Tastes

Nose: Fresh toast, right from the toaster but not burnt. Thick honey, demerara sugars, french vanilla and roasted chocolate covered peanuts. All bourbon on the nose so far until pleasantly light natured barley pokes his head through like Jack Nicholson in The Shining. But their is nothing terrifying about the fresh straw and light grains that hold the funk which possesses an almost green, seed like quality. Raisin, cranberry, vanilla nougat, yellow corn, scone batter and some french toast with a healthy dose of powdered sugar. Tons of breakfast like qualities on this nose – like the inside of a breakfast cereal box filled with cereal grains smothered with a large dollop of honey drizzled all over. Underneath the breakfast is freshly cut oak lumber, but not in the green sense, more youthful again which is interesting considering how heavily charred we all know these barrels were. Through some final whiffs this nose delivered some personal nostalgia, and appropriately so with Thanksgiving around the corner. My grandmother who passed away about 4 years ago comes back to me as I nose this and i’m reminded of spending much of my younger days with her and her best friend while picking out roasted mixed nuts that were never in short supply on the coffee table for guests (and a gluttonous grandson) out of this old, dark well polished mahogany serving bowl: walnuts, cashews, pecans, almonds and peanuts doused in finely grated sugar. I can still remember wiggling my grubby little fingers through that never half empty bowl, looking for the best nuts, roasted to perfection. Peanut brittle says a quiet farewell. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Palate: Spices from the moment this hits your tongue but they stay in check never taking off or overwhelming your palate; cinnamon and wood spices. As the nose implied, you can tell this whiskey was aged in heavily charred barrels. Brown sugars, white corn, nutty with a light but pleasant funk which displays itself in more the synthetic sense, almost plastic, but its subtle and you must listen for it like a whisper in the wind. Mid palate brings a layer of barrel char, cocoa, blonde coffee and honey dripping off the tip of your tongue which then turns to oak and burnt sugars with a pinch of black pepper sprinkled on top. Big maple syrup, and some acetone in the form of furnish polish. Overall playful and chewy – love this youthful barley. Delicately toasted oak spices round things off. Really good stuff. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Finish: Medium-long in length. Final kick shows sweet cinnamon spices that fade semi quick. Barrel char, vanilla, chocolate, caramel, dark coffee, more burnt sugars, black pepper and char from the breakfast toast that started us out on the nose. Light acetone notes persist and oak tannins from the barrel cling to your tongue for dear life. Lastly are reminders of the nut shells that you also had with the toast, more in the form of chestnut along with some wet musty bramble and burnt matchbook. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Bourbon and House Rating: 90 _______________________________________________ www.bourbonandhouse.com

Nose: The nose enters with a perfect balance of crystal clear rye and oak spices followed by red cherry and dark chocolate. From the spice the nose turns bounces back and forth between confectionary and fruit sweetness. Toffee drizzled cinnamon rolls, freshly baked come to mind with a dollop of orange icing. Crushed nuts, candied apple and some pear. Christmas spices come to life with banana salt water taffy, maybe some banana bread too, more red cherries and strawberries, sweet brown cereal notes, like honeyed bran breakfast cereal. Grape juice, sugar cookie and vanilla graham cracker finish things off with a memory of cane sugar crystals and hints of peanut butter. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Palate: Gorgeous spice bomb from the start, like a nuclear explosion in silent slow motion…but from a distance. Astounding. The moment this dram hits your tongue, the black cracked pepper and rye spices erupt. Fall out clouds of firm menthol and cocoa dust starts to fill your palate halfway through – no dryness however…interesting. Quick confectionary sugars, more toasted oak from the nose and some sweet cherry shows up. You can tell this FR expression has some batches with age – sweet woody spices now, cinnamon spice and cinnamon sugar. Toffee and more pure can sugary goodness, all in check. Quite exquisite. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Finish: This is a slow fader and has a long finish, which at cask strength should be expected. Toffee from the back palate lingers with brown sugars. The rise of spice is perfectly mirrored in dissipation on the finish, a long fading out and a clear reminder of what you just experienced – like a bell curve. Black licorice, charred barrel and an older sense of rye is the best way to describe these final notes. Some menthol, light oak tannins play off this overall toasty finish. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Bourbon and House Rating: 97 _______________________________________________ www.bourbonandhouse.com

