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Produced by Sazerac's Barton 1792 distillery, Early Times Bottled-in-Bond (commonly referred to as "ET") is an enthusiast cult favorite that has morphed substantially over the last decade. A brand originally created in 1860 by John Henry "Jack Beam" (yes the uncle of Jim Beam), Early Times was acquired by Born-Foreman during Prohibition when it was sold as "medicinal whiskey", surviving the drought to become the best selling bourbon in the U.S. by 1953. Under pressure from the Vodka Boom, Brown-Foreman shifted to using refill cooperage in the 1980s to save cost, resulting in the brand losing its regulatory status as bourbon. BF re-introduced the bottled-in-bond edition in 2017 as a 75th-anniversary tribute to its peak, hoping to capitalize on the burgeoning bourbon boom. In 2020, Sazerac purchased the brand and production moved from DSP-KY-354 (Shively/Brown-Forman) to DSP-KY-12 (Barton 1792 in Bardstown Kentucky).
You may see Early Times split between the Brown-Forman "Legacy" and the "Modern" (Sazerac/Barton) profiles as there was some shifting of flavor with the move. If you're curious, you can easily check the DSP on the label or use the cap color as a rough guide (Blue for Brown-Foreman or Black for Sazerac/Barton). If you do come across a Brown-Foreman era bottle, definitely scoop it up since they are becoming quite rare. As with anything cancelled or changed, there are those who will say the legacy profile is superior, but how does this "Modern" bottle hold-up?
🛒Sourced: $25.99 Tower Wine & Spirits - Atlanta, GA - 1L, this is about 19.50 for a standard 750ml equivalent. Pretty darn cheap.
🧪Proof: 100 proof, 50% ABV per the bottled-in-bond requirements
🎨Color: R4 - a cheery red-brown of medium tint, very similar to most other NAS bond bourbons
🥔Mash Bill: 79% Corn, 11% Rye, 10% Malted Barley. Aged for four years, the product of a single distillation season. According to Barton, it is still made with the classic Brown-Foreman yeast and mash bill with no changes. Any flavor variation should be due to the shift in blending team, equipment, or aging facilities used.
👃Nose: Fairly astringent and proofy, caramel, some old wood, roasted plantain, milled corn
😜Palate: Easier going down than I would have expected from the nose and on the thinner side of medium. It is not overly sweet but the main flavor thrust is bananas foster. There is a smidge of vanilla cream as well, but I can't get much further beyond the youthful corn note which persists.
💦Finish: Salted caramel and monk fruit, some building residual heat, medium length. It sits on your tongue with a bit of black pepper spice feel.
🏆 Overall: 5.75/10 - Good, Interesting - It's a solid step up from the more budget movers and has that lovely Brown Forman banana funk. After a drink or two, you won't notice this as a step down from the Ben Holladay's or E.H. Taylors of the world; it holds it's own well enough. There are rough edges and you can tell that this is around that four year mark, but it's cheaper than Jack Daniel's bonded by a fair margin while executing on the flavor profile well.
💵Would buy again? Sure, it's definitely a well constructed whiskey for the money, though as usual devotees are probably over-hyping it. I would love to try one of the pre-Barton iterations for comparison.
⚖️Rating Scale:
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume it by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws | Struggle to get through the bottle
4 | Serviceable | Mixing or ice recommended.
5 | Good | Drinkable Neat | An agreeable dram indeed.
6 | Very Good | Any flaws offset by interesting flavors | A cut above.
7 | Great | You find yourself reaching for this one often | Well above average.
8 | Excellent | Serve to Impress Guests | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite | You guard this bottle jealously