Today's whiskey review is of a bottle I found for a great price in Alaska of all places, the Colonel E.H. Taylor Small Batch. The Grog Shop in Homer had a number of bottles (surprising!) at $39.99 (shocking!) and I couldn't pass it up. So after partaking a bit up there, the rest made it home where I decided to write it up.
My brother-in-law also purchased a bottle of Macallan 12 for us to enjoy over our week stay. It had been a while since trying Macallan, a distillery that makes a fine spirit but also one that makes you pay for its well-known name. With prices rising across the board for single malts I may want to consider them again. Both my in-laws very much preferred the more refined Scotch which is why I have some Bourbon left.
Colonel Taylor is another excellent Bourbon whiskey made at the Buffalo Trace distillery in Kentucky, along with other big names like George T. Stagg and Pappy Van Winkle. In this respect it's similar to Blantons, though the Colonel Taylor brand is wholly owned by the Sazerac Company (ownership can be complicated for Bourbon). I'd also consider it a half tier below Blanton's. Another similarity is rarity. In what's becoming annoyingly common for Bourbon, any Colonel Taylor bottle has become difficult to find with increased popularity and production can't (or purposefully doesn't) keep up. The small batch is the most common expression for the brand, which also includes a single barrel, barrel proof and a rye, along with some special, and expensive, limited releases.
"Colonel" E.H. Taylor was a real man, and an important one in the history of American whiskey. He founded a number of distilleries, including the precursor to modern-day Buffalo Trace. Apparently a relative of two Presidents (Madison and Taylor), he was never in the military. His title instead comes from being named a "Kentucky Colonel," a high civilian honor granted by the state and a group that includes the founder of KFC "Colonel" Sanders. Taylor was also known to be a proponent of the Bottled-in-Bond Act, which set high standards for producing and labeling Bourbon whiskey. Because of this it's no surprise this bottle is bottled-in-bond itself.
Stats:
ABV - 50% (100 proof), as per BiB
Maturation - Charred oak, standard for Bourbon
Age - At least 4 years, as per BiB
Location - Frankfort, KY, USA
Price - Ideal $45-50, likely $50-60 (or more)
Tasting Notes:
Smell - Caramel, sugar, booze
Color - Reddish (amber? bronze?), somewhat light for Bourbon
Taste - Is that corn? (not sure I've picked that out before), classic caramel, vanilla, spices
Finish - Decent burn that doesn't stick around long, some spicy tickle remains
Final Thoughts:
It's really good stuff, a quality sipper. While there are certainly better Bourbons out there, I always enjoy this one. Not overly rough and with solid flavors, the main thing to watch out for is price if you see it on a shelf somewhere. The frustratingly common trap in Bourbon is playing on rarity and overcharging. So, if you like Bourbon and find one of these, definitely grab it at ~$50 or less. Much more and your money is likely better spent elsewhere.
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