Tastes

First Tasting (Bottle Opening Batch #5) Smell: very heavy rye front, bit of soap smell, I want to say a bit musty, maybe a bit pine?,  Snifter: sorta spicy, honestly a bit musty, def rye, a bit harsh, it honestly tastes young, the faintest of vanilla,  On ice: sweetens up a buuuuunch, vanilla comes out, rye is still there and much much more mellow in musty notes, maybe some cinnamon notes?,  Drink Rec: Sazerac, I think the rye and mustiness would pair well with the absinthe Verdict: Try It: There are certainly better ryes but this is a style/kind of rye that I experience every so often that I feel like people need to experience to truly appreciate the style of rye whiskey

Smell: scope, typical rye smell, maybe some cherry?  Snifter: good amount of spicy, def has some spiceful/baking spices notes, decently sweet, there is some fruit/cough syrup cherry, there is some herbal/mint notes, some wood notes,  On ice: more baking spices and wood notes come out, sweetness is one the edge of flavors, syrupy cherry kinda disappears sadly,  Drink Rec: well we just gotta try the drink with the same name now don't we?    An absolute delight. The absinthe is so well hidden in the background and the sweetness of the rye really comes out surprisingly. THere is some subtle spices in there but overall a damn good drink. Verdict: Buy It. This is my own personal nostalgia with the rye since it's one of my personal favorites and my partner’s all time fave rye. I need to do more tastings and competitive Sazeracs with other ryes to see if it really does deserve the title as "the" Sazerac Rye whiskey

Smell: pretty ethanol-y, fruity, some malt, a drop of honey,  Snifter: decently malty, has a weak peaty finish (not at all smoky), some fruit is there but hard to discern, a splinter of wood tannin, a dash of salty notes, very faint notes of honey in the mid palate,  On ice: it becomes a lot more fruity, malty notes are still about the same, peaty finish disappears completely, it is overall sweeter with the ice, wood tannin is gone, I prefer this more than neat but I wouldn't turn down it being neat. It is less salty but like a grain of salt is there.  Drink Rec: on ice Verdict: "Buy it", this is a very approachable blended scotch that gives someone an idea of what scotch can be like, it doesn't give the whole picture of scotch but at least one side of what it can be. Not too intimidating for a beginner,

Smell: very hard to pick up anything, some wood, very faint cherry, some ethanol, Snifter: decent spicy kick, pretty sweet, caramel finish, some wood, some fruity notes (maybe cherry? Can't tell rn), very nice caramel taste, some cinnamon, some nuttiness after drinking some water,  On ice: caramel really shows through, still some spice, some black pepper actually, fruitiness goes in the background, woody notes are a bit less, some cinnamon still,  Drink Rec: Old Fashioned Verdict: Buy It, this is a cheaper whiskey ($27ish) that is very delicious. It is a pretty standard bourbon but the sweeter/caramel notes are just so wonderful. Love to try this in other cocktails and cannot wait to do other tastings

First Taste Test (Bottle Opening) Smell: mineral-y, ethanol, some wood, hint of peanuts, hint of vanilla, def has a mineral/stone smell,  Snifter: has some spice, toooootally nutty, def get some kinda stone/mineral, maybe charred taste?, Def woody, it has some heats to it (50% makes sense), def some cinnamon and baking spices, kinda a stale vanilla flavor?,  On Ice: more bitter, more earthy/mineral, I'm honestly liking this less on ice, still nutty, ya honestly it is a huge downgrade, I can def tell it is unfiltered because it is rough (like in taste and mouthfeel), there is some vanilla, some wood, the heat goes away, some traces of the cinnamon (Sidenote) I would love to try this side by side with regular Jim Beam. Also, the bottle says "you may notice some haziness when you add ice" and I did not notice that whatsoever (I guess the "may" does clarify it is not a guarantee but still). Drink Rec: honestly I really can't say, it wildly changes with ice + water that idk what would be good with it.  Verdict: I might have to say "Pass it". I really did enjoy it neat but it is honestly such a downgrade once ice is added. I have to see if my mind changes with other tastings but for now I think you should "Pass It" since it doesn't scream as a sipper whiskey especially with it's price point. 

Smell: Dusty, undertone of artificial cherry, faint wood, dulled baking spices, some soapy notes,  Snifter: decently spicy, decently spiceful, also tastes dusty, good amount of wood, it's really dusty I can't understate this, some rye notes in the background, I'm thinking cereal in taste like stale cheerios?,  On ice: rye def comes out more same with very faint background notes of cherry and it's not artificial cherry but more natural, dusty baking spices are still the highlighting taste, some wood tannin comes in the aftertaste/finish, still has some wood notes,  stale cereal idea still comes to mind as a tasting note,  Drink Rec: I will say Old Pal since I think the dusty notes would be a fun idea/gimmick with the cocktail's name.  Verdict: Pass It:      It's just a dusty baking spice covered almost stale like whiskey. It's not offensive but rather puzzling in it's tasting/drinking experience. It makes me want to drink something else to wet my mouth. I am truly having a hard time trying to come up with a good cocktail drink for this since I'm afraid it will make my cocktail into the dust bowl. 

Smell: honey, iodine (reminiscent to Laphraiog), some wood, bit of ethanol, hint of apple,  Snifter (Neat): leather, bit of smoke, has some evolution to subtle malt and sweetness to the leather smokiness, the finish leaves a lot to be desired: not much going on, iodine/brine taste is prominent, the beginning has almost floral notes that move to the malt and sweetness, the signature JW aftertaste that I hate with their cheaper blends is hidden in the background which either creeps up or pokes it's head time to time but not overbearing like their other blends, i am pleasantly surprised.  On ice: sweetness and honey notes def brighten up/show through more, iodine flavor mellows down, leather still stays the same, evolution is more seamless than it was neat (neat's evolution was more like ups and downs/highlights of notes rather than continuous and gradual change) Verdict: Pass It: This wasn't bad. I didn't hate this like I usually do with JW, however it not only did not live up to the hype but it was also less impressive than some other scotch whiskeys or even peated irish whiskies I've had. I would honestly take "Connemara Peated Single Malt Irish Whiskey" over this, and it is almost 1/4 the price. The taster was $25 ffs, not at all worth it. I wouldn't say it's a waste of money but I also can't say that I'm happy with my experience/tasting of it. Overall, it's overhyped and dont waste your money when you can be getting superior liquor for cheaper.

Smell: paint thinner (idk i think there a distinguish between it and ethanol), wood, warm/baking spices,  Snifter: apple, wood, wood tannin, warm spices, hiiiiint of cinnamon, not that sweet, hiiiiint of vanilla, most spiceful.  On ice: a lot more spices, definitely cinnamon as well as baking spices, more wood tannin, a bit less wood taste but still prevalent, i think i detect some honey? (in the very beginning of the taste), apple seems to disappear, vanilla hides in the background Drink Rec: Manhattan (I think the spices would work very well with the sweet vermouth) Verdict: Try It. Not that sweet of a bourbon so if you do not like sweeter bourbons and one with more character, I would def recommend this one. Let’s see how the other tastings go though.