood forward nor does it have a lot of bitterness. The finish is really the only part where I pick up on any rye spice but it does have a nice tingle. The proof here is nice and it has enough age on it that the raw ethanol alcohol notes are well tamed. While it doesn’t taste young, my only complaint is that the lack of wood depth makes it somewhat short on complexity.

Thoughts: A classic but simple bourbon. For moderate to novice drinkers, this is a great bourbon and as such makes for a nice gift, especially considering the fancy bottle design and somewhat “prestigious” price point. For those more experienced with whiskey, the lack of complexity will make it somewhat boring. Other than that and the price, I can’t really find any faults with it.

Rating: B-

Value: As always, I don’t factor price into my ratings. At $60 retail, I can think of other whiskeys that are a much better value and that’s a big reason why I don’t regularly stock it. Four Roses Single Barrel and Henry McKenna Bottled in Bond are two products that come to mind which are much cheaper and better whiskeys.

Blanton’s Straight From the Barrel Review

Blanton’s is a household name when it comes to Bourbon. Introduced as the world’s first Single Barrel bourbon in 1984 by Master Distiller Elmer T. Lee, it is credited with spurring the premium bourbon market which didn’t exist at that time. Unbeknownst to many though is that the standard Blanton’s Single Barrel bottled at 93 proof has a stout older brother that isn’t available in the United States. Blanton’s Straight From the Barrel is also a single barrel bourbon but is uncut, unfiltered, and bottled a barrel strength. Here today is a bottle of that shipped all the way across the pond to Europe and then back again to just a couple hours away from the place where it was bottled.

65% ABV; No Age Statement; $90 (thewhiskyexchange.com)

A wonderful nose with lots of great sweets, old wood, burnt tobacco, and some light spice notes. The sweet is more in the form of sugary fruits like peaches and pears than traditional wood sugars. There are some slight wood polish alcohol like notes but it doesn’t breath too bad for 130 proof. On the tongue this one gets even better - honey, sweet tobacco, leather, and more peachy fruit notes. The oak here is heavy but not out of balance and also lends to a lighter rather than darker flavor. Rye spice starts to come in on the finish and leaves a nice clove tingle to balance out the dry oak. Adding a couple of drops of water tempers this one down really well and just brings out more fruit, honey, and smoky tobacco.

Thoughts: I’m not the biggest fan of standard Blanton’s these days but it’s pretty impressive the transformation that takes place when you ramp up of the proof. Granted it is a single barrel product and I could have just gotten a really good barrel but I find this to be tremendous improvement over the standard product. I really enjoy the amount of backend depth this one brings with flavors other than just your typical caramel sugar and cinnamon spice. It’s a very unique barrel proof bourbon with a varied profile unlike any others that I can recall.

Rating: A- / A