Bone Bourbon Review
By Father John Rayls
Rating: B+
(Credit: John Rayls)
Bone Spirits, distiller of Bone Bourbon, is located halfway between Austin TX and La Grange, TX, just off highway 71. Jeff Peace, owner and founder, grew up in Texas and was in a unique position in 2009 – 2010 to recognize the tremendous potential of a values driven distillery located in small town Texas producing their own “close to the earth” products. Bringing Joe Alecci, COO and primary distiller, along from the beginning the two found themselves in synch with who they were and what they wanted to do and Bone Spirits is the result.They purchase their grain as close to the distillery as possible, and return the residue to the farms when the distillation process is finished for fertilizer, compost and livestock feed.
Bone Bourbon, a Straight Bourbon Whiskey, is their latest creation and bottled at 90 proof. It’s billed as “made from scratch from rye and Texas corn, distilled 3 times in our Vendome copper pot still, and aged for over 2 years in new, charred white oak barrels in the Texas climate, it has the spice and sweetness of the finest bourbons.”
The Bourbon
The color of the bourbon is a solid brown leaning towards mahogany with some red tint in the bottle. In the glass, it is lighter in color with copper and polished brass highlights. The legs are thick and reluctant.
The aromas rise easily to greet the consumer. They are filled with sweet corn, oak, caramel and spice. Initially, the impression is of fresh cut lumber with sweet floral notes and can be a little surprising.
The taste is noticeably oak-forward. However, the caramel, vanilla and light nuttiness (walnut?) help balance out the overall flavor very nicely. The pepper spiciness is apparent from the beginning in the midst of a creamy mouthfeel. These flavors don’t give up easily and simply park themselves at mid-mouth. The finish gently, but firmly, replaces the initial tasting experience with vanilla and oak and with more pepper bringing some heat. It never over-heats, but you know it’s there.
Bone Straight Bourbon Whiskey tastes like a younger whiskey, but that said it’s one of the best young whiskeys I’ve had and makes for very enjoyable pour.
The Price
With a little effort, you can find it buried on your local shelves and priced very nicely below $36.00.
