...where distraction is the main attraction.

Friday, April 21, 2017



That was a rhetorical question.




Distiller: Heaven Hill
Brand: Heaven Hill
Type: Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Region: Louisville, Kentucky
Maturation: New American oak
Alcohol by Volume: 50%


Heaven Hill 6 year old BIB

J.W. Dant BIB



Heaven Hill 6 year old BIB

J.W. Dant BIB



Heaven Hill 6 year old BIB
Finish - Simple and straightforward. Oak char and oak spice.

J.W. Dant BIB





Rating - HH: 82 and JWD: 70


  1. I just did a side by side of these myself, but also threw in EW BIB. Simply put, my impression was HH is woody and spicy, JWD is grainy and nutty, and EW is bright fruit and artificial sweetener. The HH was the clear winner. I like the Fant better than you, probably rating it 80. EW came in last. BTW, where did you hear HH 6 BIB is going away?

    1. Hey Anon,

      There's this very disheartening photo taken by a major Kentucky retailer:

      If I'm seeing things right, they're keeping the same label design, but dropping the BIB and the age statement altogether. It's actually kinda horrifying. Meanwhile the bourbon secondary market is being flooded by people trying to flip their HH BIB 6s.

      Regarding Evan Williams BIB, I haven't been the biggest fan of it either, which is kinda weird because I like the Black AND Green label versions.

    2. That's disappointing. I knew it was pulled from distribution here in Indiana, but i thought it would still be available in Kentucky. I wonder if the 6 yr green label will still be available, I wnjoyed it the one time I had it.
      I was surprised that I didn't care for the EW BIB, because I also enjoy the black label (I've never tried the green).

  2. Hi Michael,

    I looked into the discontinuation rumor a little bit. Apparently Heaven Hill is updating all of their HH-branded Bourbons to look the same. While I hesitate to guarantee anything in this crazy market (and HH has certainly lied in the past), I was told that the Heaven Hill 6 Year Bottled in Bond would continue to be produced for limited markets. The rep I spoke to claims the photo is misleading because the "new look" tag refers to the old version of that NAS 80proof bourbon, not a replacement fo the HH6BIB. So you should probably stock up, because every single time I've stood up for a distiller regarding stuff like this, they have cancelled or removed the age statement of their product within 18 months.



    1. Hi Eric,

      Thank you for your comment.

      A disclaimer: Heaven Hill is my favorite bourbon producer. Their quality to price ratio is unmatched by any company in any whisk(e)y industry. They're the only bourbon producer whose products I'd buy blindly.

      With that being said, they have an honesty problem. I think that's the careful phrasing people are using in politics nowadays.

      Their national ambassador publicly taunted and pissed on FANS OF HIS PRODUCT (Elijah Craig 12) who dared suggest that its age statement was going away. Just before its age statement went away. Whether he outright lied or was misled by his own employers, I don't know. But he was neither fired nor demoted after that.

      I attended representative-led tastings for many years, but now no longer do so. Yes those events are cheaper than private events, but the misinformation dished out by representatives of American craft whiskey producers and Scotch producers reliably proves broad and unsettling at their events. Whether it's bad training or purposeful misinformation, again, I don't know. But it's bad information. And it's the sort of bad information that aims to make sales. (On a side note, I'm not a full-on rep hater like some prominent whisky folks. I have met a number of awesome reps who have proven to be very honest, and keep in touch with them. But they are in the minority.)

      Then there's economics. If volume sales continue to be much higher than were expected when these products were distilled, then it's natural that some expressions will need an age drop to meet demand. Or a company will drop the age statement to take advantage of the demand, as we've seen in scotch. Heaven Hill's brands' pricing has been amazing. Even if HH BIB goes down to 4 years, it's still only $10-$15 dollars.

      Finally, there's a branding issue. Here in Kentucky-Adjacent, I've seen all the "Heaven Hill" bourbons. Their labels are nearly identical already, with each expression separated by colors: white, green and black. It's easy to tell them apart while also knowing they're part of the same brand. Making them all look exactly the same creates complete confusion amongst buyers in the retail setting. I won't say that confusion will decrease sales, but it certainly won't increase them.

      Sorry for the long rant here. I really dig Heaven Hill's products, but their public relations smells. I do hope that HH6BIB continues to be sold in at least some markets. If it loses its age statement, but keeps the BIB, at least it's still cheap. And hopefully good.


    2. Hi Michael,

      I don't blame you for being distrustful. The Elijah Craig 12 debacle was when I learned I couldn't trust anything Heaven Hill brand reps say. That said the traditional HH6BIB markets seem to be flush, so if you're worried I expect you can easily find a case or two. The only distillery that has been more dishonest with me than HH is Laphroaig. I actually started saving the text of their correspondence in one file so I can show it to whoever lies (either directly or lies about knowing what is going on) to me. This behavior, along with their current "wood treatment in place of aging" policy has resulted in a halt in any OB Laphroaig purchases. Heaven Hill I love to much to quit, but it is still a sore spot. I was never big on Elijah Craig 12 or Barrel proof, but I love almost everything else they produce, even their cheaper bourbon.

      Cheers (and good luck),


    3. Hey Eric,

      I've softened my wording on this post as well. The larger retailers in KY and IN have been cleaned out of HH6BIB and instead are suddenly receiving that NAS 80 proof with the label we've been discussing. Also, as mentioned above, the HH6BIB started hitting the secondary market a few weeks ago. I can't be 100% certain of the situation, thus my rewording. As always, I hope to be proven wrong.

      There's something really askew with Laphroaig's PR department in the US. A big shift happened after the Suntory deal. A pair of (good!) employees I knew were laid off...and then never replaced. Then they started flaking on big money events. Add that to the dilution of their brand by releasing every wood finishing under the sun, and the jungle-juice-trash-can Select, and many of us are left wondering how the hell are they actually planning to succeed. I can confirm though that their Water to Whisky distillery tour is freaking awesome.