Blanton's

Named after Albert B. Blanton - and believe it or not, the 'B' stood for 'Bacon' - the Blanton's branding was created by Buffalo Trace Master Distiller Elmer T. Lee who had previously worked under Blanton as an apprentice.

When dignitaries and important folk visited what was then the Old Fire Copper Distillery, Blanton would treat them to samples from selected casks taken from Warehouse H. This is the only all-metal warehouse in the BT complex, which experienced the greatest fluctuations in temperature as a result, causing the barrels within to have greater interaction between spirit and wood.

Elmer T. Lee kept this tradition, and Blanton's can claim to be the 'first' Single Barrel Bourbon, as individual casks from the centre of Warehouse H are bottled one at a time, as opposed to being married in batches. However, 6 people from a team of 12 taste every single barrel selected, and only if all 6 agree it meets the standard required will it then be bottled, ensuring a consistency of quality, even if there are very slight differences between each barrel. This also accounts for the relatively limited amount of stock that is available worldwide, as the brand owners are not prepared to sacrifice quality just to get more bottles out there.

Blanton's has become one of the most sought after Bourbon brands in the world. It's iconic bottle and stopper are immediately eye-catching, and the liquid inside tastes fantastic - rich, full, fruity with just a touch of spice. The Original is bottled at 46.5% ABV (93 US Proof) whereas the Gold Edition is bottled at 51.5% ABV (103 Proof) - that's the only difference, but that extra ABV really does make a hell of a difference!

A note on the stoppers - there are 8 of them, each modelling various stages of a horse race (a sport synoymous with Kentucky) from approaching the start line, setting off, racing to the finish, and the rider raising a fist in victory. The reason that there are 8 stoppers? There is a letter stamped at the base of each stopper - B, L, A. N, T, O N (with an easier-to-see colon as opposed to an apostrophe) and S. Every bottle of Blanton's is hand labelled and sealed and the stoppers are randomly placed on - so you could buy 8 bottles and get a different stopper on each one, or 8 of the same letter. Such is life!

Want to know more? Watch the video review!

* £50 discount applicable to an online purchase of 1 (one) bottle of Blanton's Gold 70cl when coupled with 1 (one) or more selected products as listed on this page, per single transaction only.