Blanton's Single Barrel Black Edition

Straw, lightly viscous with whispy legs. First whiff is grain - corn would be my guess? Very light. Bourbon? Very nontraditional - no way is this bourbon. Light whiskey? There’s a big ethanol component and no light whiskey is a young whiskey in todays market. There could be some barrel finishing here. Sweetness abounds - almost cloying and slightly musty. Floral notes, almond extract, muddled clove, pepper, shoe polish, green apple, prickly (French?) oak. Slight old library book that gets buried in the mix. Based on nose and color I’m going with grain whisky rather than bourbon or malt. Wow. Wow that doesn’t burn. I was afraid this would be some crazy 130+ proof light whiskey but I’m going with no. This is a non-US, single grain whisky of some sort… I think. Light feel, clean. Bits of corn syrup, white wine, French oak, vanilla, lavender, stewed apples. There might be some white pepper, maybe faint German licorice but there’s not a lot of spice to speak of. The finish is like the rest of the dram - light but pungently sweet with a distinct mustiness. I’m spinning my wheels a bit here. If this is finished then I’m thinking new French oak or some sort of desert wine (ice wine, Tojaki, etc) and less likely cognac but I’ve been fooled by cognac finishes in the past. Age? This could be 17-22 years (ie 20+/-), especially if it’s a single grain whisky. Time to see if @pkingmartin can help me out since he was kind enough to let me try this odd ball. No. No, no, no. This - is unsurprising and disappointing at the same time. For a fleeting moment in the beginning I thought to myself “this is sweet and fruity enough to be a watered down Buffalo Trace product” but couldn’t think of one that was this corn forward. Remind me never to water down bourbon again. Also - Japan we love you. I don’t know who sent you this but I promise we can do better. Seriously, we owe you one.

Luck seems to be on my side for Blanton’s lately as my brother was kind enough to bring back a bottle of the Blanton’s Black from Japan after a trip which is bottled at very low proof of 40%, but has a very nice black label with Japanese writing on it. These appear to be selling for above $250 online, but he was able to procure one for around $63 in Japan. Time to crack this one open and see if this is better than the original. The nose starts with a very light caramel with a hint of oak spice followed by fruits of Motts apple juice and orange zest that transitions to a very light spice along with ginger, cloves, nutmeg, leather and light oak with no ethanol burn. The taste is almost a water thin mouthfeel that starts with a light caramel with light oak spice followed by fruits of Motts apple juice and orange zest followed by a vanilla seeds then a light pepper spice that fades to faint barrel spices of ginger, cloves, nutmeg, leather and light oak with light ethanol burn. The finish is short with caramel apple, chocolate, orange zest, vanilla seeds, ginger, cloves, and light oak spice. I thought Blanton’s original single barrel was muted on the notes, but this is even worse. The nose is so light that the notes are difficult to pick out besides some light citrus and barrel char and the palate doesn’t improve things with tasting more like caramel water with a dash of fruit juices, some kitchen spices and a piece of wood on top that finishes short with light fruit, chocolate and barrel spices that turns spicier and drying than the original. No surprise this isn’t worth the secondary prices as I doubt anything actually is, but I wouldn’t even want another one of these for $63. It’s as if BT decided to take a lesson from Jim Beam and go Basil Haydenize their Blanton’s whiskey for the Japanese market.

Nose - cherry, menthol, caramel, vanilla, buttery cinnamon, cocoa, black pepper, mint, barrel char, orange zest, anise, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - salted caramel, vanilla, cherry, orange zest, black pepper, cocoa, cinnamon, menthol, sour apple, mild to moderate alcohol bite, finishing short with cherry, caramel, and sour barrel spice flavors. Well I don’t have anymore Japanese whiskies to review, so I figured Blanton’s Japan-only release would be the next best thing. And what better way for Blanton’s to make this more like a Japanese whisky than to dilute all the character out of it. The nose is light compared to its standard-strength big brother. There’s caramel, that ubiquitous Blanton’s cherry note, some cinnamon, and a hefty dose of menthol. The palate is unpleasantly thin and mentholated with more cherry, sour oak spice, and a citrusy orange zest flavor. Unfortunately when cherry and menthol notes coexist, I always think of cough syrup, and nobody wants cough syrup in their Blanton’s. So this is exactly how I’d expect your bottle of Blanton’s to taste if you left your teenager home alone for a weekend. Fortunately, there’s a quality distillate underpinning this tragedy, but it’s a tragedy nonetheless. If you find yourself in Japan one day, pick up a bottle for $60 and make your thirsty friends thirstier. But please don’t spend $250 to procure one of these on the secondary market. The third option is to have an extremely generous friend gift you a bottle. A huge shout out to @pkingmartin for being that friend for me. At least it looks pretty on the shelf.

Why does Blanton's Black get so much hate? Its an 80 proof bourbon.... you have to go into the taste knowing you aren't going to get a full bodied, cask strength stunner. If the flavors are there albeit soft and a bit muted and this bourbon is easy drinking, does that not reach the end goal? The nose on Blanton's Black is dominated by sweet caramel. Almost smells as sweet as a dessert. A hint of underlying vanilla is there and the end of the nose is punctuated by a quick and decisive hit of cinnamon. Brown sugar and caramel melt slowly on your tongue as they dance with a touch of vanilla and sweet baking spices. The taste is very sweet, almost cloying. As the finish starts, a kiss of rye spice and again the cinnamon from the nose carry all that sweetness away. You're left with a bit of salted caramel hitting at mid tongue as the finish fades into the distance. Blanton's Black isn't as oily or long lasting as the other bottlings but for obvious reasons: this one is bottled at 80 proof. But its sweet, delicious and an easy drinker. If you have friends who are asking you about bourbon who don't yet drink whiskey or bourbon, this would make a great gateway bourbon for them ( well... if it wasn't so damned rare in the states that is ). Almost every bad review I've seen about Blanton's Black compares it directly with Single Barrel. My review is based on the merits of the bourbon alone, not when compared to its more complex brethren. And by that measure: this is a fantastic, sweet and agreeable bourbon. Delicious.

This guy found it's way back home from Japan by way of a fellow bourbon brother, fortunate for me! NOSE: Heavy oak and vanilla extract dominate the nose upfront with a subtle baking spice trying to peak through. TASTE: Flat Cola with a spicy honey lead the charge with a hint of orange zest and caramel chews laying in the background. FINISH: Very bold up front with flavor and light burn the sustains through the sip, fades quickly leaving you wanting another. BODY: Light and clean, slightest oil that is gone in a flash, well balanced. OVERALL: Loved it, even without it being cask strength it still packs a punch with full flavor. Blantons does it again. As always keep drinking my friends, Skol!

The nose is pretty soft with caramel and a bit of gingerbread and immediately it drops off on the taste with a watered down taste and then slightly picks back up with some caramel that is a bit brighter than the nose. The finish is short and all charred caramel. Very one noted. If you can't find this, don't worry because, you're not missing anything. If it was priced at like $25 and readily available it would be good to introduce someone to bourbon with this.