Old Heaven Hill - Bottled in Bond

I figured that I would review this one because the last two reviews were of Heaven Hill products. Since they are Heaven Hill products, I thought I’d review a Heaven Hill product you should be able to get locally and try to compare it to those. This is Old Heaven Hill by the Heaven Hill Distillery in Bardstown, KY. This version is Bottled in Bond. Which means, it is, by definition, 100 proof. By law, it must also be made at a single distillery, by one distiller in one distillation season and aged for at least 4 years in a federally bonded and supervised warehouse.

Nose: A little bit of sweet and a little bit of corn. Not overwhelming and not too powerful. Palate: Pretty mild for a 100 proof, but it let’s you know it is a 100 proof on the tail end, with a nice warming finish….but it is not harsh and not burning. The warmth actually dies off pretty quickly. It has a slightly oily mouth feel and a little bit of woodiness, but I don’t find it overpoweringly oaky. I get a very slight amount of butterscotch and, oddly, a little bit of butter. I find some similarities between this and the 6 year old Tom Sims, but I’m starting to think I’ll have to do some side-by-side comparisons to make better judgements. I suspect that you might be able to tell they are “cousins”. Comments: God bless Heaven Hill and their varieties. Be advised that there is also a “Heaven Hill” Bottled in Bond. This has a white label (I think I have it...). The one I’m talking about today is the GOLD labeled “OLD” Heaven Hill. I don’t remember what I paid for this, but it was definitely under $30. The Heaven Hill distillery is an interesting duck. Other brands made there include: Evan Williams (this one actually reminds me of this a bit…..maybe I’ll do a side-by-side with an EW Single Barrel?), Elijah Craig, Larceny, Rittenhouse Rye, Henry McKenna Single Barrel, Bernheim Original Wheat Whiskey, Pikesville Rye, Old Fitzgerald Bottled-in-Bond and Mellow Corn. Heaven Hill has had a member of the famous Beam family as master distiller (1975 - 2014). HH has more rickhouses than America has states, with 58 throughout KY, holding over 1.6 million barrels. (Yeah, let that sink in a minute….1.6 Million BARRELS of bourbon…..God bless America!) HH lost 90,000 barrels in their famous 1996 fire. I’d recommend this as an inexpensive, daily drinker. There isn’t anything distinctive that would warrant HAVING to have it in your collection, but if you pick up a cheap bottle, I suspect you won’t be too disappointed.