Baker’s Single Barrel Review

In-Depth Review

As many of you may know, Baker’s 107 was, for many years, the overlooked offering from Jim Beam. It was part of the four “core” small batch bourbons, but I felt it never had the same name recognition as something like Bookers, Knob Creek, or even Basil Hayden. But after a recent package redesign and the move to a single barrel product, Baker’s is back to cement its own identity within the Jim Beam portfolio.

The new Baker’s expression is now age stated at least 7 years and is now a single barrel product rather than a small batch product. This means that bottles will come from individual barrels rather than a batching of various barrels together. But there are already a handful of other Jim Beam single barrel products on the market (like Knob Creek 9 Year Single Barrel) which begs the question - where does Baker’s fit in the family?

Let’s dive in and see if there’s more to this than a beautiful bottle and some rebranding.

Age: 7 Year 3 Months

ABV: 53.5%

Cask: Virgin Oak Cask

MSRP: $60

Distillery Name: Jim Beam

Review Date: 1/2/21

Color: Rich Caramel

Nose: The nose is quite light and starts off as sweet, with a dash of herbal notes and nuttiness. There’s a good amount of oak and light brown sugar throw in as well. Interestingly, in the background lurks some dark and smokey ash but it’s very minute, probably coming from the char in the barrels. Not as rich of a nose as I was expecting at this proof, but still enjoyable.

 Palate: On first sip, the palate is oaky and sweet. Caramel, butterscotch and toffee. There’s also a bit of coca powder and cherry as well. Very bright and lighter than expected. The higher proof seems to lift the flavors up on an otherwise subdued palate. The mouthfeel is good but not extraordinary – with warming effect from the alcohol coming off as lighter than the proof would suggest.

 Adding some water opened up more flavors of applewood, leather, and more nuts. After water, tehre was a bit more heat on the palate as well.

Finish: Not much heat on the finish, with a lingering spice, but featuring mostly a drying oak note. A quick flash of grandma’s crumble pie whips across my memory. It’s only a quick flash, but the flavors are there. 

 Adding a bit of water creates a more exciting finish. After the addition of water, some more clove, cinnamon, and peanuts come to the forefront.

Final Thoughts: I wasn’t expecting this to fall into the category of “easy sipper” but after spending some time with this whisky, that’s exactly where this particular barrel deserves to be. It drinks much lighter than its 107 proof would lead you to believe and feels quintessentially bourbon. Its only issue is that it doesn’t stand out as extraordinary in any specific way. And with other offerings like Knob Creek Single Barrel and Booker’s readily available in my area, I struggle with why I would grab this over either of those.

But as I mentioned before, this is a single barrel product. Your mileage may vary. The barrel my bottle came from may be more of a sleeper compared to what you find on shelves near you. This is a good bourbon. Just not the best that Jim Beam makes.

Score: 89