Tonight I finally get around to presenting the If You’ve Had… that inspired the whole idea, Heaven Hill’s line of bonded bourbons. Heaven Hill has a lot of bourbons in their bonded stable. I believe I got all of the readily available ones (even if only in Kentucky). But in any case, there are enough that these were compared to one another over the course of a few days.
As a refresher, the setup is like this: "If you've had Whiskey A then Whiskey B is..." hotter, spicier, sweeter, more floral, etc. Each section is written as compared to one of the whiskeys. So if you've had that one, but not the others then that section will be of the most use to you. Remember there are no value judgments here. You get to decide based on what you know of Whiskey A if Whiskey B sounds like something you'd want to try.
Up tonight are the ones I had on hand, or could buy locally, including: Evan Williams Bottled in Bond, JTS Brown Bottled in Bond, JW Dant Bottled in Bond, Heaven Hill (6 year old) Bottled in Bond, Old Fitzgerald (wheated) Bottled in Bond and Henry McKenna (10 year old, single barrel) Bottled in Bond. Your mileage may vary on that last one being a single barrel product.
If you’ve had Evan Williams Bottled in Bond then…
JTS Brown is: more grain forward on the nose, mouth and finish. The finish is more bitter.
JW Dant is: more caramel forward on the nose. It shows more caramel and floral notes in the mouth and the finish is more tannic.
Heaven Hill 6 year Bottled in Bond is: fruitier on the nose. It’s sweeter, warmer and more complex in the mouth. And has a longer and warmer finish.
Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond is: more floral on the nose. It is softer and sweeter on entry, but hotter and rougher on the finish.
Henry McKenna 10 year Bottled in Bond is: hotter and shows more oak on the nose. It is sweeter, hotter, fruitier and shows more oak in the mouth and has more oak on the finish.
If you’ve had JTS Brown Bottled in Bond then…
Evan Williams Bottled in Bond is: oakier on the nose. It’s breadier and sweeter, showing more vanilla and caramel in the mouth and shows more oak on the finish.
JW Dant is: very caramel forward by comparison. It is sweeter, more caramel/toffee forward and hotter in the mouth.
Heaven Hill 6 year Bottled in Bond is: softer and sweeter, showing more caramel and oak. The finish is warmer and longer
Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond is: softer and more flavorful on entry, transitioning to a hotter and sweeter experience as it moves back. It has a much longer and warmer finish.
Henry McKenna 10 year Bottled in Bond is: Spicier and fruitier on the nose. Sweeter and spicier in the mouth with a warmer finish.
If you’ve had Heaven Hill 6 Year Bottled in Bond then…
JTS Brown is: much more grain forward on the nose. More vegetal and grain forward, showing more ethanol on both the mouth and finish.
Evan Williams Bottled in Bond is: very similar on the nose. It shows more mint and baking spice in the mouth and has a shorter finish.
JW Dant is: sweeter on the nose. It shows more butterscotch pudding and baking spice in the mouth and has a more tannic finish.
Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond is: sweeter in the nose. It shows more mint and is more grain forward on the mouth. The finish is much hotter.
Henry McKenna 10 year Bottled in Bond is: sweeter and a little more complex on the nose, showing more oak. It’s hotter with more oak flavors in the mouth and is hotter and longer on the finish.
If you’ve had JW Dant Bottled in Bond then…
JTS Brown is: more vegetal and rougher on both the mouth and finish.
Evan Williams Bottled in Bond is: less sweet on the nose. It’s maltier and shows more baking spices in the mouth. It’s less tannic on the finish.
Heaven Hill 6 year Bottled in Bond is: sweeter and fruitier with more caramel and oak in the mouth with a less tannic finish.
Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond is: softer and sweeter on the nose. It is softer and less flavorful in the mouth and more vegetal on the finish.
Henry McKenna 10 year Bottled in Bond is: spicier and less sweet on the nose. Sweeter in the mouth and shows more oak. It’s hotter and oakier on the finish.
If you’ve had Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond then…
JTS Brown is: mintier, showing less caramel on the nose. It’s hotter and rougher on entry and shows more grain and baking spice in the mouth. The finish is more bitter.
Evan Williams Bottled in Bond is: less floral on the nose and shows more brown sugar and baking spice in the mouth. The mouth is hotter on entry but softer on the finish.
JW Dant is: much more butterscotch forward on the nose. It is sweeter and shows more butterscotch and baking spices in the mouth. The finish is longer with a lingering baking spice.
Heaven Hill 6 year Bottled in Bond is: softer on the nose. It is sweeter on the mouth showing more baking spice. The finish is less hot and harsh.
Henry McKenna 10 year Bottled in Bond is: fruitier with more oak on the nose. The mouth is sweeter, fruitier and shows more oak and baking spice. The finish is richer showing more oak and baking spice.
If you’ve had Henry McKenna 10 year Bottled in Bond then…
JTS Brown is: more grain forward on the nose, shows more grain and ethanol on the mouth and has a finish that shows more bitter grain flavors.
Evan Williams Bottled in Bond is: similar on the nose but shows less oak. The mouth isn’t as sweet and shows more grain and baking spices. The finish is shorter.
JW Dant is: sweeter on the nose showing butterscotch and a touch of campfire smoke. It is less sweet on the mouth, even though Dant’s primary point of difference on flavor is more butterscotch. Dant has a softer, but more tannic finish.
Heaven Hill 6 year Bottled in Bond is: less sweet on the nose. It shows more sweet grains and less oak on the mouth and has a softer and less oak forward finish.
Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond is: less spicy and more sugar sweet on the nose. It is softer and more grain forward on the mouth. It is hotter and more grain forward on the finish.
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