Well I’ve given up at this point for something to not try and ruin my palate, so let’s go with Jim Beam. Thought maybe there is a bit of hope as this is not the standard Jim Beam, but their black which is aged for a whole 8 years.
Something that scotches say – okay that’s fine but now get in bed with these 12 yea- AND that’s the end of that metaphor. Seriously though I heard 8 years aged and I think, well I guess that’s more than 2 months than your standard rotgut, but eh? I mean shit 8 years ago was 2006, and holy crap I’m getting old.
What they Say: “Elegant. Smooth. Refined. That’s what 8 years of aging will do to a bourbon. A premium bourbon with a more flavorful character. Meant to be sipped and savored.
Our premium 86-proof, double-aged bourbon spends 8 years in new charred, white oak barrels. That’s twice as long as original Jim Beam It’s those four extra years of aging that give Jim Beam Black® its full bodied flavor with smooth caramel and warm oak notes.”
Taste: 6.0 – It’s a nice woody but sweet taste.
Aftertaste: 5.0 – Though it mostly goes a bit worse here.
Burn/Smooth: 4.5 – Not a heavy burn, but it’s still there.
Aroma: 6.5 – I don’t hate it, not gonna lie I was thinking this was going to kill me, but it’s par for a whiskey.
Honesty: 6.0 – I mean it’s a bourbon and that extra 4 years does actually give it a much better overall taste than the original, so I suppose it’s not shot itself in the foot here.
Mixability: 4.0
w/ Rocks: 4.0 – That somehow extenuates the aftertaste, and makes it worse, i try to save more for the mixing, and I wish i didn’t
Value: 3.0 – That’s not really a price I’d feel comfortable for buying something called Jim Beam, even if this is a slightly higher tier for them, it’s not a higher tier overall.
Google Shop Average: $19
Website: http://www.jimbeam.com/black
Reviewer Scores:
BuffaloJern: 4.5
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Metric Score: 35.0/70 |+| Metric Average: 5.0 |+| Reviewer Average: 4.5
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Final Thoughts:
I think the highest praise I can have is this. If I had to buy a Jim Beam I’d get this. Unless the other option was like – uhh – milkshakes. Why not.
If you approach something with a snotty attitude, you’re going to have a snotty perception of it.
Whiskey drinkers/reviewers such as yourself who seem to be on a mission to dislike things rather than a mission to taste things are not whiskey reviewers to be trusted.
A whiskey reviewer worth trusting has an open mind that does not expect to like or dislike a drink and instead is patiently able to wait and see and judge solely on the drink itself, not on pre-conceived notions.
I’m not approaching this with a snotty attitude – I’m approaching it as someone who has had regular Jim Bean and found the experience unpleasant.
I mention I had hope since it was a step above, but if you’ve had something from the same product line that was bad, getting something from the same line isn’t a preconceived notion – it’s a fair marker of what’s to come.
Trust me I am not on a warpath to dislike things. Also please check our FAQ, because a 4.5/5 is average for us (or just slightly below) – our review scaling makes it nigh impossible to get a 10, and we pride ourselves on not giving everything a score at 7.5 and above, but using the full range from 0-10.