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BOTM, 10/08: Old Taylor 6yo


camduncan
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Better late than never with this months BOTM.....

Old Taylor is a lighter style of bourbon, and a relatively inexpensive one....which makes it a good choice considering the current economic times.

I was lucky enough to receive a 200ml bottle of the National Distillers expression when I was in New York (thanks Cliff!) and was very impressed, but have yet to try the current Beam expression.

Let us know what you think of either expression and if you've done a side by side, how do the two compare?

:893drillsergeant-th Sound Off :893drillsergeant-th

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The National Distillers bottlings of the 1980's have a characteristic butterscotch/maple flavor which is most inviting. The 86 proof of the era is the best example, but the 80 proof was good too.

I have had earlier examples, e.g., a BIB which Mike from NYC brought to the last Gazebo, which were similar to the 80's ones but did not have quite the richness: probably they were younger. Michael Jackson wrote in 1987 that contemporary Old Taylor 6 years old was more like 10-11 years old.

Today's Old Taylor seems rather a different article and not, I'm afraid, what it was.

Gary

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Too little too late... I had an 80's and a 60's side-by-side on Tuesday night! Perhaps I will revisit this weekend and write up some notes for this thread. (Have to confess I've never had the Beam version -- nor even seen it around these parts!)

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ACDetroit scored me another bottle of ND era OT. I LOVE IT!

I need to find a retailer that stocks pints of Beam OT. I'm not sure I want a full bottle.

Of course, the current release is cheaper than Beam and older than Beam. I'll report back once I find a smaller bottle of Beam OT.

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while doing a Google search on Old Taylor Bourbon. Thought you guys might get a chuckle out of it. Seems like a lot of set and wardrobe for something that could have been done on a webcam to similar effect!
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Today's Old Taylor is suited in my opinion to cocktails and bourbon and Coke. I do occasionally buy it to see whether the palate changes over the years but it seems largely the same since Beam bought the label. (There are intermediate bottlings, the so-called transition ones, which may have combined some Clermont-distilled bourbon and some Frankfort-distilled, these use the older label and usually are pretty good).

At Char No. 4 recently in Brooklyn I had its house bloody mary which used Old Taylor and it worked well in that combination, the chipotle pepper added seemed to match the whiskey taste which was quite evident through the tomato base.

Still, now that Beam has released its new rye whiskey, one might hope that the palate of the old Old Taylor will be re-introduced, prefereably in a BIB. But how do you re-introduce the old butterscotchy taste? This would depend on how that was obtained at Frankfort. I believe it is a type of congener (or group of them) that was responsible, or the yeast that produced them, because when I nose the NDs sometimes I get a slight fusel note. This is more noticeable in the 1970's black label 90 proof version that some on the board have tasted, probably the latter was not aged as long as the ones Michael Jackson was referring to in 1987:

"The Taylor whiskey [he means the Bourbon] is light, soft, with some sweetness, and is marketed as a premium brand. It is a well-matured whiskey, as old as 10-12 years, though with lesser age statements".

Gary

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I need to find a retailer that stocks pints of Beam OT. I'm not sure I want a full bottle.

For unknown reasons the only size sold in Oregon is the 1.75 liter. I'll pass.

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I just opened my 500ml of Old Taylor Bonded Distilled in Spring 1976 Bottled Spring 1982.

This Whiskey has a buttery quality on the palate with a hint of a burn at 100 proof I would expect that. The butterscotch is all there from entry to mid palate to finish. I do get a little citrus or zest on the front as well but it then gets over powered by the Butterscotch one again. The finish is medium and becomes quite faint after a minute yet the tingle on the tongue and numbness on the roof of the mouth hangs for a little longer.

I too enjoy this expression and have not had the current. I have a 500ml of some 86 proof as well and it too is great.

Tony

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I just opened my 500ml of Old Taylor Bonded Distilled in Spring 1976 Bottled Spring 1982.

This Whiskey has a buttery quality...butterscotch is all there

Tony,

I've never had a post Stone Castle (ceased distillation in 1972) Taylor bond, at least that was definitively marked. I've heard two different stories about where Taylor was distilled in its twilight years - either Crow or Grand Dad.

