Kentucky Gentleman
Nozinan Mini and Sample Series - 50
0 1282
Review by @Nozinan
- Nose~
- Taste~
- Finish~
- Balance~
- Overall82
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- Brand: Kentucky Gentleman
- ABV: 40%
Given it is July 4, I thought I would review some bourbons. Bourbons are going to be a little more expensive in the coming year thanks to our new trade war.
When I was in Maryland with @paddockjudge, we came across three inexpensive bourbon bottles that were in the process of being opened and dumped. I can’t really say why. Well, I can, but I shouldn’t. If the dumper wishes to comment that is fine with me. I managed to save a sample of each of them. The first one was Heaven Hill Old Style Bourbon. The second one was Ancient Age Kentucky Straight Bourbon. This was the third one.
I don’t know much about this but it claims to be a blend of Straight bourbon and “Spirit from the finest grains”. I though bourbon itself was made of grain spirit. So maybe the bourbon wasn’t from the finest grains? Let’s check it out.
This expression, poured into a Kentucky bourbon glass, is reviewed in my usual manner, allowing it to settle after which I take my nosing and tasting notes, followed by the addition of a few drops of water, waiting, then nosing and tasting.
Nose: 21/25
Sweet, fruity nose. Over-ripe fruit? The richest of the three I reviewed together. Something solventy. Butterscotch. Not a bad nose.
Taste: 20.5/25
A little thin. Fruit-forward palate. Spirity. Some vanilla and caramel in the background. Water makes it more bitter. (20/25)
Finish: 21/25
Short spicy finish, leaving astringency.
Balance: 20/25
The nose and palate are consistent. Not very complex and a little sweet.
Score: Neat - 82.5/100 With Water: 82/100
Surprisingly, almost a drinkable bourbon.
For fun, I put equal parts of the Heaven Hill, Ancient Age and Kentucky Gentleman into my MoM Couldn’t Finish sample bottle and let it marry for a little while. I believe the result is slightly greater than the sum of its parts.
The leftovers were dumped in the glass that had held my diet tonic water, soda, lemon and lime. Mixed with the spent lemon and lime, it’s quite tasty.
@Nozinan, I am charmed that you are reviewing Kentucky Gentleman! Kentucky Gentleman is a "blended bourbon", which is to say that it contains grain neutral spirits blended with 'proper' bourbon. In this case I think the neutral sprits comprise 49% of the blend, which is typical for this genre. In the 1970s blended bourbons were very very common when the taste was for light spirts like vodka and rum. In 2018 few blended bourbons are sold.
Kentucky Gentleman is produced at the Barton/1792 Ridgemont Distillery, which is owned, along with the Buffalo Trace Distillery and the A. Smith Bowman Distillery, by Sazerac Company in New Orleans.
Kentucky Gentleman is surprisingly good, considering the high concentration of neutral spirits. It seems only connoisseurs will give it a chance, though. Almost all of the very basic drinkers I know revile the stuff. I like it, myself, quite a bit. In The Jim Murray Whisky Bibles, Jim Murray scored Kentucky Gentleman higher than he did Pappy Van Winkle 23 yo, and Pappy Van Winkle 20 yo, whiskeys which have $ 2,000+ asking prices on the secondary markets.
Price for Kentucky Gentleman in my county in Maryland is $ 8.06 for 750 ml, or $ 14.16 for 1.75 L, tax included.