Tastes

Neat. Sample. The color on this one is quite darker than the other samples I am enjoying tonight. On the nose, this is dark, heavy and savory. Hint of oak, almost pretzel M&M even. So salty. There is some nice brightness though. Like a sea breeze. I wouldn’t say a fruit. Almost like stewed and glaze carrots. Bit bitter initially on the taste like a dark unsweetened chocolate. Opens up with some tremendous bourbon flavors. Sea salt caramel glaze on soft pretzels. Get some nice cinnamon apples on the legs. A savory and rewarding pour. What I like the most is that the sweetness is there but in the background. It’s delicious though and makes you want to hunt down it’s Source. A very enjoyable journey.

Neat. Sample. This is a fun one. I have given up beer the last two years but I had some fun times with Dragon’s Milk. When you don’t know a beer is high ABV and the restaurant gives you a (few) 16 oz. pour, the evening gets interesting. On the nose the stout influence is in the back and only hinted at slightly. Up front there is a nice sweetness, apples, lemon and meringue. That stout lingers like a low bass note, in the background but you can feel it. Sweetness again on the palate, really refreshing. The fruits darken you a bit pears and berries. Bit of leather and chocolate. The chocolate lingers. Really connecting with that stout the longer I sit with it. Quite a refreshing pour. It’s mostly light and sweet but the stout finish gives it some dark dynamics on the taste and finish. The after taste is just like drinking Dragon’s Milk which I find funny because the color on this one is so light. Really enjoyed it.

Neck pour. Riff in the force. This is a private pick done by a local enthusiast. He was kind enough to give me two bottles of his barrel. It’s a cool bottle with an etched lightsaber on the side. It’s been a while since I opened a new bottle of this so excited to officially review his pick. The nose is interesting. It hits a different range of flavors than the Party Source picks I am used to. Tobacco leaves, apricot, salty caramel, toffee, black pepper, and a hint of honey. Gosh this nose has a lot of depth. On the nose, it’s a step up from other single barrels I have had. It just has this ride of bright and dark flavors on each approach. Nice, thick and rich texture. Caramel, cinnamon apple on the tongue, very sweet. Oh man. This is a good pick. Starts out chocolate and butterscotch, transitions back to the apple and cinnamon. But then ends back at the chocolate. It’s a very nice milk chocolate too. Rich, creamy and sweet. Damn. Geez. I am a bit of a New Riff fan boy but I like this barrel quite a bit. It’s a really good pick, rich and crisp. You can smell the youngness but it’s this sweet tobacco leaf that actually has an interesting dynamic. This pick is a little over 4 years. Just makes me more excited for the day that New Riff releases 6 year or 8 year barrels. If Wilderness Trail can do it, why not New Riff?

Neat. Neck pour. Toasted barrel MGP! I love toasted barrel finished bourbon and never seen a toasted barrel MGP until today. I’m guessing this is 5 to 7 year MGP based on the price ($69). The color is nice and dark due to the extra barrel but not Woodford Double Oaked or 1920 dark. Looks like a 12 year MGP. On the nose, it is stereotypical 5 year MGP. I’d equate it to Mic Drop 3.0. There is a young MGP green note that dominates more than I like. Getting behind it, there is a nice butterscotch, chocolate and nutmeg. Blind, I don’t think I would call this a toasted barrel finish. The toasted marshmallow I get on other toasted products is there but very faint. I don’t think it spent too long in that second barrel, maybe three months. There is a really nice buttery and flaky pastry crust as I spend more time with it. The green note is becoming more Apple than just young whiskey as I sit with it longer too. I think the finishing took off the edges and spikiness of young MGP that I don’t enjoy, but I don’t think it added new dynamics based on the nose. Oh, great texture. So oily and creamy. I know this one isn’t chilled filtered because there are so many floating barrel chunks in my glass. Cinnamon apple sweetness up front. And that Apple really comes out punching as it starts out so bright. But it darkens slowly. Butterscotch comes back and transitions into some nice salted light chocolate. The legs are really good. Toasted marshmallow emerges and leaves a nice lingering MGP cherry note. Okay, this one won me over by the end. The youngness on the nose was an initial turn off and the toasted barrel finish is just a subtle addition to the experience, but the flavors are there on the taste and finish. Starting at Apple, transition to the desert flavors and ending on cherry is unique for a MGP too. I would love to try an older toasted MGP that spends more time in the second barrel. As it stands with this bottle, the toasted barrel made a young MGP much better but this isn’t the 1920 MGP I hoped it would be. Still a good value for MGP at the price.

Neat. Neck pour. Super excited about this pour. I love the original 17 Master Keep and despite its low proof it is oily and packed with flavor. So what would a 17 year 100 proof taste like? It has to be ever better I’d imagine. Holy crap. Amazing. It’s aged is felt immediately with dark notes of oak and dark chocolate. But it surprisingly lightens up with vanilla and pears. A delightful hard candy caramel. That sweet oak is the main event though. It is oak, leather, tobacco all at once. Type of nose I could spend all night enjoying. Texture is creamy but less oily than expected. Cherry cola up front. Such a rich cherry too. Transitions into chocolate mouse but brightens up again into the inside of a cherry cordial. The legs are then dark and saturated in that oak. These legs. They last and evolve for minutes to come. Back and forth between the vanilla and the oak. It’s an amazing bourbon. It’s on the verge of being over oaked,but it doesn’t go all the way and the oak remains it’s most amazing note in the nose and legs. I intend to compare this to Russell’s 2002 but top of mind it is a far superior pour.

