Old Grand Dad 100 Proof Bonded
Three S&M Bourbons - Part II
0 681
Review by @talexander
- Nose19
- Taste21
- Finish21
- Balance20
- Overall81
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Distribution of ratings for this:
- Brand: Old Grand Dad
- Type: American
- ABV: 50%
Like the last bourbon I just reviewed, Old Grand-Dad is made at Jim Beam and is branded as one of "The Olds" with Old Overholt. I believe this recipe has more rye content than standard Jim Beam. Thanks to @Nozinan for the sample.
The colour is a medium copper. Quite fruity on the nose with pineapple and papaya. There is some toasted oak but not that much - I have a feeling this is pretty young whiskey. It's somewhat mentholated, like Vicks, which I find a little off-putting. Cigarette ash. Bitter dark chocolate. Very herbal and floral (less so with water), this really does strike me as not having as much time in oak as maybe it should have.
A bit more anchored on the palate, with more spices - pepper, rye and cloves - and a nice backbone of soft caramel. Not too sweet. The menthol and herbs that I found overpowering on the nose are here, but not so upfront. A drop of water adds sour cherries and puff pastry. Interesting, but still tastes too young.
The finish is soft with toasted oak and a nice umami note, then develops into mint and cotton candy. For me, this is more interesting than it is fully successful. That strong medicinal nose spanked me just a bit too hard, then before I could utter the safe word it pulled back and redeemed itself with some nice spices and baking notes. Overall, I like it fine but I think it should have been strapped into the barrel just a little longer.
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Nice review. It's interesting that I scored it quite a bit higher than you, but you scored OGD114 a point higher than me. I wonder if I return to it whether I would give it a 88, but it seemed really good out there in Calgary.
You've inspired me to do a H2H one of these days to revisit both.