Yeah… there’s an interesting variety with blantons but, unlike Henry McKenna 10, the differences stick to a similar profile quite consistently. Had some real water down Blanton bottles and a few stupid good ones.
I strongly prefer the caramel apple notes.
If you’re asking if I have a general preference for apples themselves, I’ll typically go for honeycrisp if I’m just wanting to munch on one. If I’m making an apple cobbler or pie, I’ll use a mix of Granny Smith apples and yellow delicious apples (or ambrosia if I can find em)
I meant mostly on the whisky, though the Granny Smith pie sounds tempting.
Was a bit curious as bitter green apple doesn't sound all that appealing to me and caramel apple sounds awesome, so was a bit curious.
Oh yeah, I also look for the bitter green apple note when I’m drinking younger whiskey as well. It’ll often make an appearance when something is 4-5 years or younger
Im sure most everyone who is into whiskey has experienced differences in single barrel varieties. I have seen it in Henry McKenna and JDSBBP. Well today, I experienced it with Blantons. I reviewed a bottle a few weeks back. Today I tried another bottle and here is what happened.
Bottle 1:
Nose: Caramel, butterscotch, vanilla, light orange. Nice rich sweetness.
Palate: Medium mouth feel. Nose really transfers to the palate. Nice burst of flavors with orange, caramel, cinnamon, butterscotch and some char. Easy sipper, little to no burn.
Finish: Medium finish. The flavors tail off pretty quickly . Starts as citrus then buttery, then a very light barrel char.
Summary: This is a nice easy drinking whiskey. It is almost an elevated Buffalo Trace. It has flavors I think anyone would like. Is it worth the hype? Not to me. However, it is iconic. It has arguably the coolest bottle in the industry and looks awesome on the shelf But the whiskey inside it, although very good, is not that special, especially for the price.
Score: 6.5/10
Bottle 2:
Nose: Toasted butterscotch, caramel hazelnut toffee bomb. This smells amazing.
Palate: Nose carries over. Toasted caramel, toffee, butterscotch nutty flavors. Great char note. Really delicious. Reminds me a lot of Elijah Craig Toasted but more intense.
Finish: Medium finish. The toasty buttery flavors lead into a bitter char that lingers for a bit. Not very long but pleasing.
Summary: Shocking difference from the first bottle. You would never know these were the same. If you really concentrate you can get some of the Buffalo Trace sweetness but this bottle is something different. If they all were like this, this would be worthy of the hype. Delicious.
Score: 8/10
As somewhat of a Newbie, i got a Blanton's bottle and the first glass was some of the best Whiskey I've had, but every glass since hasn't lived up to that first one. Bottle is stored in a cool and dark place so I'm at a loss for what happened. Was it just my imagination?
This gives me hope. The one bottle of Blantons SB i bought was very underwhelming. I have a couple Buffalo Trace SPs that beat it easily for 1/3-1/4 the price. I’ve Blanton’s SB SPs are generally much better.
I understand why some people get mad at Blanton’s, and as you said, it’s why I HATE McKenna BiB, too much variety. But, when Blanton hits, it is off the charts. First time I ever had Blanton’s was at a nicer restaurant with a roasted duck dinner, hands down, best whiskey I ever had. The deep cinnamon aroma and that butterscotch palate with oily viscosity. I had another glass at another bar, it was basically Buffalo Trace. I’m in NJ, so only times it’s on the shelves it’s marked up ridiculously, but fair at some bars.
This is interesting. I’ve drank a lot bottles of blantons over the last fifteen years or so and I’ve never had a bad one. They’ve all been solid and drinkable, inoffensive more or less.
McKenna though, I don’t buy anymore. I tried it at a restaurant and had a great pour. I bought a bottle and it was average. I bought another and it was just not that good. I had a pour at another restaurant and it kinda sucked. I had another pour at another restaurant and it was solid.
I don’t have the best palette but I’ve never had anything more variable than McKenna.
I'm in Ontario where we get fairly regular Blanton's drops. I've been lucky enough to have more than my fair share over the past 12-15 years. There has always been some variation between barrels, but I've noticed lately (in the past 2-3 years) that the swings have been more dramatic. 10 years ago there might have been some subtle differences, but it was reliably a great bottle. Lately, less so. Every now and then you get one that's rich and sublime, but other bottles are complete duds.
Bottle to bottle with most anything, you never know. Worked in an American Whisky bar where we drank pretty much every single day. WT101 was the shot of choice as it was on our speed rail. One day we found a bottle of it that was head and shoulders above any other we had. Very quickly became the "staff bottle" handed out to family and friends. Couldn't figure out what had been put in it but it was definitely not like the others.
I still think about that bottle to this day ;)
Yeah… there’s an interesting variety with blantons but, unlike Henry McKenna 10, the differences stick to a similar profile quite consistently. Had some real water down Blanton bottles and a few stupid good ones.
My distinction between better and lesser bottles of Blanton’s is if I get a sour, almost bitter green apple note, or if I get full on caramel apples.
Which apple is your preference?
