Day 20 of DB's Bourbon Trail 2023 Advent Calendar - Hancock’s President’s Reserve

Derek Burkhard
Oct 23, 2023
3 min read

Updated: Dec 20, 2023

Cheers and welcome to our 4th Annual Advent Calendar! Throughout the next month, we will be going on a high-end bourbon journey together and reviewing 25 bourbons from award winning distilleries across America. Starting on December 1st and ending on December 25th - we will get to experience everything from small batches to single barrels that are jam packed with flavor. Please join us in toasting to another incredible year and getting to virtually share some of our favorite bottles from this past year with you!

**This review has been completed by using a Glencairn glass and neat if you want to compare the same tasting notes as DB’s Bourbon Trail. BUT - the best thing about it being YOUR bourbon is that you get to enjoy it that way YOU want to and prefer! As long as it brings us together and you are enjoying it - pour it over ice, add water, or add it to a cocktail! It’s all about what makes you happy and what you enjoy - don’t let others influence you differently!**

Enough of me rambling, let’s dive into what brought us here!

Day 20 of DB’s Bourbon Trail 2023 Advent Calendar

Hancock’s President’s Reserve - Single Barrel Bourbon Whiskey

Proof:

88.9 Proof (44.45%)

Distillery:

Buffalo Trace Distillery (Frankfort, KY)

Message on the bottle:

No Message on this one. Awesome label but nothing outside of that.

Price Point:

**At DB’s Bourbon Trail we utilize an app called BoozApp (not sponsored - we wish!) to ensure we are getting at least a fair price on our bourbon before purchasing. Nothing is worse than getting taken advantage of by a flipper playing the supply/demand game**

Average MSRP:
- $51.64
Fair Price:
- $137.47
Shelf Price:
- $189.89
DB’s Bourbon Trail Instant Buy Price:
- <$89.99

Review:

This maybe the most popular bottle that no one really knows anything about. I have looked high. I have looked low. I may have finished a glass or two, and still nothing but a lot of questions and rumors around this one.

It's a Buffalo Trace product but it's not on their website. It's a Sazerac product but only has tasting notes on theirs. I was lucky enough to find a quick little story about it on Great Bourbon's website (which looks to be all Sazerac's Bourbon).

In 1775, the Leestown settlement was established along the banks of the Kentucky River by Willis and Hancock Lee. Soon this became a well-known shipping port for tobacco, hemp and whiskey. The Single Barrel Bourbon Whiskey pays tribute to the pioneering spirit of Hancock Lee.

With it being from Buffalo Trace and not on their website, it got me wondering - what mash bill this bourbon is from? According to Seelbach's, Hancock Reserve is mash bill #2. With that being said, it's in great company - Elmer T Lee, Rock Hill Farms, and Blanton's!

More importantly, let's dive into what matters most - what's in the glass!

Nose:

Vanilla, Toasted Pecans, Sweet Corn

Palate:

Sweet Vanilla Cream, Toasted Pecan, Toasted Oak

Finish:

Medium, Vanilla Sweetness,

Final Thoughts:

Hancock's President's Reserve is the lowest proof that we are featuring in the calendar this year. Sometimes with the lower proof - it takes away a lot of the flavor that we look in a neat or on the rocks pour. I didn't get that vibe from this one. This has a really nice flavor profile and a surprisingly medium length finish.

It may be a mystery bottle with many questions, but dang it's good! Very easy to drink and if one things leads to another this bottle will be gone!

Cheers y’all!

Interesting in what else we might have cooking? Learn more here!

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