We all love bourbon, for the history behind the process and the complexity of its flavors. Too bad every bourbon on the shelf can’t be tried in the moment. Beyond sampling every bourbon out there, how can you really know if you like a new bourbon you see at the liquor store? It’s the exact reason why we built OAKR, the personalized digital sommelier app for bourbon drinkers. We wanted a better way to showcase what a bourbon tastes like for shoppers and create a system to help everyone unpack what they love about a spirit. For every bourbon listed on OAKR is a unique spirit profile chart, comprising 10 categories and detailed flavor notes. The shape and color of these charts gives users a snapshot understanding of what a bourbon tastes like while it’s still corked on a shelf. Let’s unpack the spirit profile chart and what it means for bourbon drinkers.
The spirit profile chart is a radar graph with 10 categorical points. Each point ranges from 1 – 5, indicating flavor intensity and complexity. A score of 1 means mellow, whereas a score of 5 means very prominent and intense.
Detailed flavor notes within each category are programmatically weighted to provide an overarching category score. To see this in action, see Woodford Reserve’s profile as an example of how these scores translate into a full picture.
All bourbons contain a mixture of the 10 categories contained within OAKR’s spirit profile charts. Your taste preferences are entirely unique, and we think that’s a beautiful thing! Not everyone will want a cask strength, highly boozy bourbon. And not everyone will love how mellow a certain bourbon’s flavors are. But some drinkers will, OAKR lets users explore and find what they love to gain personalized recommendations from their homepage.
Learn more about how OAKR’s algorithm works to deliver personalized recommendations.
Here are the 10 categories included on all bourbons listed within OAKR. Each maps to one of OAKR’s flavor labels.
This category ranks the boozy flavor intensity of a bourbon, which isn’t necessarily tied to the ABV / proof of the alcohol itself. Certain bourbons are highly alcoholic, but taste very mellow from the production process. The higher the number within this category, the more alcohol the drinker will experience during the sip.
This category ranks the consistency of the spirit’s thickness. Certain spirits may be very light and clear, whilst others may be dark and heavy. The higher the number within this category, the heavier the spirit will drink.
This category ranks the flavor contributions from an additional cask barreling during the spirit process. Certain spirits are aged further in wine barrels, which add different flavors to the profile. The higher the number in this category, the more prominent the cask is on the flavor. Producers like Brown-Forman on OAKR are known for their distinctive barrel programs.
This category ranks the time the bourbon persists on the palate post sip. Sometimes a factor of body consistency and booziness, certain bourbons can linger whilst other leave a clean finish.
This category ranks the number of identified flavors originating from the earth, and their weighted intensity. Detailed flavors include items such as copper, tobacco and others.
This category ranks the number of identified flavors originating from common fruits, vegetables and floral aromatics, and their weighted intensity. Detailed flavors include items such as banana, germanium and others.
This category ranks the number of identified flavors originating from grains commonly utilized within the distillation process, and their weighted intensity. Detailed flavors include items such as rye, corn and others. The Four Roses profile is a great example of how grain character shows up in the chart.
This category ranks the number of identified flavors originating from the savory spice cabinet you’d find in your kitchen, and their weighted intensity. Detailed flavors include items such as clove, pepper and others.
This category ranks the number of identified flavors originating from sweet cooking spices and desserts, and their weighted intensity. Detailed flavors include items such as maple syrup, chocolate and others.
This category ranks the number of identified flavors originating from the earth, and their weighted intensity. Detailed flavors include items such as pecan, oak and others.
OAKR is now live, create your free account today and start exploring our spirits data. But hey, we’re humble enough to admit that there is a ton more work that we need to do. Adding more spirits, expanding the app’s usability and more, a lot is being done to make OAKR even better for bourbon drinkers. Sign in today and help us better understand what you’d like to see, and how our system can be better in the future.
Bourbon enthusiast, spirits industry analyst, and the voice behind OAKR's distillery guides, brand reviews, and bourbon education content. Visiting distilleries, dissecting mashbills, and translating the craft into data since 2024.
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