The Bourbon Review: 1792 Small Batch Review

We are back with the Sazerac brands with 1792 but a different distillery.

The 1792 Barton Distillery was actually founded in 1879 but the 1792 part comes from the year that Kentucky became a state.

Sitting on 196 acres of land in Bardstown, Kentucky the distillery has it’s own spring and 29 barrel aging warehouses that are seven stories tall and have 3 ricks per level meaning the difference of maturation from top to bottom is significant. 

It is also apparently the 7th largest distillery in the world and it produces 51 different brands.

The 1792 Small Batch used to be known as ‘1792 Ridgewood Reserve’, then following a trademark infringement dispute with Brown-Forman it was called ‘Ridgemont Reserve’ at which point I carried an 8 year age statement. This. was removed in 2013 just before the rebrand to the Small Batch which is now a no-age statement expression. 

The brand has a raft of other expressions such as the Sweet Wheat, High Rye, Bottled in Bond, Single Barrel and Full Proof.

1792 Small batch 46.85% abv/93.7 proof ($24.99)

Mashbill: High rye mash – believed to be between 15%-25%

Nose: Rye spice straight away – clove, nutmeg and garden mint. Toasted oak. Caramel, milk chocolate, vanilla, dried orange peel and red apples. A little nuttiness.

Palate: Spicy on arrival and a decent mouthfeel. Pepper, clove, nutmeg and oak. The mint is quite prevalent too. Vanilla, caramel & peanut brittle. Some dill too plus new leather.

Finish: Medium with caramel, oak and baking spices.

Score: 6 out of 10

Overall: A great bourbon that’s versatile but has essentially become a daily sipper for me

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