Editor’s Note: This whiskey was provided to us as a review sample by Limestone Branch. This in no way, per our editorial policies, influenced the final outcome of this review. It should also be noted that by clicking the buy link towards the bottom of this review our site receives a small referral payment which helps to support, but not influence, our editorial and other costs.
Back in April, we mentioned Kentucky’s Limestone Branch distillery had launched Yellowstone Family Recipe: a new bourbon that gives a shoutout to founder Stephen Beam’s Beam and Dant family bourbon heritages.
It’s inspired by a recipe found in notes from Beam’s grandfather, Guy Beam, and containing cloned yeast using DNA from a yeast jug belonging to Beam’s great-grandfather, Minor Case Beam. It follows Limestone Branch’s Yellowstone recipe, with a mash bill of 75 percent corn, 13 percent rye, and 12 percent malted barley. It’s aged six years and bottled at 100 proof.
According to Paste magazine, Limestone Branch was “founded in 2010 by the brothers “to continue their family’s 220-year legacy of making bourbon and moonshine using the same DNA as their great-great-grandfather did. They’re owned by Luxco, and thus in the broader MGP of Indiana family.” This batch is the first bourbon Limestone has distilled themselves rather than sourcing. It also honors the 150th anniversary of Yellowstone National Park, with 6,000 cases released first to Kentucky, Montana, and Wyoming.
Limestone Branch also donates $1.50 of every bottle of Yellowstone Select sold, up to $30,000, to the to the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), an independent organization working tirelessly to strengthen and protect America’s national parks. Who can’t get behind that?!
Tasting Notes: Yellowstone Family Recipe Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Vital stats: 100 proof; mash bill of 75 percent corn, 13 percent rye, and 12 percent malted barley; aged six years; approximately $70.
Appearance: More on the orange side of whiskey than copper. Light caramel, a little brassy.
Nose: Bananas. Like a lot of bananas. That’s not bad: I mean, think of all the banana desserts that exist and entice, right? Bananas drizzled with alcohol and set on fire, bananas sliced lengthwise as a boat for ice cream, bananas processed into homemade protein bars on Instagram (which seem to be coming up a lot on my feed ever since I wrote this review). But this smells more of, like, countertop bananas. Other than banana, I get new-mown grass, and baked apples (I know, more fruit.) And hay. There is something very autumnal about the nose of this whiskey. And although spring is my favorite season, I ain’t mad. If you get past the banana, this smells like fall in a Glencairn.
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Palate: This is 100 proof. It wants to tell you! It’s shouting! There’s a slight prickle and burn at the start and finish, respectively. I want more depth of flavor, but this comes across as one-note. Some whiskeys taste more expensive than they are. This isn’t one of them. I understand the care involved in crafting a whiskey, but I wanted more and don’t find the value to be there. It’s a middle of the road whiskey.
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