This review of Knob Creek Single Barrel 1911 concludes my run on Knob Creek single barrels and you can check out the other 3 bottles I tasted and reviewed using the links below. If you’ve followed this week from the start then you know why I dedicated a whole week to this pursuit. It’s the same reason I did three bottles of Evan Williams Vintage and have reviewed multiple bottles of Four Roses Single Barrels: To show the amazing diversity that can emerge in barrels of whiskey even when it’s from the same distillery.
That diversity is also why I chose to pace out the week like I did, building up in the quality scale and saving the sister casks for last. Looking at how this compares to barrel 1910 there are a lot of similarities, but whatever factors may have lead this one to “ripen” and mature noticeably more than the one adjacent to it are what took this barrel from being a good bourbon to a great bourbon. Being sister casks chosen by Nasa Liquor it’s likely they came from the same distillation run, were barreled on the same day and probably even bottled on the same day; making the differences between the two all the more interesting and impressive.
Knob Creek Single Barrel Reserve (standard issue)
Knob Creek Single Barrel #1782
Knob Creek Single Barrel #1910
Knob Creek Single Barrel 1911 Info
Region: Kentucky, USA
Distiller: Jim Beam
Mashbill: 77% Corn, 13% Rye, 10% Malted Barley
Cask: New charred oak
Age: 9 Years
ABV: 60%
Cask: 1911
Bottled For: NASA Liquors
Price: $50
Knob Creek Single Barrel 1911 Review
EYE
Oiled saddle leather
NOSE
Wood + complex dark sweets + dark fruit + toasted grain notes = a happy olfactory. Layer in some notes of candied citrus, brûlée and a light bit of corn and I’m a happy whiskey sniffer.
PALATE
A big dose of lovely oak followed by dense notes of dried berries, complex dark sweets, toasted grains and candied citrus. Compliment those with some lighter notes of vanilla and buttered toast and I’m a happy whiskey taster as well.
FINISH
Long, dry and woody with layers of dried berries, toasted grains and an odd touch of melon rind.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Well balanced, full rich body and a heavy feel.
OVERALL
Yup, I love Knob Creek Single Barrel 1911 from Nasa Liquor. I can’t even imagine what the regular Knob Creek would taste like if this was the minimum standard of what went into making each batch, but as we all know… it’s not. This is instead the higher end of the spectrum and is exactly what I look for in a great bourbon. I like big woody flavors and I like them even more when they’re balanced out with a nice array of other rustic and sweet notes.
Wood for wood’s sake is like peat for peat’s sake. It’s a burly one noted behemoth that can be tasty, but can easily dominate a whiskey if it isn’t kept in check by opposing aromas and flavors. That lack of balance is why I’m not a huge fan of Pappy 23 or Old Blowhard 26, but love whiskeys like this Knob Creek Single Barrel that walks the line and keeps everything in check with equal parts of wood, sweet and rustic. This was a great pick by Nasa Liquors and I can’t thank my buddy in Houston enough for putting this in our swap.
SCORE: 91/100
