Bourbon Heritage Month 2020 Day 9: Blanton’s Straight From the Barrel

BourbonBourbon Heritage Month 2020Buffalo TraceMashbill 2Reviews

Sep 9

Blanton’s Straight from the Barrel

Not gonna lie - I’ve been waiting for this one. This is, hands down, my favorite bourbon of all time. Probably my favorite overall whiskey, too. I go nuts for this stuff like some people go crazy for Pappy and BTAC releases. This is my desert island pour, last meal pour, and every other variant you can think of.

Blanton’s Straight from the Barrel is considered an unofficial 6th BTAC, and with it coming to the US after being export only for many years (just like Blanton’s Gold), there’s plenty of reasons to believe it might go from unofficial to official soon.

Produced by Buffalo Trace, Blanton’s Straight from the Barrel is a single barrel aged in Warehouse H like all Blanton’s products, bottled at cask strength after aging between 6-8 years (though it is non-age-stated). My first Blanton’s SFTB was at the Whiskey House in San Diego, and I’ll never forget it.

Buffalo Trace

64.6%/129.2 Proof, NAS

Barrel 470, Bottle 125, Rick 35

Dump Date: 1-20-2020

Eye: Rich amber, medium rim and medium legs.

Nose: Deep vanilla - everything a bourbon should smell like. Very little burn. Lots of char on the back end with some oak woodiness and caramelized banana.

Palate: Pleasant burn at the tip of the tongue with a medium body. Tons of vanilla, oak, clove and caramelized brown sugar. Oak dryness rolls in towards the end. Orange zest with berries and cream. Mouthfeel is medium-bodied and oily.

Finish: Oaky with vanilla, berries, and cream.

Overall: The only imperfection here is the mouthfeel - a little more viscous, a little heavier, and this would be a 10 for me.

Rating: 9.8

10 | Insurpassable | Nothing Else Comes Close (Blanton’s Straight from the Barrel)

9 | Incredible | Extraordinary (GTS, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof B518 and B520)

8 | Excellent | Exceptional (12+YO MGP Bourbon, Highland Park Single Barrels)

7 | Great | Well above average (Blanton’s Original, Old Weller Antique, Booker’s)

6 | Very Good | Better than average (Four Roses Small Batch Select, Knob Creek 14+ YO Picks)

5 | Good | Good, solid, ordinary (Elijah Craig Small Batch, Buffalo Trace, Old Grand-Dad Bottled-in-Bond)

4 | Sub-par | Many things I’d rather have (A.D. Laws Four Grain, Compass Box “Oak Cross”)

3 | Bad | Flawed (Iron Smoke Bourbon, Balcones)

2 | Poor | Forced myself to drink it (Buckshee Bourbon and Rye)