Tasting Notes – W. B. Saffell Bourbon

This post sponsored by the Glencairn Whisky Glass

This is the latest in the Wild Turkey series of reviving old Anderson County, Kentucky labels. I really enjoy this series. The packaging is wonderful with labels that harken back to the pre-Prohibition days. The whiskey is not just Wild Turkey in a fancy bottle. They have made an effort to make sure each of these products has its own flavor profile. They do this by picking barrels that are a bit different from their normal products and adjusting the proof and age to give each product its own flavor. This is a very good Bourbon at a price point that makes it worth spending the money on a 375ml bottle.

W. B. Saffell

Proof: 107

Age: No Age Statement

Nose: Vanilla, sweet corn, leather and oak with a hint of fruit – sometimes ripe apples and pears while other times stone fruits like peaches, apricots and plums.

Taste: Sweet corn pudding with vanilla, apples, pears, tobacco and white pepper with only a little oak. Tasted with a dried cranberry it becomes very fruity with apples, pears and very ripe peaches. Tasted with a pecan and the oak and pepper come forward driving the fruit into the background.

Finish: Long and dry with oak and white pepper. The cranberry makes the finish much shorter and sweeter with very little oak. The pecan enhances the oak with only a hint of pepper.

I am pairing this with a Nat Sherman Timeless Limited Edition TAA Cigar. The smoke is rich vanilla and tobacco with a bit of umami flavor that reminds me of Worcestershire Sauce. The Bourbon adds a honey note to the smoke and enhances the vanilla. The smoke brings out a ripe apple and nutmeg note in the Bourbon. A very good pairing.