Tastes

Woodsy, conifer nose which could be cypress. There’s a smoky herbal sweetness. When i really stick my nose in i get cinnamon, apple, vanilla, cocoa, and a lingering briney smoke. Palate: The flavors from the nose appear with added caramel and burnt sugar, sweet enough to hint at creme brulee before a peppery smokiness swirls back in from the edges. Very aggressive, spicy apple pie with spruce tips baked in. Long spicy oak, herb and apple pie finish. This is better than ryes in the Barrell line, which is perplexing. Maybe the best rye on my extensive shelf. I’ll be sad when it’s gone. Great stuff.

Brown sugar, maple, molasses, raisin, shortbread nose with a hint of chocolate orange and a dusting of sawdust. Quite expansive, rich and intriguing. Palate follows through on that promise and ups the ante with oak, cinnamon, caramel, vanilla, leather and black pepper. The corn makes an appearance too, bringing sweet, dusty kernels, roasted husks and baked earth. Spicy tannic cinnamon roll finish. This was better than I expected. Balcones continues to impress. This was a Harry’s bottle from KCMO and the first 100% corn i’ve tried.

Malted barley, sawdust, honey, caramel, and raisin on the nose. A drop of water brought out haybales, corn, grass and a subtle peachiness. ‘Merica! Palate is brown raisin bread, summer fruit, tangy salted nuts, molasses, leather, and oak. There’s a shifting baseline of sweet and savory that’s not easy to pin down. Oregano and caramel, cinnamon and cocoa, rosemary and brown sugar swirling around. Long spicy savory finish. A great entry in the evolving USA whiskey category that deserves to be compared with stand-outs from St George and Redwood Empire and High West and Barrell and Cedar Ridge.

Pumpernickle with salt, spearmint, dill and sugar on the nose. Took a sip and…wow, the taste stopped me in my tracks for a minute. I try a lot of whiskeys and not many can do that. This is really good. Back to the palate which is a bready, yeasty cinnamon bun with caramel, toffee, and savory elements punching through—dill and maybe rosemary. Finish is long, spicy and savory with dill getting the final word. This is the kind of bottle that pulls me away from bourbon, my first love, and toward rye.

Honey and rye bread on the nose, not much else. Tongue is smooth and forgiving, the age doing its thing. I get mellow apple and…and…i feel like there’s gotta be more going on. Maybe some hay? I’ll return to it later but this one seems to be a letdown.

Found this in a small liquor store in Idaho Springs. I didn’t take it seriously until i saw the price. At that point, my enduring interest in Doc Holliday took over. Nose is a highly polished old piano with traces of leather, a hint of cherry and maybe some peanuts. Smells like some old school ryes i have known. The aroma does not mess around and implies this whiskey is looking for someone to punch. The palate follows through with caramel and oak and pepper and leather and the hot zing of a bullet, ahem, cinnamon and clove. Contemplation and a drop of water reveals dark fruit and possibly cocoa. An impression of apple pie with lemon slices. This is an aggressive, sophisicated sip and no mistake. The finish does not go quiet into that good night. I’m happy to have encountered this bellicose but polished whiskey. Especially when I later discovered it at home at a considerable markup.

Held off on this for years because i’ve seen it as high as $100 and had the impression it was overpriced. Finally tasting it…i can readily think of cheaper bottles i’d much rather drink. Knob Creek, Wheel Horse, Wild Turkey 101, 1792, Maker’s Cask Strength to name a few.

Doughy caramel and peanut nose. Hay, honey, caramel, orange blossom on the tongue with the cocoa and clive from the expert review. Mild apple pie finish. Tied for second with Larceny in a blind with Wilderness Trail BiB and 1792 Small Batch. An affordable sipper that has a lot in common with Blanton’s.

Light bodied mellow and sweet. Honey and wood.