Booker's Bourbon Batch 2020-01 "Granny's Batch"

Side note: somewhat gratifying when you compile your tasting notes without reading any others on this site and when you go to post you see some similar flavors mentioned. Go taste buds! Neat. Glencairn. The nose is a close cousin to Knob Creek single barrel. The proof comes screaming out as cayenne-dusted corn. Lots of hay and musty barn wood, peanut brittle and bit of oak and barrel char. Appropriate for a bourbon like this but doesn’t quite stoke my fire. Palate is weighty. Definitely zippy but enjoyable neat. Initial wave is super dusty peanut shells, then sweetens nicely into honey water with cinnamon and char iodine. A bit of vegetal capsaicin and mint. Tingles and lingers nicely like an oak flavored cinnamon red hot. Seems to enhance the sweetness when left to air for a spell. Overall not terribly complex but pretty enjoyable corn syrup for grownups. Attempting to characterize this as an experience, it’s like the bougie high proof bourbon version of wandering into a Texas Roadhouse, skipping the steak and instead licking the peanut shells off a wood floor, biting a jalapeño, and then pounding the whole ramekin of that cinnamon honey butter and a scorching hot yeast roll. If that sounds like your kind of party I’d say grab a pour if you can still find one! Biggest knock is the significant price inflation for a bottle of bookers.

Been wanting to try one of the Bookers collection bottles for some time now so when I saw this one last year I picked it up. Finally polished off enough open bottles in my bar to justify opening a new one so here goes… First thought upon taking a whiff is wow that’s definitely a Knob Creek product. Smells so good. Anyone who says peanuts/peanut brittle is spot on! Smells so good. I tried this right after a Calumet 14 and this blew it away. The taste is everything Beam you would want and expect from it. Very similar to the KC 120 bottles but in my opinion a step up. If you want to splurge and get the fancy box and bottle with wax to impress your non-whiskey drinking friends go for it. This to me is a great whiskey but the price for me is a tad higher than I like to spend on a bottle. I try to limit myself to $60-70 but this was on my list to try for quite some time so I’m glad I splurged. 4/4/22

Tasted in the early days of autumn, which was perfect timing - this bourbon screams "autumn in Kentucky" Heavy oak, granny smith candy apples, dry roasted peanuts, churros, vanilla ice cream, tobacco. Big apple pie energy tempered by a healthy hit of dry oak. Thick and chewy viscosity carries an honest spicy burn - it tastes it's proof for sure - but very mild on the ethanol. Dry, lingering finish. Tasted side-by-side with Country Ham, Beaten Biscuits, and Boston Batch. This one is the best of the four in my opinion. The flavor profile is very unique, and despite a degree of family resemblance to other Booker’s, I really haven’t had anything like it. One of my favorites.

Nose - Peanut and brownie brittle is so accurate. Maybe even a toffee brittle. Candied peanuts or pecans. Creamy peanut butter, the scent is so smooth. Palate - Spearmint is the first thing that I pick up along with cinnamon candy. Reeeeeeeaaallllllyyyy thick mouthful and peanut flavor that goes along together as more peanut butter. Hot hot barrel char but its complemented with the peanut butter taste and feel. Finish - Finish is hot and long. The nutty flavor does follow it down though and provides and nice roasted feel to the finish.

Finally finishing off a bottle of Granny’s Batch after occasionally sipping on this bottle for over a year. I wasn’t sure what to think of this one as I was a huge fan of Country Ham and that one really blew me away. This one is heeeeeeavy on the boiled peanut note and that being said, I didn’t care for it at first. The more I sat with this bottle the more I discovered that it was one of my favorite Bookers out of the whole lineup due to its uniqueness. The baking spice note and nuttiness really shines here.

I previously wrote this is was the best batch I've had in some time. In a direct comparison with 2018-04 and 2019-03, more floral notes come out that really reflects how layered this bourbon is. Compared to my notes, I'm still getting peanut brittle but not fried apple fritters or candied orange. Still brown sugar and still tons of complexity. Some bills wafer and biscuits notes this time, too.