This was the first commercial "single cask" bourbon, the Americans were much slower than the Scots to that particular niche, and comes from the Buffalo Trace distillery and my bottle was at 46.5% ABV. The nose is very rich, with vanilla and some alcohol, and none of the grain spirit notes I often find in bourbon which reflects some additional time spent in oak. The taste is also rich and satisfying, with oak and pepper leading. There are some sweeter caramel and corn syrup notes and even citrus fruit zest, but they are not to the fore at all. The finish is spicy, long, robust and reveals some cigar notes and I think this would go well with a smoke. With water it gets a little softer and creamier and some herbal rye and aniseed notes come through in the finish as well. This is not quite the flavour profile I tend to go for in bourbon (I would like a little less oak and little more sweet) but I can appreciate this is well made and complex and know others will love it.
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