This bourbon has a special bond with the Benchmark family.
For a Buffalo Trace collection, Benchmark has stayed relatively under the radar…at least compared to rival collections like E.H. Taylor or George T. Stagg. But Benchmark certainly should not be underestimated. Named for the McAfee brothers who explored Kentucky around 1773, the McAfee Brothers Benchmark collection has grown to include six full bourbons including a small batch, high proof, and single barrel option. These days, though, what bourbon collection would be complete without a Bonded offering?
Bonded, or Bottled-in-Bond, bourbons are some of the highest caliber bourbons around, mainly because they’re the most regulated bourbons around. To be named “Bottled-in-Bond” (BIB), a bourbon must be aged at least four years, bottled at 100 proof, produced from just one distillery and season, and aged in a federally bonded warehouse. The BIB moniker has been in place since 1897, but the title has picked up popularity in the last few decades, alongside other titles like “single barrel” and “small batch.” So it’s only fitting, really, that Buffalo Trace would join the Bonded party with Benchmark Bonded.
Luckily, the BIB addition was a great choice. Strong notes of pepper and clove pop up in the initial smell of Benchmark Bonded before cascading to a moderate oak flavor and a thick caramel and honey sweetness. The sweetness here is more well rounded and developed than most of the other Benchmarks including Single Barrel, Small Batch, and Old. No. 8. It finishes with a soft vanilla sweetness and another pepper nod.
Benchmark Bonded didn’t quite beat out its Full Proof sibling in taste or proof, but it triumphed over the rest of the family. Benchmark Bonded is big fat proof that proof and age really can make all the difference in taste. It’s almost like the Bottled-in-Bond regulations knew what they were talking about…
STATS: Benchmark Bonded Bourbon
- Price for us: $22 for 750 mL
- Proof: 100
- Aged: 4
- Distillery: Buffalo Trace, owned by the Sazerac Company
- Recommendation: Neat
