The good folks over at Jefferson’s Bourbon (founded in 1997) just love to experiment with small batch bourbons and their latest, just released, and should be pretty intriguing. Jefferson’s Old Rum Cask finish takes Kentucky straight bourbon, originally aged for eight years, and puts it in Gosling’s Family Reserve old rum barrels and ages it for an additional 15 months.

And it’s not like this is their first experimental bourbon. Their Jefferson’s Ocean Bourbon barrels sail the seven seas, cross the equator four times, visit 5 continents and over 30 ports all the while breathing salty sea air. Their Jefferson’s Wood Experiment bourbon ages in thirteen different environments like new bourbon barrels, new wine barrels, wine barrel heads on a new bourbon barrel, insert oak staves that have been seared, oak cubes that have been slow cooked, etc. Trey Zoeller and his father Chet are at the cutting edge of bourbon and I just can’t wait to see what they’re going to come up with next but for right now I am going to have to settle in and try their Reserve Old Rum Cask Finish.

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The color is a golden amber and the nose contains gentle hints of maple and banana and of course a touch of sweet rum for good measure but does not reflect its time spent in oak with any appreciable nod to the nose. The palate is sweet with the rum coming forward followed by the banana and finally I get a taste of mighty fine bourbon lurking in the background. It has just the right amount of spiciness to make it a mighty interesting mouthful. The finish is fruity, slightly oaky and just spicy enough to leave a tingle and sweetness that lasts a short time. This is a very nice sipping bourbon that is flavorful and fruitful and mildly spicy that hits all the right notes on the palate.

I really liked this Bourbon with its interesting and entertaining flavorful flavor profile. It would stand alone well enough as a pre-meal drink and just sweet enough to make for an interesting after dinner drink accompanied by a mild Cuban cigar, now that we can actually own Cuban cigars for the first time in 50 years.

Jefferson’s Reserve Old Rum Cask Finish is bottled at 90.2 proof and can be found for between $80.00 to $85.00 per 750 ml bottle.

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By George Brozowski

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