Another Age Statement Bites the Dust (And More Recent COLA Findings)

[c2walker]

Evidently the barrel strength EC12 is selling for $75 at the HH gift shop. The first barrel sold out quickly around the Derby, but supposedly they're rolling out more.

If anyone gets it or tries it I'd love to hear your thoughts. I'm not too keen on dropping that sort of coin on an unknown.

[StraightBoston]

Back to the top of this one -- I asked Bernie Lubbers at Spirits Confidential NH about Basil Hayden going NAS and learned a couple things:

• Bernie claimed that the point of the label change was to replace the paper wrapper with a stick-on label and didn't believe that the age statement was gone (he's wrong according to the COLA application.)
• Yes, BH is watered-down Old Grand Dad -- Bernie was filling flasks with grains representing mashbills, and both Old Grand Dad and Basil Hayden were listed as "High Rye Bourbon"
• However, BH goes in at a lower entry proof than OGD BIB and OGD 86
• OGD 114 also goes in at lower entry proof!

[Rughi]

• However, BH goes in at a lower entry proof than OGD BIB and OGD 86
• OGD 114 also goes in at lower entry proof!

Wow, you got my attention!

I'm not quite sure - are you saying that Grand Dad Bond and 86 share one proof and Basil Hayden shares a lower proof than that with Grand Dad 114? Or, that Basil Hayden and 114 different from each other? I wouldn't guess 114 gets its own distillation, but rather probably has a few barrels pulled from the Hayden stocks.

For me, Grand Dad 114 is like Rittenhouse Bond was a decade ago, a sleepy treasure that is filled every once in a while for its few longstanding customers, and will someday either get discovered or deleted to free up juice for a heavily hyped new label.

Roger

[StraightBoston]

Wow, you got my attention!

I'm not quite sure - are you saying that Grand Dad Bond and 86 share one proof and Basil Hayden shares a lower proof than that with Grand Dad 114? Or, that Basil Hayden and 114 different from each other? I wouldn't guess 114 gets its own distillation, but rather probably has a few barrels pulled from the Hayden stocks.

I believe he was saying that BH and OGD 114 share a lower entry proof. (The whole discussion came about because I said that I'd love BH at about 20 more proof points or 20 fewer dollars, and Bernie asked if I knew about OGD 114.)

[StraightNoChaser]

Evidently the barrel strength EC12 is selling for $75 at the HH gift shop. The first barrel sold out quickly around the Derby, but supposedly they're rolling out more.

If anyone gets it or tries it I'd love to hear your thoughts. I'm not too keen on dropping that sort of coin on an unknown.

I've had EC12 and CS before, not from this release their doing, but from participating in a store's private barrel tasting. It was good but noticeably dry and lacking in body somewhat.

[T Comp]

• However, BH goes in at a lower entry proof than OGD BIB and OGD 86
• OGD 114 also goes in at lower entry proof!

Wow, you got my attention!

I'm not quite sure - are you saying that Grand Dad Bond and 86 share one proof and Basil Hayden shares a lower proof than that with Grand Dad 114? Or, that Basil Hayden and 114 different from each other? I wouldn't guess 114 gets its own distillation, but rather probably has a few barrels pulled from the Hayden stocks.

For me, Grand Dad 114 is like Rittenhouse Bond was a decade ago, a sleepy treasure that is filled every once in a while for its few longstanding customers, and will someday either get discovered or deleted to free up juice for a heavily hyped new label.

Roger

Got my attention too. Maybe explains the difference from the BIB even when 114 is cut to 100 proof. I've found more fruit and chocolate in the 114 at 100 than the more pronounced presence of the rye in the BIB and prefer the 114 for that reason.

[p_elliott]

JB is going to replace that paper label with a stick on label? Have they lost their minds I bet 3/4 of the people that buy that bourbon buy it because of that fancy paper label.

[Restaurant man]

Back to the top of this one -- I asked Bernie Lubbers at Spirits Confidential NH about Basil Hayden going NAS and learned a couple things:

• Bernie claimed that the point of the label change was to replace the paper wrapper with a stick-on label and didn't believe that the age statement was gone (he's wrong according to the COLA application.)
• Yes, BH is watered-down Old Grand Dad -- Bernie was filling flasks with grains representing mashbills, and both Old Grand Dad and Basil Hayden were listed as "High Rye Bourbon"
• However, BH goes in at a lower entry proof than OGD BIB and OGD 86
• OGD 114 also goes in at lower entry proof!

Funny how proof can affect peoples taste. I've seen a lot of flaming of BH on this site and plenty of good feedback on OGD 114 (which i really like) and it turns out that they are basically identical other than age (BH OLDER) and possibly barrel placement.

[Brisko]

Back to the top of this one -- I asked Bernie Lubbers at Spirits Confidential NH about Basil Hayden going NAS and learned a couple things:

• Bernie claimed that the point of the label change was to replace the paper wrapper with a stick-on label and didn't believe that the age statement was gone (he's wrong according to the COLA application.)
• Yes, BH is watered-down Old Grand Dad -- Bernie was filling flasks with grains representing mashbills, and both Old Grand Dad and Basil Hayden were listed as "High Rye Bourbon"
• However, BH goes in at a lower entry proof than OGD BIB and OGD 86
• OGD 114 also goes in at lower entry proof!

Very interesting. Chuck Cowdery has written a few times that Beam now runs different proofs off the still for different products but I was under the impression that all were going into the barrel at 125. If I remember rightly the OGD/BH distillate was coming off at 127.

As a side note I'd be curious as to what the general age of the OGDs is, and if they vary between the 86, 100, and 114. Obviously the 100 has other restrictions due to its BiB status.

All in all it's nice to hear that they actually care about the OGD brand.

[smokinjoe]

JB is going to replace that paper label with a stick on label? Have they lost their minds I bet 3/4 of the people that buy that bourbon buy it because of that fancy paper label.

Paul, going to a "stick-on" doesn't necessarily mean going away from paper. That has just to do with the method of adhesion/type of glue they will be using on the labels. I take "stick-on" to mean the labels will have a pressure sensitive adhesive (think, new stamps that peel off and stick), versus a label that needs to have the adhesive activated with water (think, old stamps that you lick). The label substrate might not change at all.