Last Night's Tipple

I had another pour of JW Dant Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon last night. You will recall that this is one of Heaven Hill's plethora of orphan brands, the list of which includes JTS Brown (Paul Newman's Bourbon in The Hustler) and many others. One question that I have about these brands is whether Heaven Hill fills them all with the same Bourbon. Jim Murray, who is a prominent writer about whis(e)y and the author of Jim Murray's Whiskey Bible, seems to think so because the entries for Heaven Hill's orphan brands in the book all tell you to see the entry for Heaven Hill Bourbon. I'm not so sure. Part of my doubt is due to the fact that I haven't tried any of the other HH rye-based orphans, but part of it is because I know that HH does have different flavor profiles for their different Bourbons. Despite their similar age and proof, for example, Fighting Cock and JW Dant Bottled-in-Bond taste different. They both have that Heaven Hill minty thing going on; but JW Dant has much more char than does Fighting Cock, and Fighting Cock evolves more of a dessert character than does JW Dant. So another thing that I need to investigate more fully in the future.

Last Night's Tipple

I confess that I'm a bit ashamed every time I pick up the Fighting Cock bottle. I know that I shouldn't be a whiskey snob and that I shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but I have images of half-drunk, chortling college students when I see the bottle. And frankly, that's probably the market that Heaven Hill is going after. Oh, well. It's still pretty good Bourbon, despite the packaging. I have read descriptions of Heaven Hill Bourbon that say that it has a distinctive minty character, and I guess that I can see that. It's also hot and a little rough, which is in keeping with its marketing image. With time in the glass, it has some of the dessert quality that I like so much. Not a perfect Bourbon by any stretch of the imagination, but a good value.

Last Night's Tipple

Another pour of Fighting Cock Bourbon from Heaven Hill last night, and my impressions of it were substantially different from the first time that I tried it. Last time, my overriding impressions were of char and alcoholic heat. I got neither one last night. Instead, I got a lot of dark caramel without an inordinate amount of burn. I was very pleased. What did not please me was some of what Heaven Hill says on the Fighting Cock website:

Made in the heart of Bourbon country from 3 simple household ingredients: grain, water, and yeast. Most Bourbon is made from a grain mixture of corn, barley, and wheat. We use rye instead of wheat to give Fighting Cock a little extra kick.

As you will know by now, most Bourbon actually has rye instead of wheat in the mashbill. I'm not sure what the exact percentage of ryed Bourbon is, but I would wager that at least three out of every four gallons of Bourbon made uses rye in the mash rather than wheat. Not only does Heaven Hill tell an untruth, they do so for no reason that I can discern.

Last Night's Tipple

I have to believe that Heaven Hill's Fighting Cock Bourbon is at least partially intended as an ironic send-up of Wild Turkey. WT is known colloquially as the Kickin' Chicken, and, to be honest, the chicken on the label of Fighting Cock looks not only like it's kicking but also a bit like the WT logo turkey after a fire cracker had gone off underneath it. Fighting Cock is bottled at 103 proof, which sounds a lot like WT's trademark 101 proof, only 2 better! And I'm sure that the Heaven Hill marketing department has amplifiers that go up to 11, too. Anyway, it's a time-honored tradition for companies to copy the marketing of their successful competitors; and perhaps there's a bit of that going on here. However, it's just a bit too over-the-top to take seriously, which is why I'm pretty sure that Heaven Hill didn't intend for it to be.

Whatever the goal of the marketing, what really matters is the quality of the Bourbon in the bottle and the value that it offers. I bought Fighting Cock because I had read some favorable comment about it and because it seemed to have a good price-point (around $18 a fifth) for a Bourbon of its age (6 years) and proof (103). Like the other higher-proof Heaven Hill Bourbon that I've tried recently (JW Dant Bottled-in-Bond), Fighting Cock has a nose that is dominated by char -- not vanilla or caramel or other aromas that derive from barrel charring, but the char itself. With some time in the glass, that char burns off a little, and what's left is some vanilla and some more fresh mintiness (another widely-commented-upon characteristic of Heaven Hill Bourbons). There's a lot of wood on the palate, but also an oily graininess that isn't as bad as it sounds. What really dominates everything, though, is that this is one fiery whiskey. The alcohol on the nose doesn't ever really burn off like it does on most spirits that I've tried, and a sip will burn. I don't regret buying this, and I don't think that I'll have trouble finishing the bottle. However, I doubt that it will be a mainstay in my collection.