Jefferson has released another new expression, this time they finished their 8 year old bourbon in Goslings Family Reserve Old Rum. This new bourbon just started hitting shelves, and is sitting around the $79.99 mark.
This whiskey came to be after Jefferson’s procured 8 year Kentucky Bourbon, then pouring it into Goslings Barrels that started their life aging bourbon for 4 years before holding rum for 16. The Jefferson’s Bourbon stayed in the casks for an additional 15 months in the Gosling’s casks before being bottled.
Let’s get to it.
Age: 8 Years in New Oak, 15 Months in Gosling’s Barrels
90.2 Proof
Color: This bourbon is very clear, and rather light. A golden/amber and brown color.
Nose: Sweet corn and bourbon notes are clearly present, while there are some nutty undertones, and sugarcane notes as well. It is not a super powerful nose, but not too much heat from the alcohol.
Palate: This is one soft start to a whiskey. A bit of sweetness that hits at the beginning that fades into some spices that are from the rum casks. The finish gets some more of that sweetness back, a bit of maple, maybe caramel and some vanilla. The whiskey finishes with a lot of grain flavors, but the lingering flavor is the sweetness and maple and vanilla. It does hang around for a while on your tongue.
W/Water:
Nose:Still sweet and corn notes, but not quite as much as before. The nutty profile is still apparent, and the sugar cane comes through a bit.
Palate: Still very soft on the front, but the mid palate grows and has more of the rum spices coming through. The finish is very similar, but a little more mellow on the grain flavors. The sweetness still is the flavor that sticks around after the sip is finished.
Time for the ratings.
Angie: 87/100
Zach:82/100
Overall: 85/100
Overall, this is definitely an interesting whiskey. It is surprisingly full in the sense that the whiskey is apparent on all parts of your palate, but the rum barrels seemed to take away from the bourbon flavors without really adding anything back into it. The finish sticks around for a while, and definitely had a lot of great flavors, but just wasn’t quite as much as we were hoping for.
