Bib and Tucker 6-Year-Old Bourbon

Bib & Tucker 6-year-old could be a bourbon for Christmas with its hints of chocolate, cinnamon, and maple syrup.

Bib and Tucker Bourbon Whiskey 6-year-old bottle on a bar — Bib and Tucker’s 6-year-old Bourbon

The first thing to say is that Bib & Tucker Bourbon is a brand name, not the name of a distillery. Indeed, there’s a bit of secrecy about exactly where its bourbons are made. Rumors are that it used to be George Dickel, but later switched to the same Tennessee distillery that provides CostCo with some of its Kirkland range of spirits.

Bib and Tucker Bourbon Whiskey three bottles — Bib & Tucker Bourbons

Now I love a distillery with a long history, and love the thought of barrels ageing in its warehouses over the decades, and its water coming from nearby mountain streams. The lack of provenance means the lack of a good story, but it doesn’t mean the bourbon’s not good. As I always say, it’s what’s in the bottle that counts.

After all, some of the Kirkland spirits are excellent, especially in the value for money stakes. And George Dickel is no slouch when it comes to crafting fine bourbon. I’ve visited the distillery and it’s in one of the loveliest settings you’ll find.

Georke Dickel Distillery Tour in Tennessee — The George Dickel Distillery

Making Bib & Tucker 6-Year-Old Bourbon

Even if we don’t know where in Tennessee the bourbon is made, Bib & Tucker do tell us how it’s made. The process is a little unusual. It’s made up of 70% corn, 26% rye, 4% malted barley. It’s double-distilled, first in an extended column still and then in a regular old-fashioned pot still.

It’s then aged for at least six years in American oak barrels that have had a #1 char. That’s the briefest possible charring, lasting just 15 seconds. Most distillers want their barrels charred at least twice as long as that, which creates more flavors to be drawn out of the wood.

Tasting Bib & Tucker 6-Year-Old Bourbon

The bourbon is bottled at 46% ABV, and those bottles are very handsome indeed. They’re heavy and chunky, with brown glass that’s been embossed with lettering to give an old-timey look, and an unusual label that wraps around the side of the bottle. They’re also pleasing to pour from.

What’s inside the bottle is pretty pleasing too. On the nose there’s strong honey and maple syrup sweetness, some cinnamon spice, and some grassy/hay earthy elements. What you smell is also what you taste, with an intensity of flavor, some chocolate and ginger added to the mix, and you’re certainly aware of those extra few degrees of alcoholic strength. The sweetness that was on the nose returns on the finish, which slips down nicely. It would definitely be a good bourbon to buy for Christmas.

Bib & Tucker 6-Year-Old Bourbon Cocktails

Bib and Tucker Bourbon Whiskey Trinidad Sour Cocktail — Trinidad Sour

Bib and Tucker Bourbon Whiskey Torontino Cocktail — Torontino Cocktail

Bib & Tucker 6-Year-Old Bourbon Awards and Reviews

With a price tag in the $50-55 range, it did seem a little high to me for a bourbon that is decent enough but didn’t knock my socks off. Tasting is always very subjective, and it’s obviously a bourbon that divides opinion. I checked out some other reviews (it’s been around a few years now) and they range from zero stars to 5 stars. It’s also done well in competitions, as its awards show, so some judges rate it highly. There’s only one way to find out and that’s to try it for yourself.