Neat. Neck pour. This rye was my gateway rye. I loved it so much but I never bought another bottle for over a year. Recently did a tasting and bought a new bottle. This nose is so flavorful for 84 proof. Nice vanilla scone. Almond drizzle. Hit of black pepper. Dash of cherry and chocolate. Quite a dynamic nose when you consider it is a low proof rye. Mouth feel is watery and the initial flavors are muted. Mostly just vanilla sweetness. Transitions to a nice strawberry and ends with that vanilla scone. Quite simple but still very inviting. Ryes are so dynamic. Those red berries on the nose and taste are unique for a rye. It’s sweet, inviting, smooth, but still flavorful. I’d still call this my favorite gateway rye.

Neat. Opened over a year. I haven’t had this in a long time, fun one to revisit. The nose is so bright and delicate. It’s lemon pine and floral. The rye notes are very delicate. Hint of vanilla and mint. Hint of walnut. I would equate this to a cask strength Canadian Whiskey more than anything. Mouth feel is creamy, oily, and coating. Quite pleasant. Very sweet up front. Oh geez, I like this more now than I remembered. It’s definitely a different side of the flavor wheel. The sweetness up front is just a delicate vanilla, almost sugar water. But it blossoms so beautifully. The vanilla transition into a lemon cello and then into a lemon cupcake. Caramel frosting then emerges. It darkens on the legs with a nice oak finish. Sitting with it for a bit, the rye on the nose is taking the center stage. The rye is coming out more on the taste too but blending well with the lemon aspects. Okay, my memory of this one and the current experience do not match. I remember liking it but also equating it to a lemon cleaning product. Maybe the air time served it well because the chemical aspects of the lemon notes have blossomed into lemon cello and lemon cupcakes. It’s really fun. I think this one gets a raw deal on other reviews I have read.

Neat. Opened for over 6 months. My Father’s Day hitter pour. Honestly, the nose is challenging me to draw anything. Must be me. Some buttery, slightly burnt graham cracker crust with some custard. Black pepper with a bit of bite. Caramel drizzle. Hint of raspberries. Mouth feel is syrupy, syrupy where you can even feel the grit to it. Initially it is very dark, brown sugar and maple with a bit of sourness from those raspberries. Taste hits me with that custard, proceeded by the buttery graham cracker crust. Legs are caramel, hint of oak and the black pepper. Oak lingers quite a bit. Nose is really coming alive now that I have been sitting with it. Could have been my palate and the first pour of the day. These great fruit notes are emerging. Cherries, blueberries. Starting to paint a more complete picture of a fruit tart really. Getting some darker notes of coffee and leather now too. It’s such a beautiful pour. Less in my face than I remembered. It’s just so well balanced. Sweet but not too sweet. Not over oaked. Slight bitter and sour, but it compliments. At the same time, it doesn’t stand out to me like it once did. No characteristic really stands out to put it over the top though. I simultaneously enjoyed it while being slightly disappointed.

Neat. Neck pour. The peat bites at you at first but isn’t aggressive enough to hide the flavors behind it. Pear and chocolate. Salted chocolate even. Hint of pralines. Bit musty like a forest after morning rain. Even a hint of oak. It’s simultaneously sweet and sour. Super creamy on the palate. Getting those pears and vanilla on the tongue. Even some caramel and sugar. Peat shows up but doesn’t overwhelm again. Brings with it a chocolate rush accompanied by that brine. Aftertaste brings back the pear. Peat lingers in the cheeks and gums. Gets sweeter and sweeter the more the mouth acclimates to the peat. I love this new Ardbeg expression. The price feels a bit weird to me costing the same price as the 10 year but it is also unique enough that I can simply sit back and appreciate it as it’s own experience rather than say it’s a bad value being half the age. It’s so well balanced and the flavors are so distinct and inviting.

Neat. Neck pour. Nasa liquors Mars Attack pick, 12 year MGP. Cabernet influence is front and center on the nose. Getting raisins or dates with a cinnamon glaze. The finish really mutes the typical MGP sweetness and leaves these dark, dry fruit notes in its place. Getting behind the fruit, the rye begins to emerge and transitions into a dull vanilla. Starting to get some buttery pie crust as well but still lacks the expected sweetness. On the nose, I would say the finish mutes rather than compliments a typical MGP 12 year. The longer I sit with it, that pie crust gets a bit darker and now leans more oak. Texture is viscous, oily and coating. The dry, dark fruits dominate the tongue. I’d now call it a dark cherry. There is a little confectionery sugar to it but again the sweetness is muted and the dark fruits are a bit bitter. Transitions into a MGP butterscotch, which is a really nice note. The finish is pure Cabernet and has decent legs. The aftertaste is even like drinking Cabernet with a slight tannic feel. After a taste, the sweetness on the nose is emerging. That butterscotch note is now there on the nose and opens up more and more on the taste. I was prepared to call this one disappointing. I was thinking almost this entire time that the cab finish just didn’t compliment the MGP. But this pour has changed drastically sitting out for 30 minutes. The dark bitter fruits taking a step back and letting the butterscotch out. I’ll revisit this in a few months, I’m thinking it will actually open up into something quite nice. Fingers crossed.