Old Grand Dad Bonded (50.0%): So, first get this term "bonded" clear: To be labeled as "bonded" or "bottled in bond" the whiskey in the bottle must be distilled in US by one distiller at one distillery and must contain the product of one season. It has to be at least four years old, bottled at 100 proof and aged in a federally bonded warehouse under US government supervision. Also the label must identify the name and location of the distillery.
Old Grand Dad is Hayden Family's first brand and has been around since 1840. Now it is under the ownership of
Beam Global and comes as three different expressions: Traditional 86 proof, Bonded 100 proof and Barrel Strength 114 proof. The bottle design is my favorite part though... I think that the orange label and the orange plastic cap are landmarks.
Color: Clear amber, polished copper.
Nose: Vanilla, corn bread, zesty lemonade and clementine peel. Polished wood top of a dive bar counter (and I mean it in a good way...), toasted smell of table saw shavings, varnish, acetone and
Aunt Jemima syrup.
Palate: Pretty hot when tasted neat. A few drops of water cuts down the alcohol and releases all the sweet notes first. It's more like an aged corn whiskey at the beginning. Sweet corn syrup, warm sweet corn bread, cinnamon and cloves. Oh, here comes the rye... After airing it quite some time rye notes show up. Black pepper dust, dried paprika, roasted almonds and tobacco. It benefits from airing a lot, gets better and better in the glass.
Finish: Hot, spicy but fades out pretty quick.
Overall: It is not one of the fancy hip whiskeys in the market nowadays and doesn't have the intension to be so but is definitely a solid, great bourbon and also my go to dive bar whiskey especially when accompanied by a pint of an American Ale. It is the perfect definition of an everyday bourbon... I have to say that my favorite part of tonight's tasting has been the "after nosing". I found myself nosing the empty glass for minutes before my second pour. Beautiful stained oak and freshly roasted hazelnut aromas... Absolutely no brainer for $21 a bottle... Every time I walk in a bar it makes me happy to see this pretty orange bottle on the shelf. Always a good sign of a good night ahead...
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