13th Colony Southern Bourbon Whiskey

13th Colony Southern Bourbon Whiskey

Cost: $50-$55 online (this review is based on a sample pour)

Age: NAS (4-6 years from their website)

Proof: 95

Mash Bill: 70% corn, 21% rye, 9% malted barley

Well, this is probably one of the most hyped distilleries in 2023 due to their double oak expression. Well, this is not the double oak...as many have pointed out. So, while this isn't the hyped bottle of last year, it is a 2015 batch of their Southern Bourbon Whiskey...so that's pretty neat! Let's see what I think about 13th Colony based on this expression!

Reviewed neat in a glencairn.

Appearance: It’s tawny (1.4) in color, it beads very well and creates very slow but thin legs. It looks very syrupy.

Nose: Generally sweet smelling with caramel, ripe cherries and vanilla that dominate. I’m also getting some more earthy notes of toasted oak and hazelnut.

Palate: I want to call it thin and oily at the same time…but that’s an oxymoron. So let me describe it as that the mouthfeel starts off feeling oily but transitions to feeling thin during the sip. There’s a harshness to this for only 95 proof. I’m picking up a nice classic bourbon mix of oak, caramel, cherry, and spice. The spice comes in as a mix of rye, cinnamon, anise, and white pepper.

Finish: The spice transitions very nicely to the finish along with the prickly burn from the palate. There’s a big helping of vanilla that shows back up at the start of the finish as well that balances well with the spices. This is a short and dry finish.

Rating: 6.0/10 on T8ke scale

Overall: The experience gets progressively weaker throughout this sip with the nose starting out very nice, the palate being a little weaker, and the finish being underwhelming. For only 95 proof, it drinks at it’s proof but the harshness on the palate and the going into the finish makes it feel young and like it needs to evolve a bit more. The notes I’m getting are good, but I think it could use a little higher proof to help make them a little more pronounced, but I think I see the struggle the distillery may have with the tinglyness from the proof I’m getting at only 95 proof, you run the risk of this being too hot if you raise the proof much more to try and boost the flavors. Really, I think it just goes to show this could use a little more age to mellow out the proof some more and allow the tasting notes to be more pronounced.

Thanks to u/Bailzay for sharing this sample with me and letting me finally try out this pour! While it's an older batch, I think the Southern Bourbon is priced adequately for what it is, maybe a little high, but there’s not a bargain here that makes me think it’s worth rushing out and getting a bottle of it before the price goes up (though 2024 vs 2015...a lot could have changed).

I’ve seen that the 13th Colony Double Oak has been received quite a bit better than this expression, so I will likely seek that out at some point. But I also look forward to revisiting this bottle again (can't find it locally right now) and see how modern batches are.