Review #: 104
Description: Old Grand-Dad 114
Spirit: Bourbon
Background: Old Grand-Dad 114 is the highest of the Old Granddad line from Jim Beam, with the 80 proof offering and the Bottled-In-Bond behind it. Coming from the same mashbill as the Basil Hayden brand, this boasts a punch 57% abv at a very affordable price. MSRP is around $30 and I have even seen it below $20 for a bottle.
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 – Jim Beam
Bottler – Jim Beam
Brand – Old Grand-Dad
Selection – N/A
ABV – 57%
Age – NAS
Nose – Kind of light. Lemony, floral, grassy but the ethanol gives it a bit of a punch but not overwhelming. A little bit of spicyness in there? It’s not super sweet but it’s a bourbon or rye lean for me.
Taste – Sweet vanilla and cream, butterscotch, some ripe apple, there is some rye spice in there but not enough to even be a barely legal rye.
Finish – Tons of tobacco, butterscotch, rye spice, light fruit
Guess: oof, this is kinda general bourbon. I think it’s high rye mashbill. Torn between maybe Wild Turkey 101 or a Bottled-In-Bond. I said Wild Turkey for sample 1 so I’m hoping the randomness didn’t have both. Let’s go with OGD BiB.
Score: 6
Would I buy a bottle? Yes
Thoughts: Wow, can’t believe I got the brand. Kind of a generic bourbon but I liked the hit of tobacco and drank under the 114 proof. I’d definitely get a bottle of this for a budget, high abv bottle to use for sipping or mixing.