Booker's Bourbon Batch 2019-02 "Shiny Barrel Batch"

BACKGROUND: Each year, Jim Beam releases four high-proof batches under its Booker's label in honor of former master distiller Booker Noe. The bourbon used to complete each batch is personally selected by Booker's son, Fred Noe, and given a name along with a description explaining its origin. The "Shiny Barrel" batch is a 124-proof bourbon that is aged 6 years, 5 months, and 1 day and comes from varying floors in four different warehouses. The description provided for the "Shiny Barrel" name reads: Back in the day, some of the distillery’s rackhouse workers would carry around “mules” – pieces of plastic tubing they carried in the front of their overalls – and use them to thief out a taste of whiskey (or two) straight from an aging barrel. Some of these men had, shall we say, prominent physiques.When they went in for a taste, their bellies would rub on the side of the barrel, removing dust and shining it up. Some used to say, “the shinier the barrel, the sweeter the whiskey,” and most often, Dad would find these shiny barrels in the center cut of the rackhouse where the temperature and humidity were just right. I was eager to get my hands on a bottle and give it a try, and it did not disappoint. NOSE: Like most of its products, this Booker's has the traditional "Beam funk" on the nose, but it also smells gloriously like the inside of a rickhouse (i.e. - oak and must and age even though it is only six-year-old). There is a bit of vanilla on the nose, which Booker Noe supposedly insisted all of his best bourbons possessed. The nose is also ethanol-heavy and caused my eyes to cross a bit on the first whiff even though I used the open-mouth nosing method. PALATE: The bourbon not only tastes like thick, syrupy molasses, but it also coats the mouth like molasses. It's a wonderful mouth feel. The other predominant flavors are oak...oak...and oak with, perhaps, a bit of citrus lingering in the background. Despite its alcohol-heavy nose, there is no intense alcohol kick upon first sip. FINISH: Though the initial palate does not offer much alcohol, the finish provides heat and hug for days. The rich taste of caramel also develops in the finish though not on the palate. The Beam peanut taste makes its presence known on the finish, as well. FINAL ASSESSMENT: It is difficult to believe how much this bourbon changes and develops from front of mouth to back of throat. I know that many Booker's aficionados have said the first two batches of 2019 were lackluster and saved most of their love for the "County Ham" and "Beaten Biscuits" offerings, but I found "Shiny Barrel" to be a great treat. Though I typically drink bourbon neat and in a glencairn glass, I might try Shiny Barrel with water or an ice cube to see how it further develops. Shiny Barrel is yet another fine release in the impressive line of Booker's products. I give it four-and-a-half cork pops out of five.

Rating: 19/23 It's been a while since I tried this. Initially, it seemed a bit strong, but its richness grew on me over time. I'm surprised that I still have 2/3 of a bottle of this. Let's see how time (and air) have changed my opinion. N: Something kind of bold here. Wood with peanut and a bit of a slightly tart funk. A hint of some sort of tart floral fruit in the citrus or apricot range. I like the balance, but the complexity isn't impressive. I'd take the Booker's Country Ham nose over this. P: Ohh, that palate though! This is much fuller and richer than Booker's Country Ham. It's a bit harsher too, unfortunately, but it's spicier with a richer apricot (or maybe orange peel) fruitiness and more wood bordering on 80% dark chocolate and coffee and points. The peanut is there for sure, but the other flavors are louder. F: The wood with its coffee flavor is more prominent. I do get a bit of tartness that suggests floral fruit. I'm having trouble picking out more than a dash of peanut here, but what I get does enhance the finish. - Conclusion - So this isn't the most complex dram, but it's bold and hedonistic. I wouldn't call it excellent, but I would happily drink it. It is another case of Booker's being a good whiskey at a price that's hard to justify, but this is probably my favorite so far. It's bolder than Wild Turkey Rare Breed 116.8, but it's less complex. I feel like the two are in the same ballpark though. This is a very good bourbon. This also strikes me as better than Belle Meade Cask Strength Reserve (batch 22). The Belle Meade somehow tastes younger with more of an off flavor to its caramel. This has that little bit of Beam emptiness to it and its flavors don't stand out quite as much, but it comes across as more mature and stately. Elijah Craig Barrel Proof B520 is substantially better than this though. The Elijah Craig maintains the same maturity and statliness while amping up the complexity dramatically. I don't see how this could be less than an 18. I can even see it going up to a 20. A 21 seems a bit unlikely and a 22 is a no-go. I'm looking in the 19 to 20 range now. Booker's really came through with this one! I almost just bumped it to a 20, but I think I'm going to stick with a 19. It's quite a good bourbon at either rating though!

If you've read my reviews, you probably know how much I love Booker's. And if you haven't--I really love Booker's. Yet, with 4-6 batches per year, I can only get to so many. I picked this one because of a fantastic review by @dubz480. It took my a while to get around to it, but I'm finally here. Side note: at 62% ABV this is the weakest Booker's batch I've owned. Nose: Peanut brittle, peanut oil, and cocoa. Dried apricot and golden raisin. Vanilla and orange peel. Green notes. Loads of spice: cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and oak. Powerful start. Palate: Butterscotch and toffee. Caramel, vanilla, and cocoa. Orange peel and dried apricot. More cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and oak spice. Some allspice thrown in for good measure. Tobacco leaf. A heavy-hitter for certain, but very enjoyable. Finish: Dried apricot, golden raisin, and butterscotch. More of that cinnamon, allspice, clove, nutmeg, and oak spice. Rides out to the end of a long finish that hits in waves. Lives up to the Booker's name. The meekest in terms of proof but certainly not in terms of flavor. Not as wide an array of notes as some of my other favorites, but every note is accentuated here. Even at 62% ABV, this is an absolute monster. Though it's great at every turn, my favorite part of this one is the finish. This batch boasts one of the better finishes from this line, which is interesting considering it's the lowest proof I've had. It hits in perfectly-spaced out waves of spice; it's simply remarkable. Maybe Beam should bottle this at a lower proof more often because the finish here is just right. I overlooked this one at first--until I read @dubz480's review. It was a pain to find, and I shelled out $100 for this, which is the most I've spent on Booker's. Well worth it, in my opinion. If you're a fan of Booker's, or high-proof Bourbon for that matter, give this one a go. Fantastic representative for the 2019 Booker's class. This was the first and only batch I purchased from that year--if anyone has other recommendations let me know. As for this one, buy with confidence.

