Virgin Bourbon 7 Year 101

Mint and barrel notes on the nose. Clear whiff of rye grain, although I’ve assumed this is not a high rye mash. Orange-brown in the glass. Oily legs. Menthol, dark chocolate, and oak course throughout the taste. Green apple, barrel char. Generously spiced from both flavor and proof. Not overly sweet but has some toffee notes. The first few sips have a slightly mildewed undertone, as if the charring didn’t entirely cleanse the open-air aged staves. The chocolate + apple edges toward bitter/sour cocoa, but thankfully all that eventually fades, letting the deep chocolate-y flavors, oak, and bold spice occasionally harmonize in a way I usually associate with some very high-end products. Astringent finish that keeps tingling for a while with mint chocolate notes. A less common profile that can both delight and challenge, but realistically for $13/L this is a knockout. Price has jumped in the last 6 months up to a ~$20 bottle which is less of a steal as well as going NAS... direct competitor with the outstanding VFM WT101, which I’d probably pick over this aside from the scarcity factor/mystique. If anything, this is a touch over-oaked and I almost get the feeling that these were quick-aging barrels intended for Evan Williams Black Label that were bought on the cheap (accordingly) but continued aging to release with better “stats” and the result is mixed - a bit disjointed but some clear successes as well.

Virgin 101 7 Year Sampled in a Glencairn, the color is amber tending toward orange. A quick swirl yields skinny, oily and slow-moving legs. *Nose: Dusty Corn, Orange Peel, a Musty/Dusty Oak note with a little alcohol sting. *Neat: Hot and Slightly Bitter on entry with Vanilla Sweetness showing up mid-palate. The Orange Peel note dominates the slightly hot finish with a healthy dose of Cinnamon for good measure. Fairly thick and chewy mouthfeel with a decent Kentucky Hug. Slightly Bitter Oak and Cinnamon coat the palate after a medium length finish. *Splash: Adds an unidentifiable sweetness and a grassy note to the nose. Really helps the palate by making the Vanilla and Cinnamon notes a little more dominant start to finish. Also adds a touch of Chocolate. As an interesting side note, the nose on the empty glass was a dead ringer for Big Red Gum. *Verdict: 7 Year Old, 101 Proof Heaven Hill Whiskey for around $13-$15? Enjoy it while (and if) you can, folks. Put this in a pretty bottle and it could easily pass for a $30-$40 Bourbon. Instead, it's the best $13 Bourbon on the market, by a long shot. Not available everywhere, but if you can find it you will not be disappointed.

Picked up a couple of $17 fifths of no age statement on a recent trip to Alabama. I much prefer the previously available 7 year old to the current NAS. Like, muchly. The NAS finishes with a pronounced iron-rust note that is unpleasant. The 7 was decent neat plus a few drops of water, but the NAS begs for a couple of drips of orange bitters at a minimum, better with a spoon or two of Curaçao or Amaro Montenegro instead, and it’s even happier in a Revolver cocktail. A Boulevardier’s sweet vermouth & Campari are a yet more effective cover-up. I detect a continuum. Still, all this seems more like “Porky, meet lipstick” rather than making the most delicious drink that one can; I prefer a Revolver made with the traditional Bulleit orange label to the NAS. Bourbon, to me, is most enjoyable neat w/ 3 or 4 drops of distilled water. The NAS is not that one; it is handy - and cheap - for some cocktails (bourbon & Coca-Cola?) I suppose. Too bad the 7 is done. I keep the last half-bottle I have of that specifically for “A or B?” tastings against the NAS for friends, like I do with a few previously delicious but now not so much mass-market handmade cigars. Entropy, I guess.

Probably shouldn't comment on a bourbon after drinking all night, but here we go. Been wanting to try this because apparently this is one of the few reasons to visit Alabama, and since I happen to live here, thought it would be nice to experience it. However the age statement has changed from 7 years to NAS. Don't know how the 7 year tastes so this isn't a comparison, simply a taste of the NAS. It's simple and smooth all the way. There is a burnt sugar sweetness with a very mild fruit taste, maybe cherry, with a very mild burn, especially for a 101 proof. Very smooth all the way, leaving you with a sweet mild burn at the end. For under $15 this has to still be a good reason to visit AL.

This is a strange bourbon. Most people have never heard of or even seen because it was mainly a exported bourbon. Now you can find this only in a few states, Alabama, Kansas, Mississippi, and North Carolina. This is a 7 year old bourbon that clocks in at 101 proof and is about $15 dollars. The color is a dark amber with a reddish hint. The nose is brown sugar, vanilla, corn, and oak. The taste is the same as the nose but has a very strong oak flavor. The finish is medium to long with the oak and some spiciness lingering. This is a Heaven Hill product and now that the Heaven Hills 6 year bottled in bond has been discontinued, this might just be a great replacement.

**EDIT: It's rumored that this is the export version of Old Ezra 7 Yr. Now that the foreign market is a little more discerning, they're dumping these in many states where the Old Ezra is not available.**A great value in the $13 range. You can definitely taste the Heaven Hill lineage here. Sweet toffee, butterscotch, and peanut brittle upfront. Hot and oaky on the back end, but a splash or a cube brings out some good smoky, chocolaty notes and calms the finish just enough. This is going into my rotation of value pours.