BOTM, 10/08: Old Taylor 6yo

ok, ok! i did it...picked up a bottle....don't know anything about bottom-of-the-bottle reading...there is an 02 on the left side and can't tell on the right...02 or 04...?

anyways, it's 80 proof....pretty low...tasting notes to follow if there's any interest.

let me at least say i am not disappointed at all! a solid pour that i can only wish WAS a higher proof.
nice sweetness, but not too much. a nice micro-burn. being a WT fan, i wonder how it compares to WT 80. something i've never had before:rolleyes:

completely worth $9.99. i was hoping almost that it was not good neat so i could make whiskey sours.

i don't think i can waste this on a sour. a very nice bottle to have when i want a full flavor but not an intense effect after two nice pours.

Thanks for that, enjoyed your review.

Gary

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Originally Posted by Gillman

Thanks for that, enjoyed your review.

Gary

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thanks gary...i will give a bit more of a sense of the flavor profile soon. i do think it could vat well with something a bit more powerful...and with more rye...hmmm.

nonetheless, a fine and respectable 80 proofer.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but my understanding of Beam's lineup was that the same juice came out in one-year increments:

Beam White: 4 years
Beam Green: 5 years
Old Taylor: 6 years
Beam 7-Year: duh...
Beam Black: 8 years

Surprisingly, if I'm correct, the white label is ranked third in price while winning the contest for youthful inexperience.

Jeremy I think that is right but some effort may be made to attain a certain profile for OT.

I had some Beam OT some years ago and did not much like it, but it may have changed and I should give it a try again.

WT 80 by the way is woody, appley, a little rough to my taste, not in a bad way though. The older and stronger expressions are much better IMO.

Gary

Picked up a 200 ml. 80 proofer from 1991 (UD?) to try it. I thought it was very nice, not extraordinary, but nice, especially for $4.50.
Joe :usflag:

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Originally Posted by BourbonJoe

Picked up a 200 ml. 80 proofer from 1991 (UD?) to try it. I thought it was very nice, not extraordinary, but nice, especially for $4.50.
Joe :usflag:

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1991 would still have been National Distillers juice, unless Beam started mixing in some of their own during the transition.

Roger

Made it back yesterday for that ND Old Taylor 86 and managed to get a taste in under the October deadline. It's been several years since I've had this although I've had the old 80 proof recently thanks to a couple of SBers. I'm in total agreement with the butterscotch profile. But one thing I found notable was the finish on this one. For such a gentle pour it has a very long, strong finish. A lot of lingering spice. I'll taste it again tonight and try to be more specific, but it really finished with a bang. I've been drinking quite a few in the 86-94 proof range, and this one stands out.

-Mike

The finish on the ND 80 proof, pure ND or transition, is good too, not quite as strong as in the 86 proof. The 80 may have been bottled a bit younger than the 86. The 86 would have been the flagship in the 1980's (any bonded around would have been quite rare, as discussed earlier on the board) and surely it - the 86 - was the one that had whiskey 10-12 years old in it as Micheal Jackson wrote in 1987, although the 80 may have as well (or some whiskey at any rate older than 6 years).

To me the NDOT palate of maple and butterscotch is unique. I think in part it came from fairly strong congeners and this is why I think this: A rare black label 90 proof OT from the 1970's, which a number here have tried, clearly was not older than 6 years (IMO). It has a kind of chemical-like taste which resembles the keynote of the 1980's/early 90's NDOTs but the latter are much better (again IMO). I think this is because they were on average older than this 90 proof version. As sometimes happens, I think the distillery had on hand some younger-tasting stock in the early 70's and thought what the heck we will issue it but give the people a higher proof to off-set the lesser maturity - or maybe NDOT always had the black label 90 palate and it was only in the 80's that the deeper-tasting butterscotch OTs started to appear. Roger has tasted more from the various eras than anyone here I believe and has said if memory serves that the maple butterscotch palate of OT was most pronounced in the 80's. If so the brand hit a high point then I think.

Gary

all interesting for sure! but a shame that many here didn't delve into the challenge and get a bottle of RECENT OT6...

i still don't understand the bottom of the bottle info...not sure if my bottle was super recent or a few years old.

good stuff for sure!

but can't say this BOTM was a successful exchange of ideas. at least a balanced one.

i really wish i had access to all these early bottlings. i've found maybe 2 dusties in my life...:rolleyes: