Yellowstone 9 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon (2019 Limited Edition)

A very excited moment for me indeed. I don't want to type too much unnecessarily just so I can get to this bourbon. The color is very great here, maybe even a little darker than is to be expected given the proof and 12 year being the max age. I called the distillery directly for some more information on this prior to purchasing, and the gentleman shared that he gets a lot of cinnamon on the nose. I believe that, even if I had not had that phone call at all, I would certainly agree with him. The cinnamon is stewed a bit, like you might find in a hot toddy. In addition to this, I get strong oak and dust notes, which I usually find mostly in cask strength bourbons, but not necessarily higher age (although it makes sense). The only thing I feared with this is coming true during the first taste; the lower proof (in my opinion) causes all other subsequent tastes to seem watery and distant a bit. I'm exaggerating a little, but I definitely believe limited editions like this should always be full proof (after all, this would make it even more limited edition). Despite this, the dusty notes make up most of the body, with plenty of deep caramel and other general high age bourbon notes. That cinnamon from the nose is here, but it seems to be split to a little on the initial taste and a little on the finish. Surprisingly, contrary to my earlier diss, the finish is very long and hot, and makes the proof seem much higher than it is. Given that Limestone Branch kind of wipes the board clean each year for their Yellowstone Limited Edition and does something completely different the next, there can really be no model of comparison here. If we're going off the original Yellowstone, then this seems like a completely different distillery. Even if the mash bill is the same (and there's no evidence to suggest it wouldn't be), the dusty flavor and feeling of finding an attic whiskey reminds me of a similar product from one of the other Beam affiliates, albeit with that one being a much higher proof and yet less age. I've had a few super high aged bourbons (15 year + in my book), and this one has a similar flavor while also getting away with a lower proof. All in all, this was a very excellent addition and a perfect example of "If it ain't broke..."

Nose leads with leather, vanilla, fresh apples, some orange peel, and a tiny bit of nuttiness. Maybe a faint floral note in the background? Not much oak. A little bit of ethanol at first, which fades after a few minutes. Pleasantly coats the palate with notes of brown sugar, honey grahams, vanilla, apples, and a (pleasant) earthy note. A bit of bite on the back palate, but not much spice. The vanilla and brown sugar notes linger on the medium finish along with a hint of oak. A few drops of water didn't seem to change the nose, but noticeably amplified the sweeter notes on the palate (especially the mid-palate). Overall it's quite good, but maybe not a standout worthy of Limited Edition status. I really enjoyed the complex nose, it seemed like I got something different every time I sniffed. The palate was more straight-forward but still pleasant. This actually reminds me of some of the better Russell's Reserver barrell picks I've had in the past, which is strange since most sourced KY Bourbon is assumed to come from Heaven Hill or Barton 1792.

I love bourbons have have a very prominent sweet corn nose almost as sweet as corn deer attractants they smell so good and this has it. Carmel corn and vanilla. Palate is classic bourbon all the way. Sweet corn,vanilla, custard and brown sugar. Medium to long finish on first few sips. This bourbon is absolutely delightful. It hits every mark. I cant wait for this to open up a bit.

Booze forward, with a little molasses, and apples on the nose...with a hint of sherry or almost a cherry. Then the flavor explodes with a sherry and virgin oak bite, then immediately dissipates when it hits the back of your throat to just a smooth warming aftertaste with no bite or burn at all as it goes down. Worth the buy!

Really good bourbon. On the nose lovely spiceness with caramel and vanilla. Taste: what comes first, oily brown sugar and medium to long warming finish. Good whiskey. Tried sample from TWE.

Starts strong, a lot of burn. There is a strong flavor from the barrel. It got considerably more mellow with some time to breathe and some rocks. Overpriced but good.