Nose: Heaps of dried fruits – persimmon, apricots, figs, raisons, cranberries and prunes laced with caramelized spices – ginger nutmeg and cinnamon. Some dried red apple slices, like you get at Trader Joes. Old dried, dusty leather saddle from an even older barn. Their is this interesting clay like, Destin baby ointment note that is noticeable, kind of medicinal. Dried tomato dust, fresh cotton balls, calcium tablets and this leadiness, a distinct minerality comes on the back nose. Some overripe banana pops out too. Vanilla and new oak is definitly their too at the end which is interesting considering the old leathered qualites of this rye. Some fruit leather rollup snacks from my childhood come out of the glass also. Overall theirs a very chalky, musty texture to the nose. Great nostalgic stuff and I’m not even into the palate. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Palate: Dry. Bone dry. Then bursting yellow fruits cut through with some plush leather. More dried apple turns to black crushed pepper. Although their is weight to this whiskey, it posses a medium body. At just six years old, this tastes much older. Smokey rye notes make themselves heard. Molasses and dark caramel with medium spices on the tongue. From the nose, the dusty qualities follow through – this drinks like a dusty old book. Menthol tannins play with now more older tasting oak. Rye bread with dried dates and figs. Just a beautiful balance of dried fruits and soft, dusty, leathery textures, I really can’t describe this whiskey any other way than that. Just before the finish the menthol turns medicinal on the back. Very rich mouthfeel. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Finish: Very long. The typical rye and black pepper spices linger w menthol and a little of the Desitin sticks around. Some sawdust/lumber qualities trail with an earthy blackberry concentration. Complex for a finish. Apricot jam, dates, scallops and a black cherry syrupy-ness. Theirs a slight plasticity that almost compliments the rye spices rounding out the finish as light smoke echoes and the dried fruits, having come full circle from nose to finish- they just trail and trail….you’ll be tasting this for up to 10 minutes after your last sip. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Bourbon and House Rating: 95.5 _______________________________________________ www.bourbonandhouse.com

Nose: Thick rich vanilla fudge & caramel nougat are dueling it out right from the moment your nose hits the glass. Green apples and thick red woody spices with some black peppers immediately trail. Spices are intense, just shy of abrasive. Redwood lumber, dry fall leaves, sugar cookie dough and juicy lemon resonate. Old wet barrel and some nut shells, unsalted. Some peanut butter and apricot notes. Redwood tree bark is dominant and creates a sort of foundation for the nose. Cinnamon sticks and kindling round things out deep in the nose with a savory hickory-esque creaminess. Quite lovely. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Palate: The spice on this palate, like the nose, truly defines this barrel. Arrival of the spice slightly muted upon entry by vanilla but then takes off with menthol intensity like a 90 degree angle from the beginning of the palate to the finish. The Northern California Mendocino Redwood Forest in a barrel. Light piney, earthy woodiness, no doubt from the rye. Menthol, black pepper and oak on the mid palate and the spice level continues rise as a chalky dryness forms. Their is a green earthiness that isn’t vegetal that i can’t put my finger on. Almost resiny. Paper, brown sugar and hickory from nose. Thick and heavy. Smoke on the back end with an interesting corn reduction element. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Finish: Long and very ubiquitous of this barrels nose and palate profile. I really like that in a single barrel when the heart and soul of the whiskey shines through from nose to finish. Bold, long, beautifully assertive and creamy finish. Spices dance and dance. Im talking Michael Flately in Lord of the Dance. Black and red crushed peppers with vanilla and mint. Spice lingers, lingers and lingers…caramel and menthol. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Bourbon and House Rating: 92.5 _______________________________________________ www.bourbonandhouse.com

