Evan Williams SB 1996

[BourbonSteve]

Has anyone tried it and what did you think?

[jburlowski]

I've got abottle but haven't opened it yet... perhaps this weekend.

[BourbonBalls]

IMHO, not up to par of the past 3 years bottlings. '93 very good, '94 the best in my opinion, '95 a favorite of many here.

BUT . . . '96. I think it falls short of the above. It tasted "thin" to me...not complex, not much wood, spice, not much anything that I think a single barrel should be. I tried a standard Evan Williams black label with the tax stamp (90 proof) and I think its head and shoulders above the '96 single barrel.

However, I will ALWAYS look forward to the EWSB product each year. Thats what makes the single barrels, especially the EW products so interesting...different profiles each year.

[BourbonSteve]

thanks Hack, I may go with Rock Hill Farms now instead. I've heard the that the '95 SB is great and read several mixed reviews of '92 &'93 and for that matter, '96. It's good to know what others are thinkin' and drinkin'!

[Bourbon Joe]

Steve,
I recently tasted the 94, 95 and 96 back to back. I picked them just that way......94 was best, then the 95 and the 96 was the worst of the three. I kinda agree with Hack, I'll take the old Evan Black Label 90 proof over any of this stuff and it was a lot cheaper.
Joe

[BourbonSteve]

What the heck, I bought 'em both! My take on the '96 was two fold and I'll explain my coments on the RHF thread to follow. For the '96 there was no comparison to Rock Hill Farms. In fact, I thought the nose stunk after my initial, solo impression.

[BourbonSteve]

didn't see a review for the '96 so...................................I initally thought it had some nice oak and vanilla mixed with a bit of peppermint or spearmint, very nice. The taste was mild to no burn but seemed to lack something. finish was okay a bit of burn late in the game and overall not bad but sitting next to the RHF it was exposed as an average beast. .02