Blanton's Advice

[Bamber]

Have a choice of these Blanton's:

Gold

Silver

Single Barrel (~67%)

Original

I can only afford one really. Any advice would be very much appreciated.

[Hedmans Brorsa]

I´m a big fan of the standard bottling but some six months ago I bought my first bottle of Blanton´s Gold and I was simply stunned by the sheer quality of it. It could quite possibly be the best bourbon that I´ve ever tasted.

I have not tried the silver or the cask strength but the latter is high up on my next-to-be-added-to-my-collection list. Have a sneaking suspicion that it is better than Stagg.

[Ken Weber]

Since only one version is available in the U.S., the 93 proof may be all that you can find. If you are lucky, you may be able to find an uncut/unfiltered version we did for France. While it is not George T. Stagg, it is quite good.

Ken

[musher]

Since he is not in the US, though, he has the other choices that he had identified.

[cas]

I've seen the standard bottling and the silver edition available in the US.

Craig

[pepcycle]

Don't confuse a silver box with the Silver Edition.

Two different animals that have been confused by others.

(Read as Guys like Ed)

[Bamber]

Yeah - noticed someone get tricked by that, when I was reading through previous threads.

Sounds like the gold is the one to go for

[cas]

This definitely said "Silver Edition" on the label. I believe it was at the Liquor Barn near Lexington, back in July.

cas

[Ken Weber]

You may have seen the silver edition in Liquor Barns in Kentucky. We did a special bottling for them (actually they select all of their own barrels of Blanton's) and they saw the nice looking silver boxes and asked for them. We used them only until we depleted the inventory in the Blanton's Bottling Hall.

Ken

[Hedmans Brorsa]

Sounds like the gold is the one to go for

Bearing in mind, of course, that this is single barrel and that I´ve only sampled one bottle. Somehow, though, I think it´s pretty safe to say that you won´t be disappointed.

I just placed an order, me self, for the Blanton´s straight from the barrel. Unbelievably enough, all five of the Blanton´s expressions are now available in Sweden (albeit as special-order-only items). Comparing this to the situation back in -99, it almost feels surreal.

[BSS]

I have one of those "Silver Editions" from LB. I was fooled until I got it home and realized it was the Original version. Like he said, the boxes are from the silver edition but its not. It kinda ticked me off because I thought I was getting the Silver when it really wasn't.

[Paradox]

They've had them for a while... Nothing special, just regular ol' american release Blantons picked by them.

[Gillman]

Mark, if this hasn't been done before, could you summarise the various Blanton expressions including export-only versions and (as it now appears) versions from barrels selected by U.S. retailers?

With many thanks for the range and thoroughness of your knowledge!

Gary

[Paradox]

Sure thing Gary, I'll do my best.

1) First we have Blanton's Special Reserve which is an 'entry level' bottling in the Blanton's line. It is 80 proof and intended for export to Canada and Europe. I 'think' it may also be sold in some DFS. They say being 80 proof it is “therefore more appealing to beginning whiskey consumers."

2) Pretty much the same as the first one but with a black label and made for Japan. Still 80 Proof...

3) Next is the one we are all familiar with. It is 93 Proof. I remember always saying how since I love high proof bourbons and liking Blanton's I would love their barrel proof bottling. Well, in 2003 when we tried a barrel of Blanton’s at barrel proof I have to admit that this is one that really comes alive with the addition of some water. It just went to show, for me at least, that it takes something special for a bourbon like Stagg to taste so good at 130+ proof!

4) Next is the 'infamous' silver edition. It is bottled at 98 Proof and made for the duty free market though I know it can be found in some places in Europe as well. It is NOT sold in the US so when you see the boxes at liquor barn folks do not be fooled... Open boxes and always check whats inside when you suspect something fishy. And if someone comes over and asks why you are opening the box explain you know your stuff when it comes to bourbon and something is out of place. I have not personally had the silver or gold editions of Blanton’s, but not being much higher than the standard and not as high as their barrel proof edition I would have to say they are superb. If given a choice of one I would probably say go with the gold, but that’s from someone who likes 100+ proof bourbons. And you can always add water. The horse on top is plated silver in color for these.