I strongly prefer the caramel apple notes. If you’re asking if I have a general preference for apples themselves, I’ll typically go for honeycrisp if I’m just wanting to munch on one. If I’m making an apple cobbler or pie, I’ll use a mix of Granny Smith apples and yellow delicious apples (or ambrosia if I can find em)
I meant mostly on the whisky, though the Granny Smith pie sounds tempting. Was a bit curious as bitter green apple doesn't sound all that appealing to me and caramel apple sounds awesome, so was a bit curious.
Oh yeah, I also look for the bitter green apple note when I’m drinking younger whiskey as well. It’ll often make an appearance when something is 4-5 years or younger
are we approaching a blanton's about-face on reddit?! been seeing a lot of these kinds of sentiments lately...
Im sure most everyone who is into whiskey has experienced differences in single barrel varieties. I have seen it in Henry McKenna and JDSBBP. Well today, I experienced it with Blantons. I reviewed a bottle a few weeks back. Today I tried another bottle and here is what happened. Bottle 1: Nose: Caramel, butterscotch, vanilla, light orange. Nice rich sweetness. Palate: Medium mouth feel. Nose really transfers to the palate. Nice burst of flavors with orange, caramel, cinnamon, butterscotch and some char. Easy sipper, little to no burn. Finish: Medium finish. The flavors tail off pretty quickly . Starts as citrus then buttery, then a very light barrel char. Summary: This is a nice easy drinking whiskey. It is almost an elevated Buffalo Trace. It has flavors I think anyone would like. Is it worth the hype? Not to me. However, it is iconic. It has arguably the coolest bottle in the industry and looks awesome on the shelf But the whiskey inside it, although very good, is not that special, especially for the price. Score: 6.5/10 Bottle 2: Nose: Toasted butterscotch, caramel hazelnut toffee bomb. This smells amazing. Palate: Nose carries over. Toasted caramel, toffee, butterscotch nutty flavors. Great char note. Really delicious. Reminds me a lot of Elijah Craig Toasted but more intense. Finish: Medium finish. The toasty buttery flavors lead into a bitter char that lingers for a bit. Not very long but pleasing. Summary: Shocking difference from the first bottle. You would never know these were the same. If you really concentrate you can get some of the Buffalo Trace sweetness but this bottle is something different. If they all were like this, this would be worthy of the hype. Delicious. Score: 8/10
As somewhat of a Newbie, i got a Blanton's bottle and the first glass was some of the best Whiskey I've had, but every glass since hasn't lived up to that first one. Bottle is stored in a cool and dark place so I'm at a loss for what happened. Was it just my imagination?
I have no scientific explanation for the neck pour, but I have experienced it. I think it’s mostly psychological and based off expectations.
This gives me hope. The one bottle of Blantons SB i bought was very underwhelming. I have a couple Buffalo Trace SPs that beat it easily for 1/3-1/4 the price. I’ve Blanton’s SB SPs are generally much better.
I picked up a BT store pick the other day and was blown away by how much better it was than the regular bottle.
Agree. I don’t particularly care for regular Buffalo Trace but have had some great store picks.
I understand why some people get mad at Blanton’s, and as you said, it’s why I HATE McKenna BiB, too much variety. But, when Blanton hits, it is off the charts. First time I ever had Blanton’s was at a nicer restaurant with a roasted duck dinner, hands down, best whiskey I ever had. The deep cinnamon aroma and that butterscotch palate with oily viscosity. I had another glass at another bar, it was basically Buffalo Trace. I’m in NJ, so only times it’s on the shelves it’s marked up ridiculously, but fair at some bars.
Interesting to see this. Now I want to try out both of mine one Rick at 31 and the other at 11
SiBs
This is interesting. I’ve drank a lot bottles of blantons over the last fifteen years or so and I’ve never had a bad one. They’ve all been solid and drinkable, inoffensive more or less. McKenna though, I don’t buy anymore. I tried it at a restaurant and had a great pour. I bought a bottle and it was average. I bought another and it was just not that good. I had a pour at another restaurant and it kinda sucked. I had another pour at another restaurant and it was solid. I don’t have the best palette but I’ve never had anything more variable than McKenna.
I'm in Ontario where we get fairly regular Blanton's drops. I've been lucky enough to have more than my fair share over the past 12-15 years. There has always been some variation between barrels, but I've noticed lately (in the past 2-3 years) that the swings have been more dramatic. 10 years ago there might have been some subtle differences, but it was reliably a great bottle. Lately, less so. Every now and then you get one that's rich and sublime, but other bottles are complete duds.
Bottle to bottle with most anything, you never know. Worked in an American Whisky bar where we drank pretty much every single day. WT101 was the shot of choice as it was on our speed rail. One day we found a bottle of it that was head and shoulders above any other we had. Very quickly became the "staff bottle" handed out to family and friends. Couldn't figure out what had been put in it but it was definitely not like the others. I still think about that bottle to this day ;)
“…Couldn't figure out what had been put in it but it was definitely not like the others.” …cocaine…
“Cocaine is a helluva drug!”