Bars with a human skeleton riding a motorcycle on top of their bar are a good place to drink bourbon. (more…)

I headed over to the bar to take a look. More of a scotch selection than anything else. Finally I spotted something called Old Charter. That sounded like a bourbon since a good rule of thumb in naming bourbons is to choose any word and add “old” in front. On delivery everyone asked what I had chosen. I said, “something I never heard of called ‘Old Charter.’” That resulted in several of these baby boomers nearly spitting Yellow Tail merlot out their nose. Apparently Old Charter is a classic bourbon they had been drinking all their life, and I was an idiot for not knowing anything about it.

Here is what I found out. These people knew what they were talking about. Literally this is a classically styled bourbon. I found it to be very fruity with significant amounts of caramel and charring. The alcohol is a manageable 90 proof that for me did not require anything but ice to easily enjoy.

Overall I say this is a terrific bourbon. A poor man’s Woodford in some ways. Pick it up for less than $12 a bottle, but make sure you never suggest to someone over 50 years old that you never heard of it.

Those are the words that go through your head when you pull the wax off the top of a bottle of Booker’s. I guess I should have known to expect a stout bourbon when the guy working the cash register at the bottle store said I better buy some bottled water to go with it. 
Some background info is in order. I bought the Booker’s because I am from a town called Booker. Hopefully they are marketing this stuff to more than just people from my hometown who think the novelty is just too good to pass up, even at $55 a bottle.

Packaging:

As you can see in the picture, it is rather plain looking. Apparently they used some sophisticated computers to make the label look hand written as though you might believe that these bottles are in such limited supply that someone hand wrote everything out. I might have been fooled, but I don’t think anyone could write on the curve of a bottle that good. I must admit, I like the wood box it comes in. Some how it seems like if you spend over $50 on a bottle of bourbon they should include a box. Since I was giving this to my buddy as a graduation present, it made it easier to wrap.

Taste:

The taste is very bold. So much so it almost burns your lips. I can’t imagine trying to drink this without water. I have never spoken to anyone who has either. Or at least that enjoyed it that way. Its over 120 proof, and you feel every bit of it. Apparently this is “uncut” and not in a Jewish way, but rather they stuck a spout in the barrel, poured it in to the bottle, and stuck a wax top on it. 
I love this. Hands down my favorite bourbon. Several of us here at the the Review, consider Booker’s to be the measure for all other bourbons. Since it is such a pure form of bourbon it makes for a good measuring stick. Most of the taste is at a particular extreme. Still, someone with the right amount of water it manages to be both oaky and sweet at the same time. In my mind, this is the perfect bourbon.