Bulleit Bourbon?

[Captain Emo]

I had tried Bulleit Bourbon sveral years ago and, well, I just didn't like it. The rye was there, very there, but so was this bite. I just did not enjoy it.

Now don't get me wrong, I am not complaining, especialy at that price. It just didn't do enough for me to get over the bite. It was just too plain, not enough to endear me to it.

Well, last weekend I stopped and figured I would try it again. So another bottle comes home with me. A bottle of Bulleit has not been in this house in at least three years.

It seems like that 150 recipe has been altered a bit. I found the rye and the bitestill there. Now there was some vanilla and oak. Where did that come from? Is that a bit of honey? What's going on here? Is that carmel or brown sugar?

Did anyone else notice a change in Bulleit or is it just because I quit smoking?

 

[Bloofington]

That's pretty interesting. That label has only been out for about three years at most, and it was early on that I tried it also. I didn't like it for the same reason, because it wasn't backed by any sort of sweet component balancing it out. Perhaps I'll have to consider another purchase of this.

I guess you have some inside information there, with the "150 recipe" mention. I don't know what that is, but it could be they tinkered with the formula after the initial release. Occasionally, companies will do that, release a product, try to get some initial feedback and see how sales go in the first year or so, then maybe alter the formula slightly depending on those initial results.

Raise your hand if you wish Coca-Cola hadn't been so dumb to mess with their winner of a formula all those years ago. Boy, talk about a company learning a lesson!!!

 

[Bloofington]

Oh, here's another theory. You could have gotten an exceptional bottle. I've had that happen recently with Baker's and Knob Creek. I purchased a couple bottles of Baker's downtown last year at one of my two favorite liquors stores, famous for their low prices and huge inventory.

I just passed along the second of those two bottles to a friend in my "club" for her review. The first bottle in that set of purchases was very nice, a "very good" bottle of Baker's, because outside of that usually pleasant buttery taste, there was some oak in there, with a touch of spice. This last bottle was truly exceptional, as the oak was bold, but so perfectly balanced by the buttery, smooth bourbon taste, each sip was beautiful.

It happens. We're talking a bunch of grains, yeast strains, where the distillery is, if something's being made in more than one location, what the barrel char is, where it was stored in the warehouse, which warehouse, what town was it in, what level was it on, what was the weather like during all those years it was aging, and more.

Companies aim for a signature flavor profile, and even if they use the exact same formula and equipment every time, sometimes differences in that flavor profile can occur naturally, but still be considered as leaning toward what the company wanted in that particular label.

 

[RenoF250]

I bought a bottle awhile back. It was drinkable but not exceptional. One thing I do remember about it was the the first bottle wasVERY thin at the bottom and broke when I set it down. IT was only about .02" thick, don't know how it made it to the store and all the way home.

 

[brennivin]

I haven't tried it recently, as I wasn't impressed with it either. But definitely don't discount the effect quitting smoking may have had. It can make a big difference. Not just on your taste buds, but in your nose, which has a significant impact on taste as well.