The Story

Being fairly big fans of Lux Row, Justin and I were pretty excited when they released their Daviess County line. Old Ezra 7 had always been a big hit with us, but really there weren’t too many other expressions in their product lineup to get excited about. That is, until around 2020.

It started with Daviess County. Then Ezra Brooks 99. Of course, other expressions followed, like the Rebel barrel picks. Before you knew it, Lux Row was off to the races with a pretty strong lineup and a heck of a lot more to choose from. So we were happy.

In late 2021, they released their Daviess County Double Barrel finish. Knowing how great double barreled expressions are, we were particularly excited for it. It took a minute for it to come around to our neck of the woods, but when it did, we grabbed it at the first opportunity.

Okay, so what do we know about the bottle? Apparently it was released in partnership with Ducks Unlimited, and is intended to appeal to the outdoors enthusiast as well (that’s why you see the little duck graphic on the front label). Finished in Missouri white-oak barrels with toasted heads, the bottle is 96 proof and with a mashbill that is similar to other Daviess County expressions.

Alright, let’s pop it open and see what it has to offer.

Nose

Very light on the nose, white sugar sweetness and a peanut aroma.

Palate

The peanut aroma on the nose changed to more of a raw almond nuttiness on the palate, with plenty of sweet notes and oak. It also stays rather dry throughout.

Finish

The finish is quick and remains mostly true to the palate with sweet notes lingering, but incorporating a bit of cinnamon and a very light Kentucky Hug.

Verdict

This is not a bad pour. For a standard bourbon it makes the cut as perfectly acceptable and deserves credit for that aspect. We’ll reflect that in the overall rating.

However, we have to take some issue with what we were anticipating vs. what we actually experienced. We were excited for a deep noted double oaked or double barreled expression. It was aged in a second barrel made of Missouri oak with a #2 char and toasted head. You’d think it would’ve imparted a bit more of those typical double oaked notes but it just didn’t have the depth we’ve come to love from that particular profile. We think cherry, chocolate, tobacco or leather, and we didn’t detect anything of that level. Again, it mostly drank like a standard bourbon.

So let’s talk about the price. If you’re dead set on trying it, we’d advise not paying any more than the retail price at $50. It’s not bad at all, but it’s nothing to write home about either. If you’re in the market for some double oaked, you would do much better to just grab a fifth of Woodford Double Oak off the shelf, or Old Forester 1910 or 1920. Both are in a very close price range and deliver much better on those deeper notes we were originally anticipating with this one. Because there are so many other better double oaked options out there, we have to give this one a pass rating.

Overall, we’re giving Daviess County Double Barrel Finish Bourbon a 7.2 out of 10.

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Cheers friends!