J. T. S. Brown, Bottle in Bond, Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey has long been a favorite low end go to bottle of ours. Decent juice for a 2nd (or 3rd?) drink. Named after John Thompson Street Brown Jr. who ran a liquor business that eventually became Brown-Forman.
JTSB sells for around $11 for the 750ml, is 100 proof, comes in a standard looking bottle and can be found in lots of places but not all. It is aged at least 4 years.
While we mentioned above that it is a fav of ours, we have never sat down and reviewed or rated it. We are both interested in how it will score.
On a side note, JTSB is the drink of ‘Fast Eddie’ Felson from the books The Hustler and The Color of Money as well as the films of the same name starring Paul Newman.
NOSE
Ron: Big nose with brown sugar, honey and caramel dominating. This gives away to vanilla, tobacco and a slight leathery scent.
Todd: Bread, corn, and old leather stand out. Behind that is some brown sugar, honey and a yeasty aroma. Odd, it doesn’t smell like it is 100 proof. Also, I didn’t think the nose was a big as Ron stated.
TASTE
Ron: A little too hot neat but could still pick out the caramel and vanilla that I got on the nose. Also picked up tastes of oak and pepper. With some melted ice I got tobacco and a nutty taste.
Todd: I couldn’t on the nose, but I can definitely tell it is 100 proof on the tongue. I really didn’t get the traditional flavors that Ron got. Bread, grain and yeast, which I guess could all be the same thing, stand out the most. I also got a little cedar, some spice and a slight musty taste.
FINISH
Ron: Medium to long with a nice warm spicy end.
Todd: Agree, medium to long, but I got more of a brown sugar sweetness. I did get the nice warmth.
OVERALL
Ron: As you can surmise from above, I like this stuff. More complex than the price would have you believe, and at 100 proof has some decent heat.
Todd: Well as you can tell from above, I also like this stuff, but not as much as my friend Ron. It seems to taste better as a 2nd or 3rd pour.
Nose 4.25 out of 5
Taste 7.5 out of 10
Finish 3.75 out of 10
Total score 15.5 out of 20 Barrels
We believe JTSB Bourbon to be a sleeper. It’s label is old school and nondescript. Since it’s price point puts it on the bottom shelf it is easily overlooked. At that price point it also makes a good mixer.
While we wouldn’t necessarily pour a glass of J. T. S. Brown for ourselves, or our friends who really appreciate Bourbon, as a first drink, it does make for a real good 2nd, 3rd, 4th…