I will admit to bowing to marketing. I heard of this bourbon a good long while ago, and the name really sticks in your head. More importantly, this also came with a tiny cup. It's not a tin cup, as you might expect a "frontier whiskey" to come with, but the ceramic is perfectly acceptable. It won't show the color of the whiskey, but I think you can see it well enough in the bottle.
Upon opening, this bourbon lets you know it means business. The smell is quite pungent and clears the sinuses right out. There was a time, in my youth, when I got ahold of some Wild Turkey and had a bit too much of it. This smell is probably the first whiskey that has reminded me of that long-gone night that I spent with my good friend Brian, who has, sadly, passed on. I remember him and the smell of whiskey. The memory is, consequently, bittersweet.
The taste is a mix of a lot of little flavors sitting under the weight of alcohol. I'm not skilled enough to pull them all out sufficiently to review this like some real aficionado, but I think I taste the oak of the barrels it was aged in, honey sweetness that is really surprising and delightful, and a little licorice. I'm sure there are a dozen other flavors I'm supposed to putt from it, but I have an uncultured tongue when it comes to hard liquor, and the fact that I am enjoying this is a surprise even to me.
Subsequent sips are a little bigger, and the alcohol burns a lot more, but the beverage is actually mild overall, and I figure this is a good one with training wheels. Is it better than Jack Daniels? Well, I kind of liked the banana I got in Jack that isn't here, but the honey in this could do well over in the Jack. I guess this is how people decide to blend whiskeys, right?
Bottom Line: <insert Bulleit pun here.>
2.75/5