Bakers 7 Year Old

Baker’s is another from Suntory - Beam’s stable. I’ve already reviewed a batch of Booker’s, Knob Creek single barrel and Kirkland’s bottling of their bourbon. Now it’s time for Baker’s, seven years old, batch 90-001. This is the second 20 cc tasting of a 50 cc sample obtained from @paddockjudge (thanks). I have never added water to a bourbon and enjoyed the result so this review is of the undiluted product. My children are playing loudly nearby and I think it does actually affect how well I concentrate on this dram.

Nose:

Definitely bourbon. Caramel, vanilla. A hint of a fruit but it is fleeting and I can’t quite pinpoint which one (lime, maybe?). Maybe a hint of chocolate. The alcohol is quite strong, but integrated in the aromas. Some spice.

Taste:

First sip burns, with a strong vanilla presence. Some hints of caramel. This one is very dry. Drier than Bookers. The mouthfeel is also thinner. This is not as rich a whisky. The taste and the nose go very well together. The flavours seem to come out a little more after the first few sips. Again the mysterious fruit in the background.

With milk chocolate it feels even thinner, but a little sweeter. The flavours are a little subdued. With Trader Joe’s dark chocolate covered nibs the whisky becomes sharper, more spicy. I think I like the flavour with the milk chocolate best...but I do like how it changes. And I think the mouthfeel is best neat, without chocolate.

Finish is mainly vanilla.

This is not a bad whisky at all. I didn’t care too much for it the first time I tried it. I think I like it more now. I’m looking forward to my third and final taste some time in the future.

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