Bib & Tucker 10 Year Small Batch Bourbon

Bib and Tucker is a brand I know nothing about but when I see their bottles, they've always sort of intrigued me with their tinted glass and wooden corks. On a recent run to Total Wine I decided to pick up a bottle of 10 year although.... that may have been a risky proposition at just under $90/bottle. The nose on this bourbon is quite dry indeed. I tend to prefer mega sweet bourbons, but I suppose this might be heading into a change for the better. Definitely has some tannic oak and leather on the nose along with orange pith and mint. This palate opens quite sweet and innocent with brown sugar and lemon merengue. Tannic oak doesn't make as big a splash as it did on the nose and really all of the tastes are softer and more rounded than the nose suggests. A bit of peppery spice and leather bring some dry character mid taste along with some dark cacao that is both sweet and slightly bitter and leaves the mouthfeel a bit dry and powdery going into the finish. The finish is of medium length but not super oily in the mouth. That tannic oak carries with it some orange pith and baking spice. Its a well balanced finish and dare I say, a finish carrying stronger and sharper flavors than the palate? You know something? This was a pleasant surprise. I don't know that I'd plop down another $90 for this bottle but I'm sure glad I tried it. The palate is surprisingly soft considering both the nose and finish are stronger. But its a very well balanced neat sipper... I can wholeheartedly recommend it.

Gifted to me at Xmas, let’s see if this bottle can change my opinion of Dickel. Medium strength aroma is very fruity with rum soaked fruit cake, berry, light vanilla, and a distracting mineral note. Tried and failed to get much else. Ethanol is low. Palate opens with more caramel and vanilla than the nose would indicate, along with some date, fig, mandarin orange, and maple. All the notes are sweet, simple, and kind of flat. That said, the palate actually doesn’t suck. Medium length finish features light cinnamon and nutmeg and then…while I hate to be cliche I have to keep it real; where my tongue wanted oak/wood, I got goddamn Flintstone vitamins. Just…why??? Mouthfeel is light bodied and being neither creamy or grainy; compliments the flavor profile decently enough. A high point. So apparently my friend spent $85 on this. Yikes. I wish he would have told me he was getting me a bottle as I would have had him get me a bottle of 1920 or Rare Breed and saved him $30. Or Hell even a bottle of Wild Turkey 101 which I would have enjoyed more. For Dickel lovers only, which I most certainly am not.

I was not overly impressed by the entry level B&T, but i have been told the 10 year is the sweet spot for them. Throw in a tater worthy Liberty Torch bottle topper and I am in. Of course I think anyone calling another person a tater really says more about themselves than their target.... but I digress. Let's see how it goes. Nose is really quite nice on this pour. There is a faint peanut note, but more prevalent are wood and cocoa. No alcohol here to speak of makes this one to enjoy for a bit before you sip. First sip is fairly soft on the front end. I get a touch of cocoa here and maybe some burnt caramel. Mostly this one is just flat. There is a bit of a hot finish with some pepper burn that flares up and then sort of fizzles out. Overall this one like the 6 year just doesn't do it for me. The flavor is soft and a bit flat. It's not a drain pour by any means, but I wouldn't buy it again. At the price it is a disappointment if not for that cool bottle topper. I would advise you look elsewhere at this price.

This is my second taste. I opened the bottle 10 months ago, a Christmas present, and remember it having a very unique flavor, dissimilar to most typical bourbon profiles. But this time around I was completely underwhelmed and found it rather unexceptional. That being said, it was still a good sip, just nothing to write home about. Edit: 3rd taste. Flip-flop exhibit here… definitely a unique flavor. Damp morning campfire is the image the flavor is evoking. Still not feeling great about this one, though.

A bold, Tennessee sour mash bourbon by August Sebastianif for 3 Badge Beverages in Kentucky aged for 10 years. It has an aromatic birth with notes of grain, wood, dried fruits, nuts, herbs & spices; while a bold life adds notes of sweet roasted corn, dried pears, apple cider, vanilla & cocoa; that led to a long, warm & woody death adding notes of cracked pepper, toasted oak, rye, pipe tobacco, cedar, milk chocolate, cinnamon, chestnuts, burnt caramel & smoke. August / October 2024

Aroma sits warm and heavy with a solid plank of oak to support and serve up the dynamic aroma that ranges from fruity sweet to earthy and coppery; Palate has even more going on with a wider array of fruit and dessert sweets combined with earthier and more metallic notes, but again, all served on a solid hunk of oak; Finish seems to pull back from the richness a bit, but it’s still a nice sweet and spicy fade.