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Evan Williams Black Label vs Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond
Evan Williams Black Label and Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond sit on opposite sides of a familiar divide: an old-guard, classically built classic versus a new-wave, wheat-forward craft style.
Key Specifications
| Feature | Evan Williams Black Label | Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond |
|---|---|---|
| Type / Style | Traditional Bourbon | Wheated Bourbon |
| Mash Bill | 78% corn, 10% rye, 12% malted barley | 64% corn, 24% wheat, 12% malted barley |
| Age | No age statement | 6 years |
| Proof | 86 proof (43% ABV) | 100 proof (50% ABV) +14 proof |
| Approx. Price 1 | ~$14 – $18 ~$37 less | ~$45 – $60 |
- US shelf prices as of 2026-08; they vary widely by market.
AG’s Rating and AG’s Notes
Evan Williams Black Label
Not rated yetNo notes yet.
Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond
Not rated yetNo notes yet.
Flavor Profile
Evan Williams Black Label Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond
Axis by axis, biggest gap first
fruit 4/6 fruit: Evan Williams Black Label 4 out of 10, Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond 6 out of 10
heat 3/5 heat: Evan Williams Black Label 3 out of 10, Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond 5 out of 10
sweetness 6/7 sweetness: Evan Williams Black Label 6 out of 10, Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond 7 out of 10
spice 4/3 spice: Evan Williams Black Label 4 out of 10, Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond 3 out of 10
oak 5/5 oak: Evan Williams Black Label 5 out of 10, Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond 5 out of 10
nuttiness 4/4 nuttiness: Evan Williams Black Label 4 out of 10, Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond 4 out of 10
Flavor Profile Differences
Fruit character is what sets these apart.
- Evan Williams Black Label: The everyday black label, and a perfectly competent well bourbon. Softer and sweeter than the bonded version, with less to say but nothing objectionable.
- Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond: A sweet-mash, bonded wheated bourbon from a distillery founded by two fermentation scientists, and the technical care shows in how clean it tastes. One of the strongest craft arguments on the shelf.
Which One Should You Choose?
- Go with Evan Williams Black Label if you want a dependable, inexpensive mixing bourbon and nothing more complicated than that at a significantly lower price point.
- Go with Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond if you want a bonded, sweet-mash wheater from a modern distillery doing genuinely careful work with more proof behind it.
Best enjoyed cocktails, highball, rocks (Evan Williams Black Label); neat, rocks (Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond).