Review #: 103
Description: Cream of Kentucky
Spirit: Bourbon
Background: The Cream of Kentucky brand has roots all the way back to the late 1800s, but now resides with J.W. Rutledge, headed by the former Master Distiller of Four Roses, Jim Rutledge. Sourced from an unknown Kentucky Distillery (maybe Barton??) this is aged 12.3 years and bottled at cask strength. This is the 3rd release from them.
Reviews 103-106 were done as part of a “Mystery Showdown” where about 10 contestants were each given the same set of 4 mystery samples and went head to head to determine an overall winner. Points were assigned based on guessing the spirit correctly, where it was made, proof, type of still, type of cask, age, and any “style” points the judge deemed appropriate. Bottles were selected randomly from a pool of all spirits, but with the knowledge that all would be fairly standard profiles or readily available bottles. A maximum price point was given, but no other information provided. The contents were revealed after guesses were submitted. This was a lot of fun and really a great exercise to try on blind reviewing.
Distillery – Undisclosed
Bottler – J.W. Rutledge
Brand – Cream of Kentucky
Selection – N/A
ABV – 51%
Age – 12.3 Years
Nose – Pretty dark and takes a while for legs to form. Nose: Oh yeah, this is bourbony. Corny, vanilla, honey, there is a slight sourness in there. Orange and clove. Definitely a little bit of sweet citrus.
Taste – Caramel, candy corn, a little bit of sweet fruit, musty leather
Finish – Oaky, lots of rye spice. Long lingering heat
Guess: Definitely going with bourbon on this one. Higher rye content. Just reminds me of turkey but higher proof than 101 so going with rare breed. Wild Turkey Rare Breed
Score: 7
Would I buy a bottle? No
Thoughts: I cracked open my bottle of Rare Breed and tasted it back to back and I swear it was the same. Pay a third of the price or less and get some turkey instead of this.