Old Grand-Dad is named for Basil Hayden. He created his distillery in 1840 and it’s changed hands many times, but today it’s owned by Beam Suntory. Back in its day it was the number one bottled-in-bond Bourbon, though it is unsure if this is the same recipe as that one. “Of the many bourbon brands Beam acquired when it merged with National Distillers in 1987, the Old Grand-Dad recipe was the only one Beam continued to make the same way. All of the other National brands, such as Old Crow, were simply switched to Jim Beam distillate when the liquid made by National ran out.” Quoted from Chuck Cowdery’s blog.

More on bottled-in-bond information…the liquor must be the product of one distillation season and by one distiller at one distillery. It must be aged in a federally bonded warehouse under U.S. government supervision for at least four years and bottled at 100 proof. The more you know.

We found this OGD BIB when we were celebrating our anniversary in Eureka Springs, and we drank a lot of it that weekend. I remember it being crazy sweet, so we’ll see how I feel today. This bottle is half empty and has been sitting since May.

Company: Beam Suntory

Distillery: The Old Grand-Dad Distillery Company, aka Jim Beam Distillery

Location: Clermont, KY

Mash bill: 63% corn, 27% rye, 10% malted barley.

Age: NAS, but at least 4 years.

ABV: 50% (100 proof, BIB)

Released: Ongoing.

Price: $20

Color: Honey Blonde

Nose: Smells a bit astringent, very wood-y, like cedar and hay. Then I get raspberry and green grapes. There’s also some vanilla and toasted coconut.

Taste: Tastes like butter and its oily. Sounds weird but it’s good. Then, I get lots of sugar cane, little bit of tobacco, dark chocolate.

Finish: Light finish, has a dark chocolate sweet and bitter finish, warms your throat, but not hot. The last flavor left over in mouth is sugar cane, which is why it seems so sweet to me. It’s like the energizer bunny of sugar cane.

Overall: Overall, I really like the Bourbon. I feel like I say that every time, but I do like most Bourbons. There’s something to like in almost every bottle despite your preferences. There’s definitely bottles I like more, and bottles I love, but I can pretty much enjoy any bottle I meet. Maybe, I shouldn’t be saying that as a reviewer, but oh well. This definitely leans more to the sweet side for me because of the finish, so I’ll probably grab it when I’m in the mood for sugar. I actually mixed this with some sparkling wine, when we were on vacation, cause that’s how I roll, and it was pretty good.

And, since I use the term “Granddad” for my Granddad, I’ve got a special place in my heart for this one.

Rating: 3.5/5