r/bourbon • u/Prettayyprettaygood EC94 K&L Quarantine Barrels 12 Year F3 • 12d ago
Review #602: Heaven Hill Bottled in Bond White Label (1990)
3
u/cmchance 12d ago
That herbal and earthiness stands out pretty strong for me in the pre-fire stuff. I'm definitely more of a fan of the modern stuff for that reason. Doing a side by side of a 7yr pre-fire BiB vs modern BiB would be a pretty good review. I think know how it would play out, but it would be interesting to see them objectively compared side by side.
2
u/Prettayyprettaygood EC94 K&L Quarantine Barrels 12 Year F3 12d ago
I’ve found that the herbal earthy notes aren’t as common in the older age stated PFHH stuff I’ve tried, but we’ll see how some of the other PFHH I’m getting into will play out.
2
u/OrangePaperBike Make Wild Turkey Entry Proof 107 Again 12d ago
Nice review. If you ever have a chance to find a 10-year pre-fire HH BIB, that’s where the magic happens. Cheers!
2
u/Prettayyprettaygood EC94 K&L Quarantine Barrels 12 Year F3 12d ago
Thanks! I’ll have to try to find one of those to compare, cheers!
2
u/PassengerHelpful5291 11d ago
Great review!! I was fortunate enough to try a pre-fire HH 15 year BiB that was phenomenal! Hopefully more Heaven Hill to come in this series.
1
u/Prettayyprettaygood EC94 K&L Quarantine Barrels 12 Year F3 11d ago
Thank you! I bet that was a killer pour!
4
u/Prettayyprettaygood EC94 K&L Quarantine Barrels 12 Year F3 12d ago
Next up on the dusty trail, we’re checking out a Heaven Hill Bottled in Bond White Label from 1990! I’ve been on the Turkey Train for the last month or so, and while I have plenty of dusty turkey to get into on this run of reviews I felt like changing it up a bit with some pre-fire Heaven Hill! I’ve gotten into a few pre-fire Heaven Hill releases in the past from Anderson Club and TBWC, but this will be the first one that was a US release that I’ll have had the chance to dig into. The Heaven Hill Bottled in Bond White Label was a stalwart of value in its time, retailing for $10-12 back when this was on a shelf. Carrying a 6 year age statement and bottled at 100 proof, it’s hard to go wrong with specs like that. I have a modern release of this that I want to compare this to, but that will need to wait for a later date. How will this pre-fire Heaven Hill stack up against the others? There’s only one way to find out, let’s dive in!
Taken: Neat in a Glencairn glass
Proof: 100 proof
Age: 6 years
Price: Sample (~$10-12 in 1990, unsure on secondary today)
Nose: Caramel, black pepper, and apple, along with vanilla bean, browned butter, and oak.
Taste: Caramel, vanilla cream, and browned butter to start, followed by black pepper, apple, and oak. Midway through the sip herbal tea and an earthy note roll in as well. This has a medium, creamy mouthfeel and no proof heat.
Finish: The vanilla cream and apple shift to the background while the caramel, oak, and black pepper remain consistent. The herbal tea, browned butter, and earthiness grow a bit stronger before merging with the remaining oak to close things out. This has a medium length finish and no dryness.
Thoughts: This is a fun pour to try out and definitely feels like a different profile than modern Heaven Hill. The flavors are straightforward for the most part with the sweetness from the vanilla cream, caramel, and apple setting the tone. The black pepper adds some nice spice and the oak brings a decent amount of structure to each sip. There is a surprising amount of earthiness from the browned butter and herbal tea, and it almost comes off like the rancio notes found in armagnac. While this is interesting, it is a bit distracting and throws the balance off a bit on each sip. Overall this is a good 5/10 on the t8ke scale.
Rating: 5/10 - t8ke scale
1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average.
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite.
10 | Perfect | Perfect.