Current Heaven Hill JW Dant BIB

[weller_tex]

I really like the current Heaven Hill J.W. Dant BIB..about $19 for a liter. It has a very nice high-rye bourbon nose and pretty smooth ryed bourbon palate with only a little burn. I know this level of bourbon is not popular here (unless it is a dusty) but does anyone else like it?

[tmckenzie]

Not unpopular with me. Hard to find a better bourbon for the price on the market. All HH bib's are good values.

[ThirstyinOhio]

I'd rather drink fighting cock at that price point, but I wouldn't turn down a free pour.

[Flyfish]

I know this level of bourbon is not popular here (unless it is a dusty) but does anyone else like it?

I don't know what "this level of bourbon is not popular here" means but I'll still take AAA for $19/L. With that said, I agree with tmckenzie that HH does a great job at producing value.

[ethangsmith]

Yep, I like it too. For a slightly drier profile, try the Old Heaven Hill gold label BIB bourbon.

[Young Blacksmith]

I don't think I've tried any new production unfortunately. I'll have to remedy that soon.

I did have one DSP-KY-31 distilled and bottled that was horrid, but all the older stuff has been good to great.

[White Dog]

I think affordable Bourbons are immensely popular here. Do I buy the high-end usual suspects, sure, but I love lots of price points, like OWA, OGD, Old Ezra 7, FC...

And I wish I could get HH BIBs in Wisconsin. The only one available is Old Fitz.

[T Comp]

Been about 3 years that I last tasted the current Dant BIB distilled at DSP 1 but thought then it compared favorably to the older DSP 2 and much better than most 80 to 90 proof bottom to mid shelfers. But my recent April/2012 bought bottle of HH BIB (gold label-presumed just 4 years) was quite raw, doggy and disagreeable to me. Also heard continuing unofficial murmurs in Bardstown last weekend that the T.W. Samuels label BIB and the 6 year label HH BIB are becoming history. Brought home a liter of the 6 year HH BIB just in case.

[SmoothAmbler]

I had some older JW Dant at Tales of the Cocktail this year. I tasted it with many other products, but I remember it being delicious. I was sort of overwhelmed with all of the products I tasted that night, including all sorts of liqueurs and such. But I fondly remember it. I'd like to taste the current stuff.

[soonami]

Is there a time line to determine the age of a Dant BiB based on DSP numbers? It sits around here in the MidAtlantic, not getting a lot of love, but I had an older bottle, faded yellowing label, don't remember where it was bottled or distilled that I quite enjoyed.

[Young Blacksmith]

It's bounced around a lot, I know JW Dant was distilled in, from older to newest:

DSP-KY-113

DSP-KY-2

DSP-KY-31

DSP-KY-1

I also know 113 is Buffalo Trace (was it Ancient Age or George T Stagg back then?), Not quiet sure who 2 is, I hear references to Old Charter, and Old Bernheim. Not the same place as new Bernheim operated by HH now?

[michaelturtle1]

I have a couple 113's can't say I am a huge fan... But I am going to let my open one get some air and try again

[Young Blacksmith]

The 2 juice is the best in my opinion. See if you can find some distilled 2, bottled 16. It's worth the $5 I pay for 200ml around here.

[HighInTheMtns]

Based on what I've read I think that DSP-KY-2 is the same location as DSP-KY-1, but the Dant bottles labeled with DSP-KY-2 would have been produced before the modifications Heaven Hill made to the still when they took over.

[Josh]

It's bounced around a lot, I know JW Dant was distilled in, from older to newest:

DSP-KY-113

DSP-KY-2

DSP-KY-31

DSP-KY-1

I also know 113 is Buffalo Trace (was it Ancient Age or George T Stagg back then?), Not quiet sure who 2 is, I hear references to Old Charter, and Old Bernheim. Not the same place as new Bernheim operated by HH now?

Edited September 23, 2012 by Josh

[fishnbowljoe]

I think the current Dant BIB is just okay. IMHO, along with most everyone else's it seems, the dusty/semi-dusty versions are better. I pretty much agree with what Young Blacksmith said. "The 2 juice is the best in my opinion. See if you can find some distilled 2, bottled 16. It's worth the $5 I pay for 200ml around here." Regardless of the version, I think they're all worth at least a shot. I've been fortunate to find a few of all the varieties over the last couple of years. The only one I'd hesitate in purchasing would be the current version. All others I'd buy without a second thought.

[HighInTheMtns]

I've probably gotten this muddled, but IIRC "Old Bernheim" dsp #2 refers to the distillery that was on the site of the current Bernheim distillery. It was demolished in 1992 by UD (now Diageo) to build the current Bernheim distillery. There's some information on that on this page: http://www.ellenjaye.com/bernheim.htm. I know they have a page dedicated to old distillery itself but I can't find it now.

[Josh]

This makes sense. I couldn't find anything that said for sure, just lots of references to it being the same location. Thanks for the information, that's a cool link.

[weller_tex]

I think the current Dant BIB is just okay. IMHO, along with most everyone else's it seems, the dusty/semi-dusty versions are better. I pretty much agree with what Young Blacksmith said. "The 2 juice is the best in my opinion. See if you can find some distilled 2, bottled 16. It's worth the $5 I pay for 200ml around here." Regardless of the version, I think they're all worth at least a shot. I've been fortunate to find a few of all the varieties over the last couple of years. The only one I'd hesitate in purchasing would be the current version. All others I'd buy without a second thought.

I am certain the dusties are better, but I think the Houston members have pretty much cleaned up in my area. There are some rural areas of Southeast Texas that I might check out some time..but I am a bit concerned that I will find one magical bottle of something old and then of course never be able to get it again.

[sailor22]

Never been disappointed with an older Dant BiB regardless of where it was distilled. They are all different and all good.

I have an 86 proof 7yr age stated Dant, not BiB so no DSP #'s listed, that says distilled at Gethsemane Ky. What distillery was that?

[PaulO]

The bottles of Dant BIB that are now dusties really helped get me interested in bourbon years ago. I noticed at some point the color changed. The current stuff is much lighter colored. It is not better, or worse than HH BIB 4 year old. The older stuff was deep red. Nowadays I'd probably spend a few more bucks and get HH 6 year old, or FC.

[matthewdc]

I just picked up a Dant BIB, looks like from the late 80's, that was distilled DSP-KY-113 (BT) and bottled DSP-KY-16 (SW). May open it up tonight to give it a try.

[squire]

Gethsemane was the location of the Old Yellowstone and Buffalo Springs distilleries, originally owned by members of the Dant family, who also produced their namesake Bourbon. The whole story of distilling in the area is much larger but that's the short answer.

[squire]

Dant seems to be getting a little hard to find, whether by design or demand I don't know, but it's worth grabbing a bottle if you haven't tried it.

[mosugoji64]

I was able to locate several pre-fire HH Dants over the summer and picked one up to give it a try. It has a strong, slightly stale corn oil flavor that really put me off. Had a couple of pours after buying but haven't returned to it. Since then, I've picked up that flavor, to a much lesser degree, in a couple of pre-fire EW bottles. Was this a common flavor in their bourbons back then or did I just find some bad bottles?