Yellowstone Family Recipe Bourbon (2022 Release)

To round out my final signed buy from this distillery, I saved the most interesting for last. With so little information available and a lot of those sources seemingly just as confused, I'm expecting extremes from this product; either it's going to shock me as the best Limestone Branch whiskey, or it's going to easily mark itself as a cash grab and a disappointment. The idea of a historically recreated/restored yeast strain from earlier family generations is very cool, but doesn't really translate to the consumer the same way the distillery family employees see it. As a 6 year bourbon with only a slightly higher proof than the traditional Yellowstone bourbon, the expectations are that the flavor is noticeably better, or at least significantly different, because creating your own exclusivity and passing on an exuberant up-marking to the consumer over a different yeast strain is an embarrassing way to field more money. The color is quite light, despite having a familiar caramel hue behind it, which is shocking for a mid-proof whiskey, and a not-small amount of aging time. The nose only very lightly fills the room, and it's mostly ethanol and just a touch of oak. Up close, the oak is prominent, but has heavy notes like that of a toasted barrel, including citrus, tropical fruit, and specifically banana. There's not much else here, other than a balanced ethanol that brings out even more oak, although this time dry and almost "green." The body has a nice spice and a balanced ethanol burn to it, with initial flavors providing that same "toasted barrel" profile, with flavors of light, oily citrus, with a small hint of florality alongside it. Some chocolate starts to sneak up, which highlights orange oil as one of the specific citrus flavors, providing a very nice flavor combination. The rye grain starts to provide a tiny bit of cinnamon, but this time far more grass than the original Yellowstone Select, further securing a profile not unlike certain popular toasted or French oak bourbons on the market, but noticeably younger with a focus on raw corn for the finish. Alright, so, for me, this is quite tasty and highlights a lighter spectrum of the Yellowstone bourbon line unlike any of their other current offerings. Oddly enough, the actual toasted oak finish Yellowstone was the most recent one I sampled, but pales in comparison to the desired flavors that I found in this bottle. Then again, there really was no expectation for this product, since, by the sound of it, there is likely nobody left alive that experienced such an old yeast strain, or the whiskey(s) it was used in. Still, it's fun to showcase and sample similar whiskeys with different yeast strains used, since I've encountered plenty of whiskeys that have every other component right on paper as far as what I like, but the yeast is the only thing that kills it, showcasing the make-or-break importance. I would definitely enjoy purchasing this again, but would only really want to spend this amount of money again on a single barrel version, and would want the batched version (this one) to be almost half the price next to it, especially if they're going to make it a semi-permanent, yearly release. Furthermore, I feel the distillery missed a great opportunity to brand this whiskey as a brand new product, considering the history and amount that was changed just over the yeast strain alone. With the distillery named Limestone Branch, but with all the products having no such name or resemblance and the Yellowstone line especially having too many variants already, this could have been the first new product to launch a higher end of whiskey products, or at least another stand-alone line next to the already standing alone Minor Case. Speaking of which, knowing that Minor Case is the distillery's only permanent rye whiskey, it showcases that, although great new whiskeys CAN be produced by this distillery, maybe something like this Family Recipe would be better off as a special edition, only-sold-at-the-distillery-occasionally type of expression.

NOSE Grassy, sweet corn, oak, caramel, marzipan, citrus peel, herbal spice, leather, touch of clove and red licorice. Sweet, earthy, mildly spiced, and full of oak and fruit. This is a complex and interesting aroma. PALATE Grassy, sweet corn, oak, caramel, cinnamon, clove, peanut brittle, vanilla taffy and some bergamot and leather. Complex and deep, this is a beautiful delivery of complimentary notes. FINISH Long -> Oak, grassy, sweet corn, and bergamot.

So far is the worst whisky i have ever purchased. The "bouquet" is earthy, reminds me of my grandmothers dirt cellar when it was spring and time to throw out the vegetables that were going bad. To say it was a disappointment is being polite.

Different. Not in a bad way, but different. Not your typical bourbon. Worth the purchase if you can find it. Old recipe from 150 years ago. What bourbon tasted like back then.

Light oaky flavor without any bite. Very smooth. Almost too light

Kenny Coleman night at Drake’s. Funky taste, locker roomish