Been looking for this for a while. Comes in wooden box with plexiglass front panel adding to the special nature of this bourbon. Poured neat, nose is surprisingly subdued. There's nutty caramel, cinnamon, dry cocoa and oak but the proof is masked. Yeah there is ethanol but not what you would expect. There is also a delightful maypo cereal note that I love! As it rests baking spices(nutmeg/clove etc)come in and the nutty notes step up to the front. Palate is rich and succulent with amazing refinement and sophistication for such a high proof. Caramel and cashew explode with spicy cinnamon, melted butterscotch, real maple syrup and toasted oak joining in but it all backs down and evens out to an elegance Ive only experienced with high end scotch. Ive never had Pappy but this is what I would imagine it would be like with all the hype. The mouthfeel is oily and wonderfully thick and sustains all the way through to finish. Fading cinnamon, caramel and spicy oak combine with cocoa powder, maple butter and gourmet premium nuts to produce a long satisfying end to this masterpiece. Gets better with each pour as more flavors get teased out and complexity increases. It is remarkable as it drinks like a 90 proof wolf in sheep's clothing. The flavors are powerful yet the silky smooth delivery is unrivaled. This batch is truly magnificent bourbon imo...........95/100.........best of the best of the best as Will Smith said in MIB...the overriding nutty caramel butterscotch quality balanced with perfect oak is fantastic and the lack of heat interference at 124pf is hard to believe. Be careful as this will kick in despite easy time emptying your glass. Highest recommendation......Spend some time with this, at first taste I figured around a 94 score but it kept improving and developing until I realized this is absolute bourbon perfection...... I will be buying another bottle of this batch before its gone regardless of price, maybe two or three, hell if I can get a case I will

A big thank you to @ContemplativeFox for this sample dram. This is one I requested because it sounded good from other reviews. Appearance: Amber color with medium oiliness. Rings the glass but no real legs. Nose: Leather, peanut butter, alcohol burn in nose but not too strong as long as you don't stick your nose into the glass. Brown sugar, smoke, orange with clove like grandma used to make around holidays for decor and aroma. Mouthfeel: Medium fullness, tangy. Flavor: Peanut butter buddy cookies, brown sugar, vanilla, smoked meat, hot on tongue, spices from all over the place from cinnamon to clove to nutmeg and so on. Pumpkin pie seasoning flavors. Butterscotch, bakery goodies, HOLY CRAP this is good! This right here, this is my kind of bourbon! I think I found my true love. Its sweet but its spicy, and there is enough complexity to keep it interesting. Each sip evolves new flavors I love. Adding a cube: Makes the mouthfeel creamier for sure which I love. I think if there was anything lacking in this pour it was the mouthfeel. I have had creamier and I do prefer that feel, but with a small cube that comes out more. Flavors come forward with less sweet and more heat for me, which I do not love that much. I prefer the flavor before the cube. If I had to choose I would keep the original mouthfeel for the sweeter flavor and not use a cube at all. Conclusion: My ONLY complaint would be that its not creamy enough in the mouthfeel. Especially for the otherwise creamy flavors. Yet, it has a wonderful balance of sweet and spice with a myriad of my favorite flavor notes. This is a 5 as I must get it in my collection. Thank you again @ContemplativeFox for this beautiful sample!

Booker's Shiny Barrel Batch is the second Booker's release for 2019. The barrels that are selected for each batch come from the center of the rickhouses and are bottled at barrel proof and are not chill-filtered. It is said that when Booker Noe retired, his one request to his son Fred was "make sure they don't mess with my Booker's." There's some conflicting information about when Booker's expression was first introduced. In fact, Booker's own website states that Booker Noe coined the term "small batch" and it was introduced in 1992. Yet, the last batch released in 2018 was a 30th Anniversary batch, which would put the first released year at 1988. The Bourbon Exchange site shows batches released as early as 1979, however. "Shiny Barrel" is an affectionate term given to barrels that get sampled the most by the rickhouse workers. As the saying goes, "the shinier the barrel, the sweeter the whiskey," the best barrels tend to be a bit more polished from the workers leaning over them to sample the contents a lot more frequently. Each batch of Booker's has a label on the bottle that gives the name of the batch, official batch number, age, proof and ABV. On the nose, Shiny Barrel packs a punch with dried berry fruit, familiar Jim Beam peanut note, charred oak, leather, and vanilla. The palate is big with the many of the same flavors found on the nose plus cinnamon brown sugar, toffee, and some heavy barrel char and a bit black pepper spice. The finish is fairly long and mouthwatering with chocolate, candied orange peels, and nutty all with a nice gentle warmth that spreads down the chest. This is a batch that does not disappoint!