Tastes

This was a "I'm at a terrible liquor store but dont want to leave empty handed" scenario purchase. I paid $31usd or so. The name apparently evokes a sense of the spirits pedigree as Mr. Parr is alleged to have lived a very long time. Classy marketing. The nose is kinda basic. Some tang in there gives you a heads up it's not terrible at the minimum. Behind the hint of peat is a bit of some star anise/cinnamon type sweet musk. Palate you get this creamy tea and burnt pine log vibe that tastes about as good as it sounds. Do you like campfires and breakfast tea with milk and honey? The peat here is present to the end (barely) but just faint enough to marry the whole mess not much else. If you could somehow make honey waffle candy out of seaweed it would taste like grand old parr. Mouth isnt too hot at all (you honestly get more in the nose, where it sill wasnt pronounced); the age and wood were put to use well. Knowing how not all 12 years are created equal I personally gave it a point or two here in my personal book. Room temp neat and it slides down very agreeably. Will I probably buy another bottle? No. But: The bottle was cool and definitely a keeper for that alone. After work on the couch nice little cheap sip sip sipper type ordeal.

I could've swore I had this and the BiB reviewed on here, but it seems I only ever published the regular OGD mainstay... time to fix that! OGD is to bourbon what Volvo is to cars--reliable and simple. 114 is definitely the 'grown-up' choice in the line. The 80 proof is available widely and cheaply, the bottled in bond is considered by many to be the best cheap bourbon out there. 114 is the more 'premium' of the three but is still usually a very reasonable $26-32usd most places. Factoring in the proof makes it a steal of a deal. The nose is fantastic. Sweet menthol, licorice, wild berries, RICH spice. Palate is oozing with fun things to lead your tongue around due to the high proof. If you can resist the temptation to pound fat shots of this and have the discipline to smack it on your tongue and mouth a few times you'll get the traditional Kentucky sweetness (corn, cinnamon red hots) in a remarkably sip-worthy profile. Smoooooooth. The mouth is balanced and as a result makes the liquid itself versatile for whatever application you desire. I sipped it neat for review purposes, but I typically take it in a shot glass with a small splash of water. Going down this does NOT seem as high proof as it is. Water turns it from a respectable dram into dangerously easy drinking. Brings out some sweet wood and makes the finish even more dangerously smooth than it is out of the bottle. On the taste scale its low 80s.. maybe a 81.5 Value wise it's in a class all it's own. I usually keep it around to make sure I dont open any of my special bottles and it definitely does that job well.

If Evan black had a cooler older cousin who wasnt nearly as well known. Menthol. Boiled peanuts. Pipe tobacco. This thing makes you ready for a big Kentucky hug as soon as it gets near your lips. @bdanner is spot-on noting how the cedar/wood hints become more forward after it sits in the glass. Its nice. Stephanie, who I might add writes my favorite reviews on distiller, gets it dead-on with flat coke. It's not a big, punchy bourbon with body and finish but sometimes I just want to breeze through (delicious) shots, y'know? The end of the mouth is the definition of leathery, charcoal soot, rye mashbill character. It's good, it's cheap, it's not bland nor forgettable. Buy some! 82/100 for just taste, maybe bump it a good solid few points for value.

Fantastic change to the christmas party bar from JW red. Rich mouth, lots of buttery biscuit. Palate has hint of brine, kiss of chewy goodness that makes you forget how sweet the front was. The black tea note in the review is spot-on. Theres a delightful earth note that is well-balanced in the overall profile. Good hooch! Huge upgrade from JW red at the company party bar.

Fantastically smooth. Nose is pretty basic. Rich corn (not sweet, rich. Give it a nice rub in the hand and its hard to miss), milled oak slab. Interesting balance between the usual Kentucky regulars and sweetness makes itself known. Palate is balanced but simple. Something about the oak notes here lets you know this has some serious expertise behind it. Cinnamon red hot candies, apples, and a present-yet-tame maple finish make it fantastic just all by itself. I recently read Jimmie/Eddie and the majority of "old skool" types at Turkey like their brown neat and it definitely is reflected in this profile. The mouth is a serious treat. It goes down like butter. 45% is just right for this one even if we lose some nuance.

Kinda boring. Smoke then nothing. Was not bad in any way, just not much going on. Bottle went stale quickly and I stored it properly (attributed to the 1L perhaps). Toffee and biscuit washed down by a nice cigarette is where it took me. Short tumbler poured small and breathed gently while enjoying neat worked best. Ice wasnt a bad add but it doesnt need it to be savored. Tamarind soda was such a good chaser for it. As real green is perhaps juuuuust a notch under this in smokiness it gets a point there. You dont always want black.

