If you are like most Americans, you are stuck in the house right now. The novel Coronavirus has most of us living under a Stay-at-Home order. If you’re like me, this isn’t a huge change. I mean, I hardly ever leave the house anyway. Mostly what is has meant is that my wife is working from home. But she is in her office in the basement while I’m in my office upstairs. We hardly ever see each other during the day unless I am delivering her a coffee refill.
Huh, starting to sound like working from home has gained her an assistant. I wonder how much that pays…
Anyway, this is the first competition in the Stuck at Home Bourbon Brackets. The brackets created because I can’t leave the house to go whiskey shopping and I don’t want to sit on the phone asking the poor guy on the other end which of the many things I’ve never reviewed that he has on the shelf in order to place a delivery order.
First up, is our division one, number four seed Johnny Drum Private Stock versus number five seed Knob Creek.
Johnny Drum is a product of the Willett distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky. Long known for their prowess in sourcing barrels, they started distilling their own juice early on in the last decade. Now that their own distillate has started to come of age, they are using that in some of their brands. Not having followed up with Willett lately, I have no idea if Johnny Drum is one of those.
Knob Creek is a product of the Jim Beam Distillery in Clermont, Kentucky. It was a founding member of the Small Batch Collection and one of the first Small Batch bourbons to be advertised as such. It is supposed to regain its nine-year age statement soon, though this particular bottle doesn’t have that yet.
Johnny Drum vs. Knob Creek
Note: These were tasted blind in the following order. The tasting notes may be a bit strange as these were tasted at the same time and may have influenced one another.
Whiskey 1-Knob Creek
Nose: Oak, mint, almond, nutmeg and a hint of brown sugar.
Mouth: Dry and spicy. Nutmeg, cinnamon, mint and dried grains.
Finish: Hot and of medium length. Mint, nutmeg, oak and a hint of fruit.
Whiskey 2-Johnny Drum
Nose: Toffee, strawberry jam, and a hint of oak at the end.
Mouth: Lots of caramel and cinnamon. Ripe red fruit.
Finish: Warm and on the longer side of medium length. Lingering Strawberry jam.
Pre-Reveal Thoughts:
This is an interesting set. Both are good but one is sweeter and fruitier and one is much drier. Usually, when we do these head to head, the sweeter one wins. But in this case, I am enjoying the spicy dryness more than the sweet strawberry jam notes. I'm picking whiskey 1 to move on.
Reveal: Whiskey 1 is #5 Knob Creek. Whiskey 2 is #4 Johnny Drum. Knob Creek wins. I get Knob Creek for $25 and Johnny Drum is almost $10 more for a 750 mL. Neither of these are terribly expensive, but it is interesting to see the lower price come out on top. Though when the lower-priced option is from the largest producer of bourbon on the planet…maybe not so surprising.
Very Old Barton 100 proof vs. Old Forester 100 proof
Note: These were tasted blind in the following order. The tasting notes may be a bit strange as these were tasted at the same time and may have influenced one another.
Whiskey 1-Very Old Barton 100 proof
Nose: Mint, cotton candy, ginger
Mouth: Warm and spicy with cinnamon, vanilla, caramel, and oak
Finish: Warm and of medium length with a pleasant oaky bitterness.
Whiskey 2-Old Forester 100 proof
Nose: Toffee, mint, Cedar, vanilla
Mouth: Thick mouthfeel. Sweet with a lot of caramel, cinnamon, nutmeg, cedar
Finish: Warm and medium length with an antiseptic note of mint, caramel, and oak.
Pre-Reveal Thoughts:
The antiseptic notes on whiskey two just aren't sitting right with me today. On another day the thick and sweet mouthfeel might be enough to carry the day. But today at least, Whiskey One is tasting oh-so-good. Whiskey One advances.
Reveal: Whiskey one is Very Old Barton 100 proof. Whiskey two is Old Forester 100 proof. Very Old Barton wins. Talk about an upset! When I travel to Kentucky, Very Old Barton 100 proof is often available for less than $15. When available, it is my “drinking back at the campsite” bourbon while I stay in Kentucky. $12.99 is a whole other level of value. I put it in the brackets because I was originally basing this competition on 100 proof versions of what was in the Bottom-Shelf Brackets, but I really didn’t expect it to hang with the more expensive competition. I should have guessed that this delicious bourbon wouldn’t disappoint.
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