5) Next is Blanton’s Gold which weighs in at 103 Proof. Like the silver it is intended for the duty free market and as their site says the international market as well. It used to come in a nice box. Well, 2 different styles of boxes. One was a round box made of dense cardboard(?) that opened kind of like the WT Tribute box. It was held together by a gold string. The other style box was square and had bi-fold opening 'doors' that were kept closed by magnets hidden within the flaps of the cardboard. I liked this box better. Now the silver, gold and green one come in these cheap looking cardboard (lightweight) boxes with a little window in the front. I am certain this has helped keep the costs down though and honestly it doesn’t really matter much to me. The color of the bourbon at this proof is truly beautiful... Oh, also the hangtag on the gold ones has a gold string that keeps it tied around the neck of the bottle... And yet one more thing; The hand written label on these is not a paper label but rather a clear see thru label with gold writing. This really helps again in allowing you to see the bourbons color thru the bottle. The horse on top is plated gold for these.

6) And finally the Barrel Proof Blanton's which is not even mentioned on the Blanton’s site. I have seen several different bottling proofs on these but the one on display in my collection is 132.4 It has a paper label like the other Blanton’s but is set up in a bit of a different fashion. These didn't come in a box (not that I know of) but did have a plastic fish-net type thing stretched around them.

Here's a pic with #'s corresponding next to each bottle.

[OneCubeOnly]

Wow! Thanks for the awesome post Mark!

The only one I can see for sure is the Gold--are all the non-domestic releases 70cl? Are the decanters identical for the 70cl vs. 750ml?

[Gillman]

Great, many thanks! This makes me realise I haven't even begun with Blanton since I have only had (and enjoyed) the green label 80 proof version.

Is there not in effect another version of the 93 proof (is it?) being the one specially selected by Liquor Barn in Louisville?

Gary

[Paradox]

The sizes are odd Gary, good question. At least for the bottles I have the Barrel Proof and Gold editions are 70cl whereas the Green & Black label, domestic and silver editions are all 750ml.

The decanters are the same in shape, but the 70cl decanters are definitely smaller. When you look at them side by side you can see the 70cl ones are not as round and are actually a bit skinnier than the 750ml ones. I lined up one 750ml and 2 70cl's just now and then put other objects on each end. Then I removed the 2 70cl's and tried putting 2 750's in their place and sure enough they wouldn't fit. Real rudimentary but hey, it worked for a quick test!

[Paradox]

I have not had Blanton’s at 80 proof and honestly I wouldn't want it. It is a shame that that is all you can get of it! Next time you make it to the states make sure to grab 1 93 proof one, you will be glad you did Gary.

As for other 93 proof bottlings hand selected by people, Binny's and Sams have both hand selected barrels. I am sure others have as well but who knows how many... The only real difference is whatever packaging the person who buys the barrel selects to make it 'unique' usually a sticker or something. I find it weird that LB was allowed to use the silver edition box like that, for those who know another version exists it was kind if 'false advertising' on LB's part... It did make for one fancy packaging and probably sold more Blantons for them being in that box instead of the brown bag, but nonetheless, the contents were still not what the outside package advertised when compared to their lineup. But personally, do I care? Not really... Sounds like something I would ask for (something to make my bottling stand out) and I have to give them credit for asking and actually receiving!

[Gillman]

Mark, again, awesome, many thanks - I thought Ken said Liquor Barn chooses its particular barrels, but even still it is the 93 proof version, and since all vary (by virtue of being limited release) that really doesn't mean much I think. Clearly I have lots to look forward to in the Blanton world.

Gary

[Paradox]

I guess you can say they are 'limited release' (I'd really say they are simply hand picked barrels though) but all they really are are bottles that contain what someone liked when they tasted that particular barrel. Since Blanton's is a single barrel product anyway, you're not getting something 'more special'. Now when you buy a hand picked barrel of say Buffalo Trace, you are getting something different since it is not normally a single barrel product. That's just my take on it.

[Bamber]

Thanks for some excellent information.

[Ken Weber]

The specially picked barrels simply reflect those barrels the selectors like the best. This is very subjective. When a barrel of Buffalo Trace is selected, it is more special since it represents a single barrel pulled from what is usually a 25 barrel production rum.

The silver box at Liquor Barn bothered me too. They insisted we let them use what they considered a "special box to showcase a special bourbon." We should be out of these boxes and this confusion will end.

Ken