Blanton's Gold Edition

This is a 3cl sample I ordered during the holidays from Master of Malt. As such, I don’t have any information other than the products name and its ABV. I’ve always wanted to try this particular version of Blanton’s since it’s not available in America. I also ordered straight from the barrel, but I’ll review that one at a later time. Getting into Blanton’s Gold, these are my tasting notes.

Nose: Initially it’s a wooden spice rack. After a few minutes of breathing, it settles down into a mix of allspice, sourdough, butter, and vanilla bean. The usual sweetness present in Bourbon is faintly detectable in the background. Twenty-five minutes later, the nose hasn’t opened up, it’s exactly as I have described previously.

Taste: Neat it’s mildly sweet, mostly spicy, and dry on arrival. Body is light, lacking is the spirits power/heft. The flavors aren’t lacking, nor are they vibrant, they’re just flat. Let me be clear, by flat I mean that there is one dominate flavor, in this case the spice, it arrives, reaches a level of intensity, and never changes into anything else nor fluctuates. My impression? It’s rather boring. The taste is spice dominant so it’s rather one dimensional. Clearly not in balance.

Finish: Dry finish. A mix of sweet, allspice, and bitter wood notes.

To be honest, I’m left somewhat disappointed. Maybe it’s the 5 star reviews on the overseas site championing this as a must have, or the posts on IG giving this excellent reviews & recommendations, but I am really disappointed. I’m not upset for what this Bourbon is because it’s still a good product, but it’s nowhere near as excellent as it’s been described. Here in the states this bottle is unavailable for purchase as it’s an overseas product. Shipping one in will easily cost you in the $90 range. For that price, it’s not worth it. You’re way better off just making due with standard Blanton’s. If you can find Rock Hill Farms, buy that instead. Let me explain why.

I noticed that in taste profile, it’s ridiculously similar to some Rock Hill Farms Bourbon I have. Maybe it’s the fact they’re both single barrels, of similar ABV (Blanton’s gold 51.5% vs. RHF 50%), and from the same distiller, but tasting it side by side, I’m even inclined to say that this is the same juice in a different bottle and label. The only difference is the RHF is just sweeter. The profile in taste is shocking close otherwise. For the price in the states, RHF is a better substitute. The only problem is good luck find RHF at $50-60. My bottle was acquired in late 2015 and I haven't seen it on the shelf since.

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