Blood Oath - Pact No. 9
$129
Blood Oath – Pact No. 9
Proof: 98.6
Age: Blend of Ryed Bourbons: 16 Year, 12 Year, and a 7 Year Finished
Distillery: Lux Row Distillers
Type: Finished (Oloroso wine casks) Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Mash: Unknown
Website: Blood Oath Bourbon
*Disclaimer: A score of 5 is the midpoint for my reviews. Above 5 I like it. Below 5 I didn’t for some reason. Most of my reviews are between 4-7. It takes something really really special to go above 7 or below 4. See the methodologies for rating at the end of the article
Nose: Fruit Forward. Apple, Plum, Berries, Raisins, and Banana. Mild Rye Spice and Cinnamon. Toffee and Damp Oak.
Taste/Palate: Silky Mouthfeel. Dark Caramel, Cinnamon, Vanilla Bean, Raisins, and Banana.
Finish: Rye Spice picks up in combination of more mature notes: Cinnamon, Oak, Sweet Tobacco, and Dark Fruits.
Verdict: Blood Oath continues to deliver. If you haven’t seen any of my previous reviews I’m a fan of Blood Oath’s Blending profiles. While 2023 wasn’t my favorite year, it’s still a very solid pour. Oloroso Cask finish is popping up more often these days, but this is my favorite version that’s I’ve tasted. I feel the Oloroso finish was delivered with a subtle hand and didn’t overpower and wash out the classic bourbon notes. This was an interesting pour with a slight twist on a classic aged bourbon profile. I felt it was a little lacking in the palate, but the nose and finish were strong.
MSRP: $129 Price Ceiling: $150 (The most I’d pay for this bottle)
The Story: I make it a point to try to grab Blood Oath each year when it hits the shelves. They are nailing the blending front and also throwing in some finishing curve balls. This one’s rating clocked in at 6.9, which by comparison isn’t nearly as high as Pact 7 and 8, but it’s still a great rating. This years version still hits my palate well, but it didn’t deliver the “wow factor”. I will continue to search of Blood Oath going into 2024 and beyond.
The Distillery’s Story: Pact No. 9 “A masterful union of three well-bred ryed bourbons. One, an oaky 16-year-old. Two, a luscious 12-year-old. And three, a 7-year-old finished in Spanish Oloroso Sherry casks which carries the aroma of sweet sherry while satiating the palate with dark fruit, molasses, chocolate and tobacco.”
Blood Oath Attests: “That every batch of Blood Oath is the undertaking of one man — a student of both bourbon and science. Loyal to no one family, favoring no one distillery and bound by no one philosophy – this bourbon connoisseur has one goal in mind – to seek out bourbons rare and wonderful, famous and forgotten. Then bottle them in combinations previously unimagined for a lucky few. Not to cater to anyone’s loyalties, he has sworn to never reveal where he finds his bourbon, but only to promise to choose and make the best he knows. Loose lips never tasted something so special.”
Methodologies for Rating:
1. Dump it down the drain or regift it to someone you don’t care for.
2. This doesn’t even belong in a mixed drink. Use in case of an emergency.
3. It’s really not for me, but I heard some people like it.
4. Its only good when I’ve had too many and it’s decent in a mixer.
5. Average. Not bad, but not special.
6. Above average. Good to bring to an event and you wouldn’t expect any guff from it.
7. Buy two if you see it to make sure you have one on reserve.
8. Very Very good. Constantly a GREAT POUR.
9. Superb. If I were to drink this and only this from now on I’d be a happy person.
10. Perfection is impossible. But this really comes as close as you can possibly get.
Reviewer: David S
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