Bourbon Review: Bardstown Bourbon Phifer Pavitt Reserve Bourbon

But we’ve all had others (which we won’t name or bash) that didn’t turn out so hot. A mismanaged wine barrel hung sour edges and musty aromas on the whiskey or bludgeoned it into the background. Other wine-barrel-finished whiskeys left me thinking its makers thought, “We’ll this wine barrel to mask our bad booze.”

So it was with some apprehension that I drove from Louisville to Bardstown, Ky., in February to taste the new Bardstown Bourbon Co. Phifer Pavitt Reserve Bourbon. Nothing against BBCo., which is a terrific spot on the Bourbon Trail and a cutting edge distiller of three dozen unique mashbills and a growing number of collaborative projects. I also knew nothing about Phifer Pavitt Winery, which says lots about my near-abandonment of wine for whiskey in the past decade–and perhaps the lack of funds to buy truly excellent wine.

That all changed when winemaker Suzanne Phifer Pavitt and BBCo. master distiller Steve Nally led a group tasting of her cabernet sauvignon and the George Dickel bourbon he chose for this project. Phifer Pavitt’s Napa Valley wine was extraordinary: a jammy, dark fruit bomb of zinfandel on the nose, and expansive cabernet sauvignon boldness on the palate. The Dickel bourbon was solid on its own: 9 years old, bold but sweet with creamed corn and caramel notes. The mashup which followed was a show stopper.

Tasting Notes: Bardstown Bourbon Phifer Pavitt Reserve Bourbon

Appearance: Gleaming deep copper to auburn; swirling produced thin legs

Nose: Caramel, honey, milk chocolate, raspberry jam and oak

Palate: toasted oak, raisins, dark chocolate, currants, cooked cherries, sweet corn and caramel; mouthfeel is lush, finish is short, but not unpleasantly so. Someone needs to make a candy out of this.