Distiller: Heaven Hill Distillery

Release: 2019

Bourbon: Henry McKenna Bottled-in-Bond

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky

Price: $39.99

Proof: 100

Age: 10 years

The Barrel Cellar Score:  87 Points

Review Date: 11/18/2019

About the Bourbon: Henry McKenna Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon is a single barrel offering aged 10 years.  After winning multiple awards in the San Francisco world of spirits competition, It has become significantly more difficult to find on the shelf at your local liquor store.  The bottle I’m reviewing today came from barrel number 6783 and was barreled on 3/20/2009

I enjoyed the bourbon for this review using a Prestige diamond whiskey glass.

Color: Maple Syrup

Nose: Toffee, brown sugar, cherry pie filling and French toast.

Taste: Cherry pie filling, oak, vanilla, and spice. (neat).  Drop a couple of cubes in the glass and brown sugar notes emerge.  Finish has oak, leather, and more of that heat-based spiciness. Very slight oily texture.

Assessment: My first thought on this was “wow” the nose on this one is really nice and the first sip heavy with cherry notes and a “heat driving” spiciness. Thanks to the extended time in a barrel, there is nice balance to this bourbon, additionally the finish hangs around for a while and provides some flavor notes not found in the initial taste.  After taking a few more nips, the wow factor dissipated for me.  This is a pleasant glass of bourbon, but I wouldn’t classify it as either complex or having a particularly strong character.  It is definitely a nice sipper though, and it’s something I would continue to buy on the rare occasion I find it on the shelf somewhere. 

One thing I have noticed with McKenna Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon is that there can be a large difference from bottle (barrel) to bottle (barrel). More so with other BIB bourbons. In my experience the MSRP of $39.99 is generally a fair value no matter which end of the scale the bottle is on. On the occasion you luck into one of the nicer barrels the value is hard to beat.

Henry McKenna Bottled in Bond Bourbon is good and a recommended buy from us.  87 Points

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