The Nelson Brothers brand of spirits pays tribute to Andy and Charlie Nelson who, in 2006, revived the distillery founded by their great-great-great grandparents after it was lost to Prohibition in 1909. You may be more familiar with another label of theirs, Belle Meade, gaining recognition years ago with their excellent aged MGP releases and several limited finished offerings like their Black Belle and Honey Cask release, back before the finishing craze we’ve seen today.
However, in 2020, the Nelson family chose to rebrand the company as Nelson Bros. Whiskey to better reflect the family's heritage and broader scope beyond just Belle Meade Bourbon. This change allowed them to create a more unified brand that could encompass not only their signature Belle Meade Bourbons but also other new whiskey releases and expressions under the Nelson Bros. name.
This straight bourbon whiskey we have today, selected by Fred Minnick, nods back to those early days. Barreled for nine years before being bottled at cask strength at Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery in Nashville, Tennessee.
The nose is lifted and sweet-toned, yet still has the sweeter fragrance from a s’more, without all the heavy toast. Fragrant candied berries, raisin, caramel and nougat, giving a decadent, balanced, yet classically inviting nose.
The palate starts dense with plenty of creamy fruitiness without being too intense and sugary, but definitely showcases sweet oak, milk chocolate, and torched citrus peel continuing on.
The finish trails with citrus and brown sugar, but dark fruit notes saturate long like a Manhattan heavy on the vermouth.
