Tastes

Batch KY-3, bottle 502 of 528 from a blend of 3 barrels. Age clocks in at a min of 14y and 4 months. Other tidbits are the use of #4 char on American white oak barrels and a mash bill of 74/18/8 suggesting Barton as the source. 49%abv and a light copper in the glass with slow tear drop legs. Oak soars from the glass with sweet notes of toffee and earthy over ripe banana up close. The latter rolls into a varnish like note with some leather as well. Faint baking spices and no nuttiness or ethanol that I can detect. Light bodied and spicier than the nose lets on! There’s a burst of nutmeg and allspice with a bit of brown sugar that transitions into over ripe banana, raisins and then a medium long leathery finish with bits of raisin and tobacco popping up for a minute or so. It drinks like an older bourbon and has heaps of earthy barrel derived notes that remind me of an over-aged EC SB but the funky over-ripe banana that screams Barton. It’s not as sweet as a 1792 full proof, and not as balanced as a result. It drinks at or slightly above its proof and is a pleasant sipping bourbon but fails to take me anywhere special. For the $100+ price tag it’s a good example of a well aged bourbon but doesn’t bring along many surprises.

Another night, another blind tasting. Wish things were different but dram exchanges keep the spirits up and keep us all guessing. This one poured as a lighter amber color. Slower legs making me thing it should be awww but the nose is full of spice and oak. There is a good amount of caramel and cherries but no nuts and no bananas. At this point beam and OF are out and 4R and HH are at the top. It’s like an EC but much stronger nose - but oddly short of an ECBP if that makes sense. Medium body and hot on entry. Almost a bite-you, peppery hot (should have caught my attention as one distiller in particular is culprit of this) sensation as it covers the palate. Flavor is char forward with more oak, cherries and caramel in a supporting role. It has a bit of leather making me think HH once again but not complex enough to be an ECBP. No Turkey funk. The proof has to be 110-120, but no frank ethanol to be found. Could this be a barrel proof 4R pick? Nope. Possibly an Yellowstone 2019? Wrong again (complete shot in the dark as I never tried it). Makers. How is this Makers??? Much like the toasted barrel transformed EC into a BT mimic the stave finishing brought the wood and spice forward on this release in a way that reminds me of EC and 4R. While good, this is no Rc6. Not sure how I feel about this vs cask strength 46 but would say 46 is sweeter. I find the bite of their red wheat mashbill to be characteristic but the maple is fine and cinnamon is more pepper for this release. For those that think MM is too sweet this is a definite swing in the direction of the tannic/woodsy direction. EC and 4R fans should look this way.

Blind tasting, nice medium amber and slow legs in the glass. The nose was light with apricot, caramel and a hint of oak char. At first I thought this is to be a BT product. It was light bodied on entry with no burn. The palate showcased more apricot, toasted marshmallow and finished nicely into a short run of oak char. I thought this could be Rock Hill Farm. Too much oak to be Elmer and not as sweet. Wrong and wrong. I went back to nose it again and again and started finding more over ripe banana... Barton maybe? Possibly an OF but not with a proof this low. 🤔 Last sip - is that faint cherry, leather, could this be heaven hill - could this be - EC toasted! In a way it all makes sense. Much more caramel, char and fruit than the standard offering but not offensively so in any department. This is as likable as HM BiB and with the char does drink like a RHF. Price seems to be an issue as I was offered this once for $75 and passed. I would honestly consider this as a daily if available and $50 but sadly neither of those are true.

Willett, we meet again. This bottle is a friends prized possession, now half empty and probably open 6 or more years if I was to guess. Unlike the 12 year I’d previously tied this one cam with the following specs: Barrel 779 Proof 120.6 Bottle 57/96 (ie. <75% the residual volume of most barrels that yield 120+ bottles) The color on this was a fantastic dirty penny. The nose was richly sweet with bits of cola, vanilla, honeysuckle, pepper and oak. The palate lands hot with a burst of mild cola and pepper and then subsides into a gobstopper of a ride with classic vanilla and oak, then cherry cola and clove and then - no surprise - as all else fades away the trademark black or Earl Grey tea note. Was it delicious? Very, yes. Would I blindly pay more than $80 a bottle for this? With some convincing, yes. Will I speculate further given my bitterness toward Willet for ending the sale of these in their gift shop - no. I’ll just enjoy it at this point and move on.

