Eagle Rare 17 YO 2020
Many of the worries I had about the Sazerac 18 Year Old apply to the ER 17, too. It’s only nominally stronger (101º), and one year younger. Eagle Rare isn’t usually my cup of tea, though I know people go nuts over it, store pick or regular 10 YO. It was already difficult to stand up to the first few 2020 BTACs I tried - did this measure up?
Eagle Rare 17 Year Old: Specs
Classification: American Bourbon
Origin: Buffalo Trace Distillery
Mashbill: Buffalo Trace Mashbill 1
Proof: 101 (50.5% ABV)
Age: 17 YO, Distilled in Spring 2002
Location: Warehouse P, 1st Floor
Eagle Rare 17 Price: $99 (MSRP)
Eagle Rare 17 Year Old Review: Tasting Notes
Eye: Coppered amber. Thin-to-medium rims and syrupy droplets.
Nose: Oaky bourbon - the oak is the first thing out of the glass. Not high proof - there’s no proof heat at all, really - but there’s oak spice alongside the woodiness. Brown sugar and vanilla slowly open with leather and charred, almost burnt cornbread where it’s just salvageable with corn flavor. Sweet clove spice develops with air and the oak finally mellows.
Palate: Sweet, slightly drying, and a slowly building cinnamon spice. The oak isn’t nearly as powerful on the palate as it was on the nose. Bruleed vanilla and oak quickly get into every corner of my mouth. Some mocha, too. Mouthfeel is a bit thin and very oaky at first, bringing cherries and the clearest mashbill 1 profile you’re likely to get from Buffalo Trace.
Finish: Sweet, cherry-forward and oaky, though the oak has mellowed a bit by now.
Overall: Meh? The oak from the nose thankfully mellows out by the palate and finish, making this drinkable. I’m more and more convinced that there aren’t old bourbons (older than around 14-15 years) that I like. Once the oak dissipates a bit, the classic bourbon and high-rye-mashbill notes from BT’s mashbill 1 come out. This isn’t a bad bourbon, there’s just nothing particularly noteworthy for me about it other than the fact it’s over-oaked. I seriously wonder, if they dropped the age statement to whatever actually tasted best rather than holding to 17 years, would that make a better bourbon?
Final Rating: 5.4
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)
1 | Disgusting | Drain pour (Virginia Distilling Co. Cider Cask)
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