The Basics: 

Stitzel Weller Distillery 

91 Proof

NAS

$50 MSRP

Nose:

Raspberry cream, caramel, nougat, French vanilla, shortbread cookies, and pecans. 

Palate: 

Butter pecan ice cream, Piña colada, candied cherries, poached pears, light brown sugar, coconut, and graham crackers. 

Finish:

Medium, oily finish with notes of pecan pie. 

Final Thoughts:

Blade and Bow, produced at the original Stitzel Weller Distillery, uses a sore cask system to mingle a portion of the Stitzel Weller distillate produced in 1992 into each batch. This helps develop more rich and complex flavors within the blend that would not be found in the younger straight whiskies. The nose jumps out of the glass with creamy and fruity aromas that almost reminds me of a raspberry cream filled donut. The palate continues with a viscous butter pecan and poached pears, that actually work really well together. There aren’t a lot of spice notes on this one, which makes the finish feel a bit shorter than I would have expected. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by the Blade and Bow. I’ve only ever tried this once before a few years ago at the distillery, and it felt lackluster at the time (granted that was after a long day on the Bourbon Trail and a glass of Bulleit Barrel Strength). This bottle, however, strikes a great balance between bright fruit and sweet dessert-like flavors that are sure to please at this price point.