🥃 Review #42: Jim Beam Single Barrel 108 Bourbon

Jim Beam Single Barrel 108 Bourbon sites on a table with a Glencairn in front of a blue chair

Joining a packed lineup of flavored, finished, and extra aged expressions, Jim Beam Single Barrel packs some extra proof and is had selected by the Beam team from stocks of the namesake spirit. Jim Beam brings its different brands off the still at different proofs, so there is no chance of this being a rejected Knob, Bakers, or Booker's Barrel; it'll be the crème de la crème of Beam itself. This is the most premium Jim Beam offering in the regular lineup and has been in production since 2013. Weak consumer sentiment resulted in them revamping the offering in 2019, upping the proof from 95 to the current 108 and changing the bottle design (cork was switched to twist top for cost reasons, a trade I'm perfectly willing to make).

🛒Sourced: $39.99 - Total Wine, GA 750ml - Priced to compete with Evan Williams Single Barrel, though that bottle is at a lower proof. In my experience, not a whole lot of retailers stock this bottle, so your best bet is likely one of the big chain stores. The only other single barrel around this price point is Benchmark in the mid-twenty dollar range (though I will say those are lottery tickets for sure).

🧪Proof: 108 proof, 54% ABV - within my sweet spot range of 100-115

🎨Color: R5 - A ruddy amber brown, beaming with intensity

🥔Mash Bill & Production: 75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Barley

Level Four Char on the barrel
135 proof for distillation and 125 proof for barreling
Unfiltered
There is no age statement though the original release mentioned a 4-7 year moving target, which aligns with aging for White and Black label respectively.
This bottle is from barrel JB 1103751.

Disclaimer that single barrel bourbons can be somewhat hit or miss, though with a distiller selection these should at least have a similar lab profile. Poor or nonconforming barrels should be batched under other Jim Beam iterations.

👃Nose: Brown sugar, worn leather and old wood, like a European study. Roasted chestnut. Strong but not astringent, rich. Very nice.

😜Palate: Fairly Thick, true to nose. Roasted chestnut, popcorn, cinnamon, and old oak. Some nutty bitterness in the mid palate, raw pecan. Full of flavor.

💦Finish: Medium length crackle of cinnamon and nutmeg plays in a quartet with a bit of ethanol astringency that deepens into an actually very decent Kentucky hug. A waft of orange peel creeps in from time to time. I would say that this is hot for the proof but somehow it manages to not be abrasive... just really warming.

🏆 Overall Rating: 6.5/10 - Very Good - I'm surprised this bottle doesn't get more love. For the price, you get a solid pour that delivers well on the beam profile with a notable refinement over the standard iterations. The extra proof really pays off in this bottle with flavor intensity though there are glimpses of rough edges from time to time. Upon reflection, I feel like this bottle was more on the younger end of the white label-black label spectrum, so I wonder how an older barrel may feel? Something to look forward to indeed.

I am reminded a bit of Wild Turkey Rare Breed, the two have very similar mash bills and flavors, though Rare Breed is definitely the more refined of the two. If for some reason, you're missing the $15 for that Turkey upgrade this bottle may be an excellent substitute.

🧊With Ice: Less of a fan with ice. The melt brings out more bitterness and minerality, completely eclipsing the citrus.

💵Would buy again? Already planning to do so, especially year to year. With Beam stocks being up, there may be some real winners stashed in these.

⚖️Rating Scale:

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