It has been a while since I bought a bottle of Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection Batch Proof. When I saw that Hokus Pokus had two in stock, I decided to buy one for $160. I have always liked this bourbon, particularly since I have been drinking Old Forester and Woodford Reserve for years and I find their high proof bourbons to be really good. The 2024 release is at 121.2 proof, which is not the highest proof for this, but reflects that the barrels picked for a particular batch vary in proof from year to year. This is a true cash strength whiskey where the proof only changed due to the differing proofs of the barrels used. What is interesting is that, unlike other Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection bourbons that are all pot-stilled, this one follows the “traditional recipe” for Woodford Reserve of blending pot stilled Woodford and column stilled Old Forester. Woodford Reserve actually started out as simply honey barrels of Old Forester.

The color on this is a nice amber/copper color with a slight reddish hue. I would put the age of the bourbons that went into the batch between eight and ten years. Nice thick film and legs on the swirl. The nose is traditional Woodford Reserve but with an emphasis on vanilla and caramel really coming through. On the palate, this bourbon is very caramel forwarded, which blends with the fruit notes to taste like caramel apples, but there are also faint strawberries, some vanilla, and way more oak than I expected. Very viscous and mouth coating, and definitely benefits from a strong Kentucky chew. On the finish, I am getting candied cherries, vanilla, those wood sugars I always get from Woodford, a hint of baking spice, and oak. Also, the finish just won’t quit. This is one of the longest fades on a finish I have had on a whiskey.

I had a little bit of the 2020 Woodford Batch Proof, so I poured a little for comparison. The 2020 edition is a little flat compared to the 2024 despite being higher in proof. The 2024 is a lot more complex with a much longer finish. I also poured the last little bit of my Old Forester 150th Anniversary Batch Proof to further compare. The Old Forester 150th is a dynamite whiskey, but it is an oak monster that I like but many folks would say is over oaked. The 2024 Woodford Batch proof is much more balanced and, again the finish is longer.

Overall, this is a great bottling of cask strength Woodford Reserve. The fruit notes are perfectly balanced with the caramel, vanilla, and oak notes. Still can’t get over this super long finish on this whiskey; it’s like an all day sucker as far as flavor. My computer wants to go to screensaver while I experience it as I write this. While we have left the Chris Morris master distiller era in favor of Elizabeth McCall, the legacy of great bourbon is going to continue under her watch. In 2017 after trying Old Forester 1920 Prohibition Style bourbon, and I remarked at the time that Brown Forman needed to put some cask strength bourbons on the market. They have since done that, and this particular Woodford bottling really shows off how great their whiskey is right out of the barrel.