Nose: Candy shop sweet entrance with watermelon Jolly Ranchers, cherry pie and freshly finished furniture. Some sweet melon fruits – honey dew and cantaloupe. The nose is syrupy like a caramel glaze with moist brown sugars – more elegant than I anticipated considering the placement of these batched barrels and being bottled at 100p. Nosing a little deeper theres vanilla, sweet baking spices, some walnut and notes of wood that aren’t really your typical oak, they’re more sweet and really toasty. Banana, buttered croissants and sweet but very light acetone notes, maybe coming through from the furniture polish. Overall a very pleasant nose. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Palate: The nose deceives you about the rest of this bourbon. A moment of sweetness from the nose teases but fades quickly as acetonic furniture and nail polish lead to bitter barrel char, tobacco spices and cigar smoke. I actually like all of these notes but the acetone is very dominant in an abrasive manner. The mouthfeel is surprisingly light and spice starts medium light about mid palate then everything turns dry which is nice. White and black cracked pepper, some grape juice and vanilla threads through the bitterness of barrel char and the acetone notes still persist through to the end. Black pepper spices don’t leave the tip of your tongue and the dryness turns menthol forming on the back end. Palate is medium in body at best and not oily with some interestingly robust and pronounced notes that are this expressions signature. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Finish: Thick, chewy and medium-long in length. Viscous caramel, vanilla, butterscotch and toffee like your tongue is drenched in it. Layers of warm spices cover every crevice of your mouth. Tobacco leaf, cigar and big smokey notes. Bitterness from the barrel is there but only as a fading memory. Sweet oak, dark chocolate, and black coffee round things out with a final reminder of the acetonic polish notes that accompanied you for the entire journey. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Bourbon and House Rating: 89 _______________________________________________ www.bourbonandhouse.com

Color: Dark, dark russet, with textures of molasses syrup & pan reduced dark chocolate. _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ Nose: The most gorgeous of wheated noses I’ve witnessed to date; peaches, nectarines, blood oranges, strawberries, about to burst, soaked in caramel, interwoven with incredibly pronounced and crystal clear notes of wheat – rich, symphonic and in 4k resolution, not grainy at all. Pun intended. Rich caramel unfolds off the fruit as your glass opens up revealing cinnamon roll dough and caramel covered green apples freshly out of the oven…then some chocolate strawberry. Notes of cinnamon dusted rich oak and baking spices are perfectly balanced by the caramel and fruit notes. Old, well polished dark mahogany furniture. One could get lost in this nose for a good hour. Literally it just evolves and evolves…melted butter on freshly baked bread crust with granulated cane sugar sprinkled over it and their is a Cheerios cereal note. Drizzle all over that a healthy dose of honey. Sweet, wet cigar filled humidor scents find your nose towards the end with some horse saddle, polished no doubt with whatever was used for the mahogany furniture and the scent of an old, dry barn nearby is charming. Their is no way of escaping the alcohol vapors at 140.2 proof so navigate this carefully. You’ll find a slight but sweet layer of paint thinner towards the mid to back nose with splinters of vanilla shooting through, but all thats underneath a blueberry reduction. The sweet baking spices keep coming back around..ones my mom uses during the holidays for baking, the scents flood the whole house, just as they’re flooding my glass right now. These spices do compete however with those that you would find in the most richly scented old school confectionary shop. Chocolate apricots say a warm farewell. _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ Palate: From the second it hits your tongue, deep rich baking spices erupt: crushed cinnamon stick, BIG clove and red cedary, woody spices. More caramel from the nose with dark mocha and even darker chocolate, but less fruit up front. Wheat from the nose shows back up too, and in spades – the clearest wheat I’ve ever tasted in a bourbon. Their is a big, BIG alcohol kick that starts halfway through the sip but can be reduced by simply letting the glass sit for a while before diving in. Dense, thick crushed black peppercorns and molten, melting Demerara sugars fight for attention on your tongue while a lemon note brightly asserts itself. Their is a profound sense of oak wood, almost toasted oak with tannins exhibiting a flamboyant depth of dryness but is still kept in balance – not all in your face oak like an Elijah Craig Barrel Proof. Savory swirls of hickory exhale off your palate and usher you into the finish. Incredibly oily mouthfeel, covering every square atom of your mouth leaving no taste bud untouched. Truly rich and almost beyond words. ______________________________________________ ______________________________________________ Finish: Decadent and long. Unsalted, old fashioned popcorn (not from a microwaveable bag). Black coffee and bitter barrel char – the usual suspects of a “Hazmat” proof bourbon. Sweet pipe tobacco and some moist cigar as well. Unbelievable how long and rich this finish is…speaking of cigars, their is no question that this is the kind of bourbon Pappy Van Winkle would have been sipping along side his stogie. Hickory smoke, dry tannins and wood polish notes lead into the sweeter end of the finish which is all Pizzelle cookie dough, bubble gum fading to wintergreen gum, dark melted chocolate, finely grated crushed nuts, red smoked cedar wood, crushed cinnamon and BIG nutmeg. Smoky, again, on its final legs but not in the scotch sense….more from the previous dark chocolate melting for the fresh strawberry note that bids a final farewell. _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ Bourbon and House Rating: 98.5 _______________________________________________ www.bourbonandhouse.com

