Jim Beam Repeal Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon

VITALS:

- $22

- 86 Proof

- NAS

- Kentucky

In honor of the repeal of prohibition, Jim Beam released a "limited edition" prohibition repeal tribute in its Repeal Batch. At $22, it certainly wasn't priced like a limited edition whiskey. And, as much of it as I saw on the shelves, nothing about its availability told me it was somehow limited.

That was until I started noticing the lack of any Repeal Batch at the stores. It seems this limited edition was "limited" in that it wasn't going to be an ongoing production by Beam, making it available only for a limited time. It was at that point I decided I needed to find a bottle before it was gone from the shelves for good, so when I saw one at my local Jewel, I made it a point to grab one.

The nose was light and somewhat faint. However, what was there was really good. I got a good mixture of nutty and sweet, with pecan and apricot notes. There was a bit of bitter orange rind, but with a brown sugar note that seemed to cut the bitterness a bit. At times I got a cardamom note, and I even noted a cherry licorice scent a couple times, though that one didn't really stick around.

Much like the nose, the flavor also came across as nutty and sweet. However, rather than pecan and apricot, it was more like honey roasted peanuts with a bit of a toffee note. From the start I really liked this flavor, and my first few pours reminded me of Payday candy bars, with the salty peanut and caramel center.

Kind of like what happened on with the nose, towards the end of the bottle I was getting a sort of sweet and sour vibe, with a sort of tart cherry coming through. It reminded me of cherry pies, but the kind that don't rely on twenty pounds of sugar. 

I also got an amaretto note, that could just have been me tasting the nutty note differently. But it certainly seemed to develop a sort of tang between the sour cherry and the amaretto. It was different, but it was a good different.

Ultimately, I liked this bottle to start than I did on the last few pours, which is really the opposite from what I usually experience. While it had good flavor, it's lower in proof at only 86 proof, and that really comes across. The watery texture seemed to hide some of the flavor, and I think this would really have been much more robust if it were bottled at a higher proof. That said, however, I was fairly impressed, particularly for the price.

Grade: B