COLONEL TAYLOR Four Grain Bourbon purchased the (now famous) O.F.C. distillery at the end of the Civil War and focused so intently upon making world-class product that eventually he ran into financial trouble. A little-known salesman who was, at the time, purchasing barrels of O.F.C. decided to take a chance and acquire the distillery itself from Col. E.H. Taylor.
Forming a new partnership with Col. Taylor as the Vice President, and the new owner (one George T. Stagg) as the President, the two ultimately formed what is now known as the Buffalo Trace Distillery–which brings us this product today
Four grains are used in the creation of this bourbon: corn, rye, wheat, and malted barley. This isn’t a traditional recipe but it is picking up more attention with other brands out there (looking at you, Penelope Bourbon) as experimentation and blending of mashbills becomes more and more mainstream.
As always–I wanted to take a look at what the brand had to say about the product–here is text from the Buffalo Trace Distillery website about this four grain product:
Tasting Notes…
Nose – Sweet and lightly floral, caramel candy, spicy oak, sweet tea, and a good dose of buttercream.
Taste – Sweet and rich at first with a fat-washed vanilla vibe, custard, creme brûlée, touch of orange peel and a hearty baking spice.
Finish – Medium-long, oak spice driven with some Dutch process cocoa powder, hint of berry, plenty of vanilla, and a reminder of light caramel but it’s more dry than sweet as it rolls off.
Final thoughts…
All in all this is a good expression and a fairly solid offering in the ever-growing E.H. Taylor lineup. If I’m being totally honest I expect this to swing with a little more oomph seeing as people tend to go nuts for the rare offerings from this brand. Quite frankly, when it comes to E.H. Taylor’s offerings, the 18 Year Marriage and Single Barrel expressions have impressed me the most.
If you can find a friend to grab a pour of this from, or a local spot that’s offering it for a price you deem to be fair I’d totally recommend trying it out just to build the experience portfolio; however, if it’s down to Four Grain and another rare bottle…you might do just as well reaching the other way.
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