Are you on the quest for a premium bourbon that tantalizes your taste buds and leaves you yearning for more? Look no further than the E. H. Taylor, Jr. Small Batch Bourbon. Carefully crafted with precision and passion, this small-batch bourbon is a true masterpiece that has amassed a loyal following among whiskey enthusiasts worldwide.
| Bourbon | E. H. Taylor, Jr. – Buffalo Trace Distillery | |
| Type | Small Batch | Age – 4 |
| Aroma | Oak, Vanilla, Caramel, Sweet | |
| Taste | Oak, Vanilla, Caramel, Sweet, Heat | |
| Finish | Sweet Caramel & Hot Butterscotch |
| Rating | 1 | 2 | 3 | Stogie Talk Rating – 4 | 5 |
A Brief History
Distilled at Buffalo Trace in Frankfort, KY (parent company Sazerac), this small batch bourbon pays homage to Colonel Edmund Haynes Taylor, Jr’s legacy of ingenuity and standard of excellence.
Tasting Notes
Poured Neat – My first taste was neat poured into a standard bourbon glass similar to the tumbler you get when you buy a Jim Beam or Jack Daniels Christmas gift set. The pour emitted a light caramel translucent hue (see image). The immediate taste is hot with a tinge of alcohol but with no significant afterburn. The flavors quickly emerge as caramel, sugar, and butterscotch. Similar to eating a hot butterscotch brownie right out of the oven. A Scrumptious mouthful should be expected. As always enjoy the bourbon the way you like it as there is not right or wrong way to partake.
Tasting Notes
On the Rocks – On the rocks, a fine choice when enjoying fine bourbons. Poured over ice the alcohol quickly melted down some of the ice or maybe it was it the already 80 degree Phoenix heat. Regardless of what caused the global ice melting warming, the ice instantly muted some of the alcohol heat without disrupting any of the robust flavors the bourbon has to offer. You get many of the same aromas – caramel, sugar, butterscotch and now with subtle hints of cinnamon and nutmeg. The ice and ensuring water did open up some of the flavors. My co-taster commented on how the flavors opened up with a bit of water. I explained in my non-scientific hypothesis that it was because the heat (alcohol) was muted so calming that fire brought the flavors to the front. Enjoy as you wish, there are no right or wrongs ways to drink what you like.
My overall score, on a scale of 1-5, for E. H. Taylor, Jr. Small Batch Bourbon is a solid 4… maybe even a 4.5 if I’m feeling extra generous or a bit tipsy. I won’t say it’s the best thing since sliced bread but I can certainty understand why this is a highly sought after allocated bottle. If you are lucky you can find this at retail but when buying on the secondary I would go over double the retail. My bottle was obtained from the source in Kentucky. A bonus is that if you ever sail Carnival Cruise lines they usually have it in stock at Guy’s Pig & Anchor….and it’s covered under the Cheers drink package.