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Suntory has been on a bit of a roll recently with it's Jim Beam family of products. Black Label got a proof bump and its seven year age statement back while they seem to have enough extra juice lying around to put out this limited edition toasted bourbon as well. Jim Beam winter reserve is a sipping quality concept designed to emphasize lovely toasted oak flavors such as vanilla, cinnamon spice, and cloves. It is not a flavored whiskey! Instead it is double aged in toasted barrels following its initial stint in charred oak. Toasting involves heating the wood at a lower temperature for a longer period without reaching the char point. This process preserves more of the wood's natural flavor compounds, like vanillin and brings out more nuanced flavors from the wood, including spices, nuts, and maybe even a slight smokiness. This is our first low cost, mass market release from Jim Beam since the Repeal Batch in 2018 which gives us a good indication that Beam stocks must be catching up from the demand glut of the 2010s.
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| Jjmbeam.com |
🛒Sourced: $28.99 - Total Wine, GA - 750ml - A finished bourbon for less than $30? Sign me up! It does not seem to be very widely distributed in Georgia, and Total Wine is the only place I have seen it a month after release. The most similar bottle in the standard lineup is Jim Beam Double Oaked which takes the standard 4-year Beam and puts it in a second cask for aging "to taste". Double Oaked costs around $24.99, so we're getting two extra toasted barrels and probably 1.5 years for an $4, an arbitrage opportunity just from a product design perspective.
🧪Proof: 86 proof, 43% ABV - Jim Beam is distilled to 135 proof and is diluted to 125 proof for barreling. Regular Beam then gets cut all the way down to 80 proof, so this is a lift of three percent over the flagship. Would love to see it somewhere in the 90s, but we'll see how the toast holds up. In general, toasted whiskies tend to be bottled at below 100 proof as the finishing barrels have a lot of flavor to give even over a short finishing period, allowing for more dilution while still having decent flavor.
🎨Color: Y4 - light brown like organic maple syrup, more legs than I expected.
🥔Mash Bill: 75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Barley - The same recipe as other Jim Beam, Knob Creek, and Booker's. No age stated on the bottle, but the product page lists a full six years age statement with TWO stints in toasted barrels.
👃Nose: Soft with oaked vanilla and clove, right on the money. Very light, no ethanol to be found. Some dark brown sugar/molasses upon second sniffs.
😜Palate: A little on the thin side, plenty of vanilla, and some of the classic corn-and-resin fermentation Jim Beam funk. Coconut creeps in but there is some minerality to the mid-palate that fights with it, hard water and tanning leather, a bit rough around the edges overall.
💦Finish: Relatively short with some warmth, a whisper of nutmeg and other baking spices to put you to bed. Think the cinnamon is supposed to be here, but I didn't get much.
🏆 Overall Rating: 5.25/10 - Crushable - Drinkable Neat - A step up from the standard Jim Beam offering, Winter Reserve delivers on some additional Christmas spirit but can't escape the gravity of a budget price point. A little more proof and age would do this bottle some good, but it is certainly passable as is. For under thirty dollars, you can do far worse. Happy to have tried it and will enjoy the rest of the bottle well enough.
1/2 Bottle Update - After some oxidation has occurred, the mineral flavors have subsided and the leather is now more European Office than tannery, both great improvements. The coconut does shine and has opened up very well. I still would love some more thickness, but this bottle keeps growing on me.
3/4 Consumed - Both the rebooted Black Label and this bottle are absolute budget bangers. This bottle has been opened three months and keeps getting better (though I expect that will turn soon). It drinks very smooth and easy. Will be sad to see it gone. Perhaps Total Wine still has a couple? Black Label edges it out in my books but it's nice for cheap variety.
Bottle Killed - It has been six months and that is too long! Flavors have faded substantially with oxidation. Drink this in four or less months. Peak Flavor seemed to be three months and about half fill.
💵Would buy again? Yes. I was on the fence at first but this bottle has won me over. The double toasted application adds some sophistication beyond the standard Jimbo, and it's neck and neck with Jim Beam's Black Label for me which is about the same price. Winter reserve has more flavor complexity but also rougher edges than black label. I also thoroughly enjoy Jim Beam's Single Barrel 108 which is around $40 but with that cost comes proof and flavor.
⚖️Rating Scale:
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume it by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws | Struggle to get through the bottle
4 | Serviceable | Mixing or ice recommended.
5 | Good | Drinkable Neat | An agreeable dram indeed.
6 | Very Good | Any flaws offset by interesting flavors | A cut above.
7 | Great | You find yourself reaching for this one often | Well above average.
8 | Excellent | Serve to Impress Guests | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite | You guard this bottle jealously.
10 | Perfect | You didn't think anything could be this good | A clear champion.