This bourbon is setting the benchmark for bottom shelf bourbons everywhere.
Benchmark Old No. 8 Brand is the entry-level option to Buffalo Trace’s Benchmark line. The Benchmark collection, true to the Buffalo Trace brand, is here to impress. While the small batch, single barrel, full proof, and bottled-in-bond counterparts are all showing off with high proofs and complex notes, Old No. 8 Brand simply DGAF. It’s a bottom shelf bourbon and they don’t care who knows it. But in the case of the Old No. 8 Brand, that’s not exactly an insult.
If you’re anything like us, the phrase “bottom shelf bourbon” is a negative one and may be associated with other unpleasant phrases like “jungle juice,” “hangover,” or “never again.” (And if not, we’re not entirely sure we can be friends). But luckily, Benchmark is here to reclaim “bottom shelf” as a price-savvy compliment.
Old No. 8 Brand is a fairly thin, watery bourbon, yet somehow manages to pack in some solid caramel and vanilla flavors. The notes may be a bit washed out, though they have a stronger presence than the more subdued tobacco and oak flavors hiding in the mix. Overall, the flavors might arrive late and leave early, but hey at least they showed up.
At the end of the day, nothing about Old No. 8 Brand’s flavor is bold or even boldly unique. But the flavor by itself is not the point of this bourbon – it’s the flavor for the price. In fact, we actually snagged this bottle for a whopping $9, which is only $2 below the average price. And for $9, suddenly the slightly washed out flavors don’t seem so bad.
Benchmark Old No. 8 Brand may not be the most mind-blowing bourbon on the market, but it’s not meant to be. This bottle makes solid, easy-to-drink bourbon accessible for anything from neat drinks and cocktails to bourbon-cokes and sure, even jungle juice. Benchmark Old No. 8 Brand shows that respectable flavor and affordable price should always be the benchmark for a bottom shelf bourbon.
STATS: Benchmark Old No. 8 Brand Bourbon
- Price for us: $9 for 750 mL
- Proof: 80
- Aged: 3 Years
- Distillery: Buffalo Trace, owned by the Sazerac Company
- Recommendation: Neat, Mixed, Whatever makes you happy
