Limited edition season is upon us and every year Four Roses is one of the first distilleries to kick off bourbon season with their annual Limited Edition Small Batch bourbon. Four Roses LESmB (Limited Edition Small Batch) is the bourbon release I look forward to the most! Master Distiller Brent Elliott has 10 unique Four Roses recipes to use to blend together to create a special edition bottling. Every release has it’s own story and flavors that can make each year special and stand out from previous bottlings. This year marks the distilleries 135th Anniversary (founded in 1888) and they wanted to put together an extra special release.
Which Recipes Are In the Four Roses 2023 Limited Edition?
Four Roses Limited Edition’s are historically comprised of two to four recipes with different ages and percentages. OESK is the most used recipe in the limited editions followed by OESV. These two recipes are by far the most used and it is not even close. Four Roses Limited Edition 2023 contains:
- 5% 25 year old OBSV (oldest bourbon ever used in a Four Roses LE!!)
- 20% 16 year OESV
- 40% 14 year OESK
- 35% 12 year OESV
- Bottled at 108 proof
- Bottles released 15,060
- MSRP $199.99
How is the Four Roses Limited Edition Made?
I was lucky enough to be on a Zoom call with fellow bourbon enthusiasts and Four Roses Master Distiller Brent Elliott himself! Brent went in-depth about how he made the 135th Anniversary Limited Edition, explaining he had the 16 year OESV, 14 year OESK and 12 year OESV blended together and they expressed beautiful notes of apricot, pear and light red berries. This three recipe blend could have stood on their own and been amazing. However, Brent toyed around with a few different ultra aged bourbons, F’s (herbal notes) and K’s (baking spices), to use in the blend to insert more layering and complexity. Brent finally decided on the 25 year OBSV to interject some great barrel influence adding notes of creamy vanilla, deep oak and dark caramel. Many of the older, aged bourbons lose a lot of their sweetness and take on strong barrel notes, making this 25 year OBSV a perfect compliment to the fruit/spice forward trio of the 16 year OESV, 14 year OESK and 12 year OESV.
Does Brent Consider Tiers When Selecting Stock for Limited Editions?
Absolutely. I asked Brent if he considers tier levels in the Four Roses warehouses when selecting stock for the Small Batch Limited Editions. He emphatically stated that tiers play a big factor in this process because once bourbons reach higher age statements, the barrels on the lower tiers have more bourbon in them! The barrels on the higher tiers simply lose too much liquid to the Angel’s Share to make them viable candidates for a Limited Edition Small Batch blend. Normally he will use 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th tier barrels only for the Limited Edition blends. Four Roses tries to use up the 5th and 6th tier barrels in the private barrel program before they get too old.
What are Brent Elliot’s Favorite Four Roses Recipes?
Four Roses Master Distiller Brent Elliott’s favorite recipes are generally older stocks of OESV (he also mentioned the PS run) and OESK. He stated this is a generalization and every recipe has great barrels. Brent also stated that he generally prefers lower proofed and lower tier (1st, 2nd and 3rd) barrels. When asked about a favorite warehouse, Brent doesn’t have one. He has tasted a lot of bourbon from Four Roses over the years and has not been able to tell a significant difference from one warehouse to another.
Four Roses 2023 Limited Edition 135th Anniversary vs Four Roses 2019 Limited Edition
I was lucky enough to sign up for and receive a 100mL sample bottle of the Four Roses 2023 Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon. The opportunity was offered to around 50 people from an email sign up sent out for the LE lottery. I decided to compare a pour of the 2023 LE and the 2019 LE. My standard for Four Roses Limited Editions, and really most other bourbons is the 2019 Limited Edition bottling. It is very fruit forward (fresh red raspberries and strawberries) with beautifully aged oak aroma, an awesome creamy mouthfeel, well layered with complex barrel notes and no alcohol bite at all. The 2019 bottle is a fine bourbon and one of my all time favorites.
The 135th Anniversary bottle (2023 Limited Edition Small Batch) has amazing barrel influence from the 5% of 25 year OBSV in the blend with creamy vanilla, deep dark notes of caramel and strong notes of oak that is a tad drying. The V yeast from the two OESV batches plays a prominent role with great flavors of pear, apricot and apples. This is a very well layered pour with the fruit notes hitting first with some cinnamon and spice layered in from the OESK followed by the beautiful aged barrel notes. A well crafted bourbon that is very impressive.
Four Roses 2023 Limited Edition Tasting Notes
Color – Beautiful aged copper with barrel char floating around in the bourbon.
Aroma – The nose is rich with creamy dark caramel, intense vanilla, deep oak and spiciness. I do get some alcohol on the nose but the barrel influence is prominent and compliments the apricot, apple and honey aromas. The spiciness is highlighted by cinnamon.
Taste – Strong vanilla upfront on the tip of the tongue. A lot of fruit from the V yeasts, apricot/pear, some sweeter red berries. The taste is matching the aroma with beautiful spices of cinnamon and faint nutmeg. The barrel influence hits the back of the palate, nice aged oak, a bit tannic but the rye and K spice punch back through. Very complex and well layered with a thick creamy mouthfeel.
Finish – Rich, long, coating with lingering spice. The tannins and aged oak are present, a little drying but round out this pour in an elegant way, again layering with vibrant fruits and a powerful spiciness.
Rating – 9.3/10
Thoughts – The 2023 has great spice from the rye and K yeast which was a little overwhelming but is reigned back in with the fruitiness from the V recipes and the barrel influence form the ultra aged 25 year OBSV. The mouthfeel was killer, combined with the well layered and complex flavors, awesome pour! I loved the flavors of the 2023 but when tasting next to 2019, its tough. The Four Roses 2019 Limited Edition Small Batch is still my favorite LE of the past 8 years (I need to blind 2015 against 2019 & 2023). The 2023 LE gives 2019 some strong competition. I still favor 2019 but I do enjoy more fruit forward bourbons. I think 2023 is probably a more sophisticated and dare I say, debonair pour than the 2019. For me the 2019 was very fruit forward and not as well balanced but that is a positive for me.
What a great release from Four Roses and Brent Elliott. This is an elegant pour with a wide range and depths of flavors. If you have the chance I highly recommend giving this a try!
1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average.
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite.
10 | Perfect | Perfect
Debonair Gentlemen 
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