NEW BOTTLE HIGHLIGHT SERIES: Widow Jane 10-Year Blended Bourbon – Tequila Ocho Cask Finish

Widow Jane’s Baby Jane blended bourbon was one of the first bourbons I really liked and it, along with a 1792 Bottled in Bond single barrel, convinced me to give bourbons another shot after initially not liking the bourbons at all. Because of this, I was very excited when I ran across this new limited release from the distillery, an 8-month, 10-year-old blended bourbon finished in unspecified Tequila Ocho barrels; my assumption is that they most likely used either añejo (barrel aged 12 months) or extra añejo (barrel aged 36 months) barrels rather than reposado barrels since Tequila Ocho only barrel ages its reposados for 9 weeks and 1 day, assuming the goal was for the bourbon to pick up more tequila/agave notes.

After cracking the bottle open and trying it for the first time the other night, what I can say at this point is that I need to spend some more time with this and I also hope that aeration will open this whisky up because, thus far, I’m not in love with it, which is disappointing.

Bottled at 91 proof (45.5% ABV) and produced in small, 5-barrel batches, this bourbon is bottled with an extremely tight artificial cork which is, at least on my bottle, very difficult to open without losing some of the bourbon near the top of the neck – there must be a balance between a tight-fitting cork and this one.

This bourbon is a blend of sourced bourbons from unspecified distilleries in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Indiana with undisclosed mash bills. The viscosity in the glass is medium as is the mouthfeel.

The aroma profile is very subtle, much more so than I was expecting for a 10-year-old bourbon finished in barrels used by one of the best quality tequila brands on the market, and not that complex. The dominant notes are deep aromas of toasted and charred oak followed by very light baking spices (cinnamon, nutmeg), some herbal notes and black pepper, and a hint of black cherries. As it aerates longer in the glass (and in the empty glass), sweeter notes of caramel and vanilla become more noticeable though the prominent oak and herbal notes remain. The finish lasts 8-10 seconds and the bourbon remains very dry across the palate.

I’m hoping this benefits from longer aeration time to open up its aromas and flavors, especially for an $80 MSRP bottle. I’m holding out hope because I love Baby Jane so much.