Woodford Reserve Bourbon Personal Selection

I suppose I should document my thoughts on this barrel pick Woodford, as I finished the last glass from the bottle. This is a 1 Liter, local store selection of Woodford, from August 2020. The nose is classic Woodford Reserve, with a slightly increased rye spice. It features those familiar toasted pecans, caramel popcorn, vanilla, alongside some rye bread, caraway, and allspice. The taste pretty much mirrors the aroma, perhaps a bit more peppery, with the rye being more prominent on the palate than in the nose. The finish is similar to the standard Woodford, this is where the oak astringency appears, again, not too strong, just a little more than the standard offering. Smell: 17/20 First taste: 27/30 Follow up and finish: 19/25 Experience (aesthetics, value, bottle): 16/20 Subjective feeling: 1/5 Total: 80/100 Similar to Woodford Reserve, the barrel pick was a good bourbon, but not a great bourbon. I enjoyed it; it was worth the purchase, but I don’t feel the need to buy another of this batch, let alone stock up before they sell out.

Selected by the Bull City Bourbon Club, labeled "Two Barrel Bullpen" A combination of two barrels rather than a solitary one Opened for 8 months Smell: Lemon peel, brown sugar, mild cinnamon, sweet corn, oolong tea, maraschino cherries, and faint ethanol. Taste: Artificial cherry, flat cream soda, caramel, powdered sugar, and subtle tea. The conclusion is brief, featuring lemon bars, over-steeped herbal tea, white sugar, unpleasant watery oak, and almost no ethanol. I currently have little enthusiasm for Woodford, yet I purchased this club selection. Woodford is adequate, but numerous other bottles provide greater proof and taste. Does a barrel selection surpass standard Woodford? Unclear. It's so light and thin that I find it difficult to identify any distinct flavors. I've hardly touched it in 8 months, and it will likely remain on my shelf for some time.

NOSE - Cherry, Honey, Oak. Leather musk. Floral or grassy notes. PALATE - Oat and oak. Brown sugar cinnamon oatmeal packet. Lightly sweetened oatmeal. Light to medium body. FINISH - Not harsh. Faint cinnamon spice with a grainy, light taste. A touch of sweetness, but only a hint.

Vanilla toffee with a subtle oak presence. Flavors of toffee and wood are present. It has a nice coating sensation on the tongue. It goes down easily, leaving a woody and wheaty aftertaste.

It's decent, with notes of wood and smoke.

CDS WC 2025, Batch 210450