Following up on the r/bourbon community review of Knob Creek Small Batch this month I thought I’d finally get around to reviewing the trio of single barrel store picks I have on hand. Knob Creek Single Barrels come in at 120 proof and with a 9 year age statement on the label though many are significantly older than that. We had a few of these drop in Austin earlier this year and I picked up the picks from Twin Liquors, Oak Liquor Cabinet and Chris’s Liquor. I tasted these blind and picked a winner and then went back to pick out some of subtler notes after the blind tasting.
Oak Liquor Cabinet Pick
Age: 13 years 10 months
Abv: 120 proof
Color: a deep amber
Barrel Info: #7713
- Barreled on 10/14/04
- Selected on 8/23/18
- Warehouse :
- Floor 5
- Rack 31
- Tier 1
Neat
Nose: A balance of rich oak and sweet caramel with vanilla and spice in the background.
Taste: Well balanced sweet caramel, rich oak and rye spice with an excellent mouthfeel. Just a slight hint of tannic oak near the end.
Finish: Warm and long with loads of rye spice, sweet caramel and rich oak
Chris’s Pick
Age: 9+ years
Abv: 120 proof
Color: a deep amber
Barrel Info: #6763
Neat
Nose: Softer than I’d expect for a 120 proofer with soft, sweet brown sugar and subtle oak.
Taste: Rich and sweet with strong brown sugar and rich oak notes supported by hints of warm spice and smoke.
Finish: Medium length finish with brown sugar, peanut brittle and warm spices.
Twin’s Pick
Age: 9+ years
Abv: 120 proof
Color: A medium amber
Barrel Info: #5630
Neat
Nose: Bold nose with oak and spice notes and a bit of ethanol.
Taste: Strong oak notes that are slightly bitter with lots of baking spice, some black pepper and a nice viscous mouthfeel.
Finish: Long and spicy finish with supporting oak notes.
Conclusion
First off all of these were great, the Oak Liquor Cabinet and Chris’s pick especially so. These Knob Creek Single Barrel picks are one of the best values in bourbon right now imo. It was super hard to pick a winner but in the end I went with the Chris’s pick for that brown sugar note. I picked up two of the OLC picks and I wish I’d grabbed another of the Chris’s. Another round of these will be hitting Austin soon and I can’t wait to taste them.
Also I am trying to track down the ages and other info for the Chris’s and Twins picks and will update this if I do get anything.
TL;DR: All 3 were great, Chris’s was the best if you have a sweet tooth, Oak otherwise, Twins was definitely in 3rd but still tasty.
Oak Liquor Cabinet pick
8 - an excellent bottle I’ll buy from time to time
Great - A great deal, I’d buy it again
Chris’s Liquor pick
8 - an excellent bottle I’ll buy from time to time
Great - A great deal, I’d buy it again
Twin Liquors pick
7 - a great whiskey I’d order at a bar
Great - A great deal, I’d buy it again
Scale
The blind tasting video for this is up on Instagram(@atxbourbon)!