Belle Meade Cask Strength Reserve Bourbon - Batch No. 5

VITALS:

- $50

- 113.6 Proof

- NAS

- Indiana

I've had this bottle for a couple years now. I grabbed it as soon as I had seen it on the shelves, having heard really good things about these Belle Meade Reserve bottles. So when I saw it, I grabbed it, and then never got around to opening it. Part of it is that down the road I also grabbed a later batch, Batch No. 23,that ended up getting opened first. 

But, when the shelter-in-place orders began and my office closed, I started doing Zoom happy hours with some work friends, and one of my buddies suggested that I crack this one open for the evening. Seemed like a pretty good suggestion. After all, I really liked the other bottle I had, and it wasn't as though I was saving this one for any special occasion.  So, nearly two years later, I finally got around to opening it up and tasting the whiskey inside.

The nose was full of the more traditional bourbon notes, with a bunch of caramel and a bit of cinnamon spice. It also had a nice layer of vanilla kind of underneath it all. Other notes came through as well, including a bit of a cherry note that at times leaned a bit brighter, like raspberry.  There was also a distinct cola note on the nose as well. All in all, it smelled delicious!

Much like the nose, the flavor was very caramel forward, and it still had that undercurrent of vanilla throughout.  The cinnamon spice that I was getting on the nose seemed to be absent, though, which I found a bit odd. It also had a decent amount of oak to it, making this a more wood-forward bourbon and telling me that it probably had some decent age to it, despite there being no indication of age on the bottle In fact, I got a bit of astringency on each sip, much like I've gotten from older bourbons.

I also got a light anise note, though a bit more than I would prefer. The cherry from the nose was also present, but it wasn't as bright. It was more like dried cherries, and it added a bit of tartness to the flavor. All that being said, though, the traditional bourbon notes carried this, as toffee and caramel seemed to be the most prominent flavors. At times I even got a bit of pecan that gave it a bit of a pecan pie flavor when paired with the caramel and toffee notes.

In the end, I think I liked the later batch better than this one. Don't get me wrong, this one was really good, with a lot of bold, rich flavor and the right amount of heat. It just didn't come across as complex or as interesting, and I was never able to decide if I liked that tart cherry flavor. Nonetheless, should I come across any more of these sitting on liquor store shelves, I won't hesitate to pick them up.

Grade: B+

Belle Meade Cask Strength Reserve Bourbon Batch No. 23

VITALS:
- $60
- 113.9 Proof
- NAS
- Batch No. 23
- Tennessee

I've been lucky enough to stumble on two of these bottles, and for some reason I started with this bottle rather than the earlier batch that I have. Belle Meade has been getting a lot of love lately for their single barrels and for their Reserve Cask Strength bourbons, and I've made it a point to grab them when I see them, which is not very often at all.

I haven't tried too much from Belle Meade. In fact, the only other bottle I've had from them was a 10-year Binny's private selection, which I do recall fondly. However, after finishing this bottle within a very short time after first opening it, I feel like I may need to make an effort to go through other bottles in their lineup.

The nose on this bourbon was rich and full and absolutely delicious. I immediately got notes of dark cherry and molasses, reminding me very much of Maraschino cherries. There was also a hint of maple and a slight cinnamon spice. To almost round everything out, it had a distinct vanilla bean smell to it that seemed to complement everything else going on.

As impressed as I was with the nose, the flavor held up as well and did not disappoint. Immediately I noticed the thick, oily texture it had, which coated my entire mouth with flavor. Also, despite the high proof, the alcohol was very well masked, making this dangerously easy to keep dipping back into pour after pour.

Up front I got the sweetness on my tongue, with kind of a salted caramel note. From there, however, what was clear is that this was a vanilla bomb. It was absolutely loaded with vanilla from front to back, and the other flavors that I picked up just seemed to play off that vanilla undercurrent.

The salty note seemed to evaporate almost immediately, but the caramel remained. It was more of a dark caramel note, however, with hints of burnt sugar. I even got some light char notes, though none of the woody bitterness, which was nice.

The Maraschino cherry note was there, but it was lighter on the actual cherry flavor than the nose had me anticipating. Rather, it was more of the flavor of the syrup than the cherries themselves.  I did not get the cinnamon that I got on the nose.  However, I did get a richer orange note. It wasn't a bright, citrusy note but rather like a candied orange note, even chocolate-orange at times.

But, again, it all started with the rich, delicious vanilla and each of the other flavors just acted as a complement to that note, and they each complemented that note very well.  This bourbon was rich, full of flavor, and it all worked really well! I couldn't help but keep going back to this bottle, even when I was trying to make an effort to try other things. It was delicious, and I have a feeling I'm going to be opening that other batch I have in my closet very soon!!

Grade: A-

Belle Meade Binny's Private Selection 10-Year Single Barrel Straight Bourbon

VITALS:
- $65
- 117.4 Proof
- 10 Years
- Barrel #1589

This was my first foray into Belle Meade bourbon. Quite frankly, it was the price tag that put me off for so long, but finally I convinced myself to give it a try. It's my understanding that Belle Meade sources their bourbon from MGP Distilling in Indiana, a common theme among NDPs. Though sourced, I've frequently found myself a fan of the product coming out of NDP, so I finally caved and decided to give this a try.

The nose is soft, delicate (though not light) and fruity. Though it's a high proof bourbon, you'd never tell from the nose.

On my first sip, my immediate thought was that this is good but not great. It's a nice, robust bourbon, with traditional flavors of vanilla overlaying caramel and cinnamon. It has a nice, chewy mouthfeel to it, really coating the mouth. The finish broke away from the caramel and cinnamon and instead consisted of a bunch of wood flavor layered over vanilla and coffee, to provide a bit of bitterness at the end.

After the first pour or two, this bottle to set to the side in favor of others, and I forgot about it for a few weeks. Then, on a whim, I went back to it to give it another try, and it was as though I were trying a whole new bourbon. Where the edges of the bourbon, those contrasting flavors of wood and coffee with sweet caramel, were sharp and distinct, were now smooth and sweet. While the coffee flavor remained, it was a sweeter flavor, akin to coffee-flavored ice cream, but still with that nice, sweet cinnamon spice at the end, certainly thanks to a higher rye content much to my desire.

The vanilla up front seemed to have taken more of a hold as well, providing a nice fluid flow of flavor (for any alliteration fans out there) going from vanilla to a creamy coffee then to a sweet cinnamon at the end.

While not necessarily the greatest bourbon I've ever tasted, despite all the foregoing superlatives, this bourbon really had a nice bounce-back for me, initially putting me off but later becoming something that I just couldn't put down. I think the last such drastic transformation I saw in a bourbon after opening the bottle was Old Grand-Dad 114, which impressed in similar fashion, though I think I enjoyed this transformation even more.

Though it might have started out unimpressive, this one really came on strong, and despite the high price, I was really glad I gave it a try!

Grade: B+