I was pretty excited a few years back when I got my hands on my first bottle of Blanton’s. I lucked into it at my local ABC store, it just happened to be there when I stopped in. When ringing up my purchase, the store manager asked if I needed a particular letter, and I had no clue what she was talking about. Now I know she meant the letters of the cork toppers that you can collect to spell out Blanton’s. She said she had “B” “T” and “S” (had I been a K Pop fan, perhaps I would have tried to buy all three), and so as to not look dumb, I quickly picked “S” because my wife’s name starts with “S”.
I waited a few months to crack it open. I picked a special occasion, with the aforementioned owner of the letter S name, where we were kicking off a relaxing long weekend and were looking forward to a special bourbon to start things right.
So we were puzzled, much like I was when asked about my alphabetical preferences while simply trying to procure quality whiskey, as to why this highly lauded and sought after whiskey, didn’t actually taste that good. We sniffed, we sipped, we let it open up, we repoured, we repeated. The verdict was best put forth by my wife who said, “This is called Blanton’s? Should be called Blandon’s.”
It’s not bad. It’s perfectly enjoyable. It’s just really basic and devoid of anything interesting in terms of nose palate or finish. It is, well, bland!
It’s even hard to give notes on, because there’s not much beyond vanilla, light caramel, a hint of corn and some cinnamon. All the edges have been smoothed out and no impressive flavor stands in their place. It is an easy sipper through and through. At $30, it would be great. At the $55 MSRP I paid for it at the time, it was an over priced acceptable bourbon that I don’t mind having purchased for the experience, plus, the bottle is cool and will serve to decant other whiskey in the future (maybe I’ll keep Benchmark Fullproof in it, a whiskey I think is better). But I have no idea why people pay $150 or more for this.
I’ve been happy to let other people give Blanton’s a try from my bottle, and I have yet to have someone love it. In tastings I’ve hosted, newbies and those with some experience alike all agree, there’s better stuff on the table. And often it’s cheaper.
So this particular bottle is almost gone now, probably just one pour left. When it’s gone, I won’t seek it out again. I don’t even think I’d get it again at MSRP (which is up to $65 in my state). There are so many other bourbons I’d prefer at that price point. Was it worth trying once at the price I paid? For sure. And hey, now I have my souvenir bottle. But I won’t be going back to the well.
If Blanton’s is your thing, and you love it, and you hate that you have to pay so much for it or wait in line for it, I’m sorry. That sucks.
But, if you’ve never had a bottle, and the hype on Blanton’s is what has you eager to find a bottle, before you drop way too much of your hard earned money on a huge mark up for at best decent bourbon, think of my wife’s verdict: Blandon’s. Save $125 and get yourself a bottle of Old Forester Signature, or if you’re looking to splurge, get a $65 bottle of Russel’s Reserve Single Barrel. Or just try some other things. $150-$200 can start a small collection with some pretty good whiskies in it.
Rating: 73 of 100
Cost per 50ml: $4.33 @ MSRP, $11-$12 for what it’s usual available price
Whiskey Repartee 