Nose: Corn, corn, corn - corn on the cob, just cloying almost...indian corn and green corn husk. Yellow Corn. You get it. Wheat, wet sand, chewing gum, thick syrup, sugar, belgian waffles, brown sugars, cinnamon dough, a cookie-ness to it. Funnel cakes candle wax, marshmallow and hay are on the back of the nose. Pallet: crazy smooth, TONS of corn, spice on far back pallet, then covers pallet. Sweat tea, alcohol but very rounded and bouncy. Very unique. More wax on the back pallet but not unpleasant. Finish is paper, sweet syrupy with granulated sugar, some pleasant spices, whispers of a buttery smokiness and....corn corn corn.....

Nose: home made ice cream, buttered and charred toast, bubble gum, carribean fruits, golden melons, passion fruits, dark blueberries, blackberry tarts, tart orange fine, ripe lemons, menthol, tobacco, tons of refined woody notes, cedar bark, redwood sap, mahogany wood finished, cake frosting, french vanilla, raw brown sugar, new tires, fresh cut grass,caddied taffy, bread dough uncooked, rose flavored gelato, rich warm caramel, vanilla dipped bananas. Pallet: candy sweet entry with candied cherries, menthol char, sherry and slow spice that lingers into oak. Finish: candied caramels, char, caddied fruits and saltwater taffy.

Nose: Big pineapple and bubble gum dominate the front of this nose while soft brown sugars overlay a wheated foundation. Dark berries – grapes and blueberries – make themselves assertive with a dollop of cake frosting on the nose. Notes of snickerdoodle cookies and orange frosting come alive with lots of old time confectionery candies on this one. Their is a nice cooked pineapple note that is really pleasant. Cinnamon raisin and sweet bread dough show up with a healthy dose of vanilla and thick nostalgic Christmas spices to finish out the nose. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Palate: The classic BT wheated profile at its best. Old school hard candy shell leads to light pepper spices and buttered toasty notes. Harnessed barrel char makes itself known with a whisper. Some of the dark berry notes shine through from the nose mid palate with lots of wheat. Wisps of hickory trail the back end with polished oak and vanilla cake crumbs rounding out the palate. Again, tons of confectionery. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Finish: A sweet grapiness that I get with a lot of BT’s products shows up. Definitive furniture polish and brown sugars come back around. Granulated sugars as well create a solidified layer on your tongue like the one you’d find after freshly scorching a small dish of Creme Brûlée. Cake frosting covers the inside of your mouth. Medium spice, coffee beans and some char close things out. Close to perfectly sweet finish. Medium in length. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Bourbon and House Rating: 91 _______________________________________________ www.bourbonandhouse.com

Nose: Cinnamon, dark cherries, citrus, caramel, cinnamon rolls w frosting, sweet bakery nose, oranges, woody spices, oak barrel, melted butter, cookie dough on the baking sheet, spiced apple cider, creamy buttermilk Pallet: instant intense woody cinnamon spices, menthol covers pallet, sweet, savory woodiness mid pallet with balls of cinnamon explosion and on the back pallet more spice with apples and charred oak barrel Finish: french toast w cinnamon, long lingering spices, ground coffee beans, tons of oak, vanilla and robust cigar wrapper.