Tastes

Lovely burnished amber to the eye. Nose is probably the best part. Sweet wood varnish, vanilla cream, hazelnut, and caramelized apples. There’s not a ton of the Palo Carto influence coming through on the nose. In a blind lineup, I would pick this as a potentially overaged high rye straight bourbon whiskey. On the palate doesn’t drink like a rye. Spice level is low to medium. You get a major hit of bitter wood tannin upfront which can be hard to process but it dies down after a couple sips. You still get a good dose of rich vanilla and caramel flavor but still little to no indication of a fortified wine finish. This one loves a lot of water and airtime. Then the wine fruits and sweetness come through although very dry. There’s toasted nuts and grilled dense fig. It’s much more interesting and enjoyable with oxygen and H2O. I find myself reaching for another pour of this more than I thought I would. A bit of an enigma this one. I’m very confident this will make a killer and most unique rye old-fashioned or Manhattan. I keep going back and forth on getting another bottle. 🤔

First Impression Summary: No rating for fairness given limited tasting Smelled, tasted and finished like well-made rye but nothing stood out. To be fair, my palate was prolly tired by this point. Need to try again.

First Impression Summary: Confused nose, confused palate, confused finish…overall came across disjointed, unbalanced and not well-integrated. Possible victim of rushed, end bin tasting for the night. Surprising least favorite of the night.

First Impression Summary: Intense nose, intense palate, intense finish. [ Acquired taste] flavor bomb. Not for the faint of heart. Hit or miss.

First Impression Summary: Classic sherry nose and palate. Initial taste was so-so but subsequent tastes brought a balanced, well integrated sherry bomb. Pleasant finish. Need more time with this.

First Impression Summary: Classic bourbon nose, classic bourbon palate, classic finish…all excellently-executed.

First Impression Summary: LA Whisky Womxn barrel select - 2 Baked American Pure 2 3 Seared French Cuvée 3 Maker’s 46 1 Roasted French Mocha 1 Toasted French Spice Balanced nose, balanced palate, nice finish. Possibly a victim of name recognition bias. Could easily be the best of the night in a blind taste that included a couple of Parker’s Heritage [PoH & Cognac finish], Cowboy Balmo and Michter’s 10 year. Wishlist worthy…if you can find the exact stave combo and barrel pick

First impression summary: Refined nose, refined palate, decent finish…a classic.