I've had many pre-'72 bonds (which had butterscotch, but not dominantly)and '80s 86ers (which were mostly butterscotch monsters), and always wondered whether a bonded would have the same heavy butterscotch as the '80s 86ers.

It sounds like it does.

By the way, does the label specify distilled at DSP KY 19? If not, does it state 14 or 25 (Grand Dad or Crow)? I expect the bottling would have been at the then-newly renovated line at Grand Dad.

Another thing I note is that I have seen a wide spread of when '72 distillations were bottled, as if the barrels were languishing unbottled in the rickhouses for a long time after they were meant to be cycled out. Off the top of my head, I think I've seen '72 distillations bottled anywhere from '77 to '82. It seems your bottle was released concurrently with the last of the '72, yet was a full 4 years younger, and from a different distillery.

Roger

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By the way, does the label specify distilled at DSP KY 19? If not, does it state 14 or 25 (Grand Dad or Crow)? I expect the bottling would have been at the then-newly renovated line at Grand Dad.

Roger

Just looked at it and it say DSP KY 19 and Bottled at DSP KY 14.

Very good stuff, IMHO. I'm drinking the 86 from 1983 now and it is very similar with no burn.

Tony

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I read somewhere that After Old Taylor shut down in 1972, the brand was produced next door at the Old Crow distillery. I have seem many Old Taylor, Old Crow and Old Grand Dad BIB bottles over time that were bottled at ages greater than their normal stated ages. I attribute this to the slowdown in bourbon sales that started around 1970 and ultimately led to the Whiskey glut!

Thomas

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The day before this post went up, I passed on a handle of 86 proof 6 yr Old Taylor from the 80's. It was overpriced at 35 bucks and since it wasn't tax-stripped or anything I thought, "nah". If the BOTM had been up by then, I definitely would have picked it up. Now I'll probably have to run back and get it. The moral of the story is, "When in doubt, just get it." You'd think by now I'd know.

-Mike

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The moral of the story is, "When in doubt, just get it." You'd think by now I'd know.

For me, when it comes to ND Old Taylor of any era, I never have doubt, so the above doesn't apply! :) (I'd go back and hunt it down for a butterscotch fix if I were you...)

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Of course, you're right. But several years ago when I was in California, there was so much OT around I started being much more selective about what I bought. Most of what was out there was 80 proof, so I started cherry picking the bonds and the 86. I remember Chuck posting back when that it was pretty readily available in the Chicago area as well. I imagine things have changed with the dusty hunting rush that seems to be on, but old habits die hard.

-Mike

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well, does anyone have detailed tasting notes on the CURRENT bottling?

i saw 3 today on a shelf in claymont delaware near the pa state line...$9.99 a bottle

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Good point. Why don't you do one?

Gary

hmmm. thanks for the suggestion! and good to be back.

well, i know $9.99 isn't alot, but this being the current bottling (of course, this store seems to have many a dusty), i was hoping to get a sense of what i might expect before i slap my metaphysics into any sort of tasting notes!

it WAS on the bottom shelf. but then, so was the Old Forester Signature...

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well, i might grab the bottle tomorrow if insane 95 traffic after work doesn't stop me from making a crucial 15 minute stop in claymont DE for a bottle...

i don't know...seems already like something meant for cocktails. i can only honor bourbons that are already decent+ straight....at least it's 6 years...seems like it can't be (at least!) awful.

still, has no one else picked up a bottle of the CURRENT offering? old dusty finds are always of interest, but certainly not widely available to most of us.:searching:

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well, i looked at the two bottles on that bottom shelf...one had an 02 on the bottom of the bottle...another 06....i assume (i don't know much about this aspect) they are respectively 2002, 2006 bottlings....?

i left instead with OGD 114...

i don't feel quite inspired to make the 10 dollar leap when i see few here making more remarks on this particular bottling. i feel it will be a 10 dollar lesson...$10 i'd rather invest in something worth 2 or more times more...

ALSO, seems only old bottlings are being commented on...maybe i WILL make the $10 stretch.......:smil41df29a15fb35:

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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.

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Thanks for that, enjoyed your review.

Gary

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.

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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.

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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

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