Blaum Bros. Old Fangled Knotter Bourbon Cask Strength Straight Bourbon - Batch 9

VITALS:

- $80

- 105.7 Proof

- 12 Years

- Batch 9

- Indiana

This is one of those products that has come and gone, but while it was here, it was amazing! It was one of those whiskeys where people didn't realize what they had at first, and then when people started drinking these bottles, suddenly they were flying off the shelves. And for good reason! I've had the benefit of trying multiple batches, and every one of them has been absolutely amazing.

So, I guess it's no surprise that I milked the last bit of this bottle for quite some time. I didn't want to let it go. This is one of those where once it's gone, it's gone for good. I'm sure a bottle could be found on secondary, but not for any price that I'm willing to pay. So, this post is very much a goodbye to one of my favorite bottles.

This bottle really hit all the highlights of MGP goodness. Right up front I got rich, sweet notes of caramel and chocolate. It had a bit of cinnamon spice to it as well, along with a sort of sweet crackery note, like pretzels coated in milk chocolate. There was also a nutty note, kind of like sweet pecans.

As to flavor, this was a cinnamon and toffee bomb! It was full of that rich, dark caramelized sugar flavor, balanced out, particularly at the end, by a great cinnamon spice to counter the rich sweetness. This bourbon absolutely packed a punch of flavor right up front that never seemed to let up through the finish.

In addition to the huge toffee note, I also got that pecan note I got on the nose. Not surprisingly, it was like candied pecans, with a good amount of sweetness to balance out the earthy, nutty notes. But it was absolutely delicious. At one point I also got a distinct amaretto note, and even a light cherry note.

On the finish, a light black pepper spice came through, working well with the rich toffee notes. It added just a little bit of heat to not only counter the sweet notes, but to make me dive back into my glass for the next sip. The amaretto seemed to really come through on the finish as well, and lingered for a long time as the great, oily texture of this bourbon really coated my mouth. 

As I mentioned, this bourbon really showcased everything I love about MGP whiskey. It was a prime example. I sat on this bottle for four years before finishing it, and now as I write this, I see why. I'll never get a bottle like this again at that price, and now that it's gone, it's gone for good.

Grade: A+

Blaum Bros. 5 Year Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Cognac Puncheon

VITALS:

- $80

- 108

- 5 yrs.

- Illinois

I do love Blaum Bros. distillery. Of course their sourced product, Old Fangled Knotter Bourbon, was absolutely phenomenal bourbon.  Unfortunately, much of that is long gone. I have also enjoyed their ryes, and I do make it a point to support local distilleries.

So, when I was offered an 5 year age-stated bourbon from Blaum Bros. that was finished in Cognac casks, I really couldn't turn it down, even if it was a bit steep at $80.  I can't help it, I'm a sucker for those Cognac finishes in the first place, and I definitely wanted to give their Blaum Bros.' bourbon another try now that it has more age on it.

The nose had a certain woody and nutty note to it. It was like caramel and chocolate covered oak, with some peanut thrown in. Kind of like a Snickers, but instead of nougat it was a soft and chewable wood.  Okay, I'm stretching here, but it didn't really provide the fruit notes I expected from the Cognac, but rather seemed to come across as tannic with hints of sweet caramel and chocolate.

As to the flavor, it came across as a bit young and corn-forward.  The corn notes were inescapable and they provided for some sharp, rough edges on top of making it come across as hot.  The sweetness inside came across as a brown sugar note, and there was a bit of green apple underscoring everything.

The Cognac notes did come through here, where they were missing on the nose. Along with that green apple, I got some quite delicious notes of pear and melon. There was also a creamy vanilla note that accompanied these flavors.  Unfortunately, they didn't seem to match up very well with the brown sugar and corn notes I was getting right up front.

On the finish the brown sugar note seemed to last the longest. However, it was here that I got a mild, but off-putting tannic note adding a bit of bitterness that seemed to linger for a bit on the sides of my tongue.  

This was not my favorite offering from Blaum Bros. Whatever they were going for just never seemed to materialize. I'm all for the experimentation, though, and I hope they keep putting out new and interesting releases such as this.

Grade: B-

Blaum Bros. Distilling Co. Straight Rye Whiskey

VITALS:
- $50
- 100 Proof
 - NAS
- Illinois

Blaum Bros. has managed to get some nationwide recognition for the work that they've been doing, mostly due to the love for their MGP-sourced Oldfangled Knotter Bourbon (which I've had and I've loved!!).  They are now coming into their own distillate, though, and so far it's been well-received, at least in my internet and social media circles.

I went into Binny's with the intention of grabbing something that I simply haven't gotten around to trying (as opposed to the store picks or allocated items I'm usually keeping an eye out for), and this is what I came away with. They're so close to me, and the only product I've had of theirs wasn't actually theirs. So I felt like it was long overdue

The nose is very pungent. I could smell this whiskey from a couple feet away before even pouring it into my glass. I got a distinct maraschino cherry note, along with some cinnamon and brown sugar. However, I also got that overripe or cooked apple note that I always get in young whiskeys.

On my first sip, I got a weird kind of furniture polish note--that taste in your mouth you when you spray dusting spray and a few of the airborne particles get into your mouth. Perhaps it's not as relatable as I think it is, but that's what this reminded me of.

I primarily got notes of orange and cinnamon. The orange was more like orange pith, though, with a touch of bitterness to it. I also found that it came across as woody and piney. The pine notes are not unexpected in a rye, but these leaned more towards pine bark than pine needles, if that makes sense. I also, surprisingly, got a bit of a char note.

I say surprisingly given the overripe apple notes that I got on the nose, indicative of a young bourbon. Those same notes were there on the palate as well, but that apple note seemed to fade rather quickly to more of a nutty, spicy note, like cinnamon and nutmeg.

I also got some rich, more dessert-like notes. Particularly, I got a bit of dark chocolate, as well as a sort of dark fruit cookie note. At first I was leaning towards an oatmeal raisin flavor, but it wasn't that sweet. Eventually, I pegged it as similar to a fig newton, with that bready note and that almost-sweet fruit filling.

Once I got past the weird or off notes, I found a lot to like about this rye. It had good spice, light sweetness, and a certain richness that gave this whiskey a lot of character. However, it required some work to get past the young notes as well as that odd furniture polish note in order to get there.

Grade: B-