American Whiskey Review #87: W.L. Weller C.Y.P.B.

Distillery: Buffalo Trace

Region: Kentucky

Age: 8 Year.

ABV: 47.50%

Price: Sample courtesy of /u/iDriveAVolvo

Cask Type: New American White Oak Barrel

Color: 1.5, Auburn/Polished Mahogany.

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Nose: Confectioners sugar is the most prominent note. I can almost feel it wafting in when I take a sniff. It’s very sugary sweet. There’s a bit of varnish and orange liqueur.

Palate: This needs a drop of water to get going, at full strength it has a strange paint thinner-esque note. Thankfully, it vanishes with a drop of water. Vanilla, cream, and caramel are the main notes. There’s a bit of the oak coming through as well. Easy drinking but nothing particularly memorable.

Finish: Short. Cherry vanilla cola.

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Conclusion: Buffalo Trace named this Weller release C.Y.P.B. or “Craft Your Perfect Bourbon”. I’m not sure I would call this my perfect bourbon by any stretch of the imagination. It’s not bad at all. It’s sugary sweet and full of other dessert flavors in vanilla and caramel. The finish is this pleasant cherry vanilla cola note that vanishes all too quickly. That said, it’s simple and lacking overall in flavor. It’s an easy drinker, which might explain some of the hype, but it is far from perfection. Would I buy a bottle? Maybe at MSRP, definitely not at secondary prices.

Final Score: 76.

American Whiskey Review #87, Bourbon Review #65, Whisky Network Review #379

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Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.