Deceptively good! Gonna keep this one simple: N Sweet bread. Lemon citrus. Something faintly tart and mineral in the distance. P SWEET but not predominately so. You get some of the lighter notes of butterscotch and tropical sea salt before the faintest tiniest wisp of smoke closes. M The oak did amazing things. Has a richness in mouth I associate with pricey bourbon. The spirit has a very small hot and spicy element but it doesn't distract on the finish. Buy it! 85/100. Good hooch.

Edit: update at bottom Tried neat and then with rocks. Nose: Brown sugar, citrus zest. Faint mineral spring at end. Not terribly complicated but dont let that subtract. Palate: It's like someone took the interesting parts out of HP12. Vanilla, marmalade -> cereal highland signature, strong spice to finish. Stronger than expected spice for how unassuming it is all the way to this point. The smoke is faint after it gets in your mouth a decent bit but some of it is nice to taste initially--this one is kinda boring. Finish: Hot but not in a cheap liquor or ethanol tasting way. Short, short, short. Spice kinda gives a little kick of heather and cinnamon. Forgettable if you've had enough better stuff from the category but I wouldnt ever dare snub a dram or three. Bought on a whim for $29.99 while looking around the store with the wife. I had read and heard it was okay but drinkable; I'd personally state it as "bland and boring". It isnt deserving of much praise or criticism. Spend the extra $8-14 on 12 year. 82/100. Edit 83.5 or 84 after it had a few drams poured the bottle sat and the profile was nicely changed. Smoke was easier to enjoy throughout--less sticky sweet in the way of smoke. Me and the wife smelled and tasted rich butter/biscuit whereas before it wasnt pronounced anywhere except a quick kiss in the spice.

Deep into my second bottle I've had for myself so I felt it was time to give it a write. Nose: Honey, apricot and black plum, sweet cereal, wine-flavored pipe tobacco (really, I promise, even if it is just the faintest finishing note) Palate: Much more straightforward than you may imagine but not at all in a bad way. Sweet caramel apples, a smoky funk I'd call mainly meaty with hints of engine oil hints you midway into a burst of sweet, chewy, malty, richness of cream/cereal finish. I normally try to stay succinct in this section but it really is astoundingly fun to lip-smack, sip, pound, whatever. "Tasty" does not do it justice. Finish: Bodied enough to deserve the word 'complex' but so well-married you wouldnt know it if you were a n00b to brown town. That itself is impressive, as is the clean and short smooth finish itself is comprised of. Incredible under $40usd IMO. I will note for you deep readers that this bottle was not as good as the one I had before this. It had different packaging ever so slightly. The one I drank before was 4.5 alllllll day, this one gets 4. Main reason is body on older one was SO much more distinctive and charactered. WOOD, stone fruit, enticing hints and notes from BOTH in ways the newer bottle WISHED it had. I try to be very strict in points past 3.5/5 so to me the 0.5 is a big deal in a world where we ignore cost. Cost considered it's a whatever. if you need a bottle that tastes like $100 but dont wanna spend: buy it!!!!

Nose: Sweet vanilla, toasted hazelnut, a quality preserve of berries ready to spread. That spicy Jameson signature sweetness is present throughout. The wife picked up a lot more sweet wood and richness, also saying she disagreed on the nuts but not the vanilla. Teasing in all the ways you want a robust Irish to. Palate: Cinnamon candies, glasses of good sherry glasses from the night before, sweet roasted lamb and a candela cigar. The wife seemed to say way more oily/earthy/sweet/medicinal overtones predominated for her with the floral opening matching the cask finish to the finishing linger. I agreed with the wood comment but personally had more floral finish. Rich, smooth, high notes of the "good" Jameson spices. Black tea, the faintest hint of a waft of pipe smoke, malt balance finish the tongue. Finish: Isnt fierce like a lot of bottling with this depth. Isnt the profile to put you in the mood to pound but tastes so good you could get in trouble fast. Clean and crisp for having so much to enjoy and savor. Makes you want to sip again and find more layers like an old trusty leather bag. Ice makes it perfect to sip sip sip but spheres/BIG pieces/rock cubes+mineral may be the secret here... standard cube shape isnt enough... Overall: Outstanding but sadly discontinued and replaced at a higher (slightly)price point by the 18yr. Perfect celebration bottle--Johnny Blue type of special. For all of the positive mentioned thus far I rate it 92/100. Top-shelf assuredly. Worth any price ~100USD alllll day. I know it secondhands far higher. If you see this dusty and it hasn't been baking in the heat:BUY IT!!!