Hard Truth Distilling's Small Batch and Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon Reviews

 

Our story today begins in Nashville. That’s Indiana, not Tennessee. The year was 2015, and if you can picture it in your mind’s eye, there was a restaurant called Big Woods Pizza, and on its small second floor, a distillery was about to be born.

 

As is sometimes the case, this micro-distillery quickly outgrew its space, and two years later, the team broke ground on a new, larger facility. In 2018, Hard Truth Distilling Co. relocated to its new 325-acre Hard Truth Campus.  Its continuous column still is custom-made by Vendome Copper & Brass Works.

 

Hard Truth’s Head Distiller is Bryan Smith. He and his team create sweet mash spirits rather than the typical sour mash most distillers use. If you look at those terms at face value, one could assume that a sweet mash tastes sweet and a sour mash sour. However, those terms have nothing to do with “sweet” or “sour” flavors. Instead, a sweet mash means the distiller uses new grain, yeast, and fresh water every run.

 

In contrast, a sour mash involves recycling parts of the previous run. Sour mash lends to consistency batch after batch. With a sweet mash, consistency is far lower, but it gives distillers a universe to explore.

 

“Every batch of Hard Truth Sweet Mash Whiskey begins with entirely fresh ingredients, known as the sweet mash process. Where sour mash reuses a portion of each previous batch, it also mutes some of the flavor. By using sweet mash, we’re able to highlight the complexity and pleasant flavors from our grains and reach the peak flavor in our new, charred American oak barrels.” – Hard Truth Distilling Co.

 

Much of what this distillery offers is affordable. Hard Truth is also known for its distinctive packaging; check out the cork it designed. Little details make it easier to get noticed on a store shelf!

 

Hard Truth graciously provided me with samples of its Sweet Mash Bourbon and Sweet Mash Wheated Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon in exchange for my no-strings-attached, honest reviews. Let’s #DrinkCurious and dive deep.

 

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Hard Truth Sweet Mash Bourbon

 

• Whiskey Type: Bourbon
• Distiller: Hard Truth Distilling Co
• Age: NAS
• Mashbill: 73% Corn, 19% Rye, 8% Malted barley
• Cooperage: New, 53-gallon charred oak barrels
• Alcohol Content: 45% ABV (90°)
• Price per 750mL: $45.00
• 30 barrels or fewer batch
• Non-Chill Filtered

 

Appearance: I poured this Bourbon neat into my Glencairn glass. It looked like liquid butterscotch and produced a medium rim with thick, widely-spaced, crazed tears.

 

Nose: As I was waiting for the whiskey to acclimate, my whiskey library was filled with fruits and caramel. I sat patiently for about 15 minutes before I ventured forward. The aroma included notes of pecan pralines, caramel, figs, and apricots. Notably missing was oak. When I drew the air through my lips, I found it, along with older leather.   

 

Palate: Hard Truth’s mouthfeel was creamy, starting softly before delivering a punch of clove. I took a second sip and experienced apricots, figs, and dried cherries on the front of my palate. The middle offered caramel, tobacco leaf, and leather. I tasted clove, light-roasted coffee, and oak on the back.

 

Finish: Like my initial sip, the finish was gentle, then intensified, albeit slowly. I found coffee, clove, oak, tobacco, and caramel. The fruity notes were nowhere to be found. The spice hit a crescendo at 1:20, then leveled for a few more seconds, then slowly faded until it was no more at 2:12, making for a longer duration.

 

Bottle, Bar, or Bust: I smiled during that 15-minute waiting period. Its aroma was enchanting. It drank a handful of points above its stated proof, and what was in my glass tasted well-balanced and flavorful. Each time I took another sip, it seemed fruitier than the previous. The longer finish was welcomed; it kept me from downing it too quickly. At $45.00, this is an incredible pour. You should buy a Bottle because I’m thrilled to have it in my library.

 

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Hard Truth Sweet Mash Wheated Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon

 

• Whiskey Type: Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon
• Distiller: Hard Truth Distilling Co
• Age: 6 years
• Mashbill: 69% Corn, 19% Wheat, 12% Malted barley
• Cooperage: New, 53-gallon charred oak barrels
• Alcohol Content: 50% ABV (100°)
• Price per 750mL: $56.00
• 38-barrel batch
• Non-Chill Filtered

 

Appearance: A neat pour into my Glencairn glass revealed a gingerbread-colored Bourbon. A medium rim generated thick, tightly packed, relatively fast tears.

 

Nose: While I waited my cursory 15 minutes, the air was filled with the smells of cherries and ripe plums. By the time I was ready to engage in my sniffing journey, those fruit notes carried through, accompanied by dark chocolate, torched vanilla, and oak. Drawing the air into my mouth exposed me to marshmallow fluff.

 

Palate: There was a creamy, full-bodied texture that offered a combination of clove and dried cherries on the palate shock. My next sip helped me identify toffee, roasted almonds, and hazelnuts on the front of my palate, with a middle of cherries, marshmallow fluff, and baked apples. Flavors of clove, oak, and dark chocolate hit the back.

 

Finish: Clove, back pepper, dry oak, marshmallow fluff, and dried cherries remained. It was a fairly soft finish – very level and unassuming. It weighed in at 1:17, which I’d classify as medium length.  

 

Bottle, Bar, or Bust: I found the Bottled-in-Bond Wheated Bourbon to be almost dessert-like. I could easily picture myself drinking it by a campfire during Labor Day weekend (and, come to think of it, I probably will bring it to share with my friends). There’s nothing not to like and everything to savor. At only 100°, Hard Truth’s Wheated Bourbon went down way too easily; this is one you can get in trouble with. My Bottle rating should be obvious.

 

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Final Thoughts: This is the second opportunity I’ve had to review Hard Truth’s whiskeys, but the first time that I’ve tried its Bourbon. One of the things that has always impressed me about Hard Truth Distilling Co. is that everything it makes is different – you can thank the sweet mash for that. When I was at a whiskey event a bit over a year ago, I was walking around with a distiller friend. He tasted their Rye and said in a hushed voice, “Holy [expletive], I wish mine was that good.” For the record, his whiskey is consistently excellent.

 

It is challenging to pick a favorite. Wheaters are fun and typically have a softer mouthfeel, but with Hard Truth’s Bourbons, they were more similar than not. I loved the fruit bomb of the Small Batch, but the chocolate-covered marshmallows from the Bonded were delicious. After writing this review, I tried them side by side, and I still can’t pick a winner. All I can say is that Hard Truth Distilling Co. does great things with whiskey. Cheers! 

 

My Simple, Easy-to-Understand Rating System

• Bottle = Buy It
• Bar = Try It
• Bust = Leave It

 

Whiskeyfellow encourages you to enjoy your whiskey as you see fit, but begs you to do so responsibly.