Blade and Bow Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey is a product of the Stitzel-Weller Distillery. It is the only whiskey I know of that uses the Solera Method of blending, which is to say, it takes from their oldest stock of whiskey to constantly refresh and refill newer stock, never taking enough to empty the older barrels, to ensure the oldest of their whiskies are infused in every new barrel. This process, usually reserved for wine, also ensures their flavor profile never changes down the line of production. The five keys that adorn their logo are derived from the five brass keys that hung over the front door of Stitzel-Weller, all five representing a stage in the process of making bourbon; grains, yeast, fermentation, distillation and aging. As well, the bourbon's name comes from the two pieces of a skeleton key.
Using charred new American white oak, they craft their bourbon from the remnants of Stitzel-Weller's oldest stock. Blade and Bow is available in the regular and 22 year old variants. And if one is to collect the five different numbered keys that hang from every bottle, there is a special gift in store for them upon visiting the distillery and presenting them. To make bias known, I am a bourbon dude. I much prefer bourbon, wheat whiskey, and Irish Whiskey over many New Makes, Ryes, and most Peats. That said, this bourbon, being bourbon is gonna be corn based because of the mash. THAT said, I love Blade and Bow. It is likely the most I've spent at one time for a fifth, ranging around 55 USD where I live currently, so that stings a bit, but every now and then it's worth it. The corn hits me right away but goes away before the swallow, in that, it wraps around my teeth and feels pretty warm and filmy for a second or two much like corn based liquor does, but doesn't linger very long like many corn based liquors often tend to. I taste a bunch of different things, including the classic hints of vanilla and caramel you're almost always going to get with bourbons, typically because of the white oak barrels, but there's more there too. Their website talks about dried peach which I personally don't get, but I definitely agree with strong hints of apricot. There's a candy apple that took me a while of digging in before I could really get to isolate, and that itself doesn't show up if it's been in the freezer, but the apricot was one of the first notes I got besides the vanilla. There's also the usual woodiness from the oak but somehow it's different, I'm not sure what level they char the barrels at but it smells less than say, Larceny or Jack Daniels, because that oak is smelling to me like it's recently been cut for some reason, that sort of sweet pulpy forest smell that's pretty faint. I barely notice the alcohol while this goes down, and I hate to reference "smoothness" as a lot of snobby whiskey people frown on that word for some reason, but it absolutely is smooth. I've drank it as I usually do with all the whiskies I buy, straight, with and without ice, and sometimes a water drop or two. Even room temperature vs from the freezer (which is said to deaden flavors, and I agree). In any case, Blade and Bow is an insanely nice bourbon to me, and definitely one of my new favorites. I'm personally gonna jump on their marketing, collect all five keys and hopefully get me a mystery gift when and if I can visit the distillery. If you think you'd be a fan of an even smoother, classic tasting Kentucky Straight Bourbon, then I think you'll really like Blade and Bow. Blade and Bow Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Stitzel-Weller Distillery, Louisville, Kentucky Solera Method blend %45.5-%46 Alc/Vol www.bladeandbowwhiskey.com Please Drink Responsibly. image credit: Caskstore.com
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