TASTING NOTES REVIEW – Knob Creek Smoked Maple Small Batch – Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey with Natural Flavors

I tasted this while out & about this weekend and these preliminary tasting notes are based on a single pour (not a neck pour) taken neat with no water.

Bottled at 90 proof, this flavored Knob Creek bourbon is a beautiful copper color in the glass.

On the nose, the dominant aroma is sweet, sweet maple, just like maple syrup. There are some faint hints of caramel mixed & vanilla hiding in the background. I didn’t even get any sensation of alcohol despite it being 90 proof, mostly because of the uber dominance of the maple.

On the palate, the flavor profile is, just like the nose, a cloyingly sweet maple/maple syrup followed by even more maple syrup. Like the nose, there is faint caramel & vanilla. Despite this bourbon’s name, I couldn’t detect any smoke or smokiness on either the nose or the palate. If anything, there may have been a slight toasted flavor, akin to a warm maple syrup smell & taste after your pour some on pancakes, French toast, or waffles on a weekend morning. Again, the alcohol did not come across at all, so dominant was the sweetness of the maple.

Bottom line up front – If you love maple, you’ll like this. If you hate maple, avoid this. The flavor profile is alluring (I like maple, but am not an uber maple acolyte), but the sweetness crosses over into the cloying. I imagine this bourbon would be good to use when making bourbon glazes or sauces.

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