As compared to the 21 year bottling this was a step up for me. Unlike the 21 year there were no flaws on the nose. The nose also added a welcome bit of cremation brûlée and faint allspice. The palate was equally thin to the 21 but with an enjoyable mouth coating quality. There was a pleasant balance of dry wood, toasted marshmallow, anise and a hint of apricot jam as well a pinch of cigar wrapper. This, unlike the 21 year, this I could drink all day. It’s well rounded and adds in a pleasant bit of spice and just a touch of fruit. The low proof leaves it with less burn than robitussin but also less of a finish. If it wasn’t over $100 you wouldn’t need the finish because you could sip it all day. Therein lies another kicker - aside from the novelty of tasting this bourbon as it ages the sticker shock makes it a little harder to swallow. In a world where 12-15 year old bourbons command between $80-300+ the value per year of age isn’t unreasonable despite lack of any real wow factor.

Was able to taste this along with Barterhouse 20 and the 22y Rhetoric. Spoiler alert, this was my least favorite. Nose: sawdust, Werther’s butterscotch candy, turpentine, apricot jam Body: light and at the same time oily, no more burn than room temperature water Palate: Delicate flavors of apricot, dried wood... and sadly little else. The finish was short to medium and turned back toward a Werther’s butterscotch candy, then gone. This is not a bourbon that many bourbon drinkers would dislike but more than a handful would likely shrug at. It wasn’t the orangesicle and oak bomb that was Barterhouse, nor was it the spicier and more earthy Rhetoric 22 year. What a difference a year can make! I know the Barterhouse isn’t a fair comparison but the 21 to 22 was a noticeable improvement in balance and complexity, though the low proof on all left a want for more depth.

Smoke, wait... Sherry, wait... Iodine, wait... fruitcake... vanilla... wood... stewed pears... Cheerios... what an identity crisis Color: light golden Body: legs are few and slow, somewhat thin and light on entry, tingle but no burn or bite, short-medium finish Nose: (see above) Palate: honey, allspice, anise first and then a deeper honey (almost smokey agave) and orange marmalade, hint of oak and then the stewed pairs are back with a bit of rasin. I don’t get much leather or any tobacco. I also don’t get a mouth coating, everlasting finish. What I do get I like though, quite a bit. Some sips I want more smoke but then I find it along with iodine a few sips later. The complexity is outstanding and so well balanced. That said, there are no real surprises - just goodness. If the viscosity could go up a kick and more anise or clove sneak in I’d empty my wallet. This, however, is outstanding none the less and lands close to Talisker 10 for me, a personal favorite. It’s not too much of anything but I would like everything turned up a point or two. Can’t always get what you want so might as well have a drink and get over it!

Showed up next to the tale of cake edition at $30 less. Reading about the Spanish Malaga wine drew me in due to the use of PX grapes. There is clear Sherry influence but it’s not in your face (or in your nose I should say) due to spending 8 of its 12 years in ex-bourbon barrels prior to 4y in ex-Malaga barrels. Color: pale golden Body: plentiful whispery legs and velvety on entry but sharpens as it coats the mouth Nose: grape jam, raisins, malt, hint of oak Palate: bolder than expected with allspice, raisin, oak, hints of leather and then a wash of orange peel and slightly bitter cocoa before the raisins and toffee slide back in for a lengthy finish. This is pleasant but without any wow factor. Chasing a $35 bottle of Glen Fohdry that Total Wine is pushing I’m scratching my head a bit trying to justify the 2x price. The palate is pleasant complex with slight evolution of flavors. The finish is lengthy. There is just no substantial minerality, no surprises, no wow. This is a touch better than Glen Droch 12 but not remarkably so. Oh well, I’ll drink it. ——— Hang on, fresh palate... this is rich, spicy and bigger than I initially gave it credit for. Pouring it by itself and not chasing something else does it more justice. Viscous, spicy, full of well balanced oak, raisin and a bit of milk chocolate. The finish just won’t go away - moments upon moments of rasin and plum, honey and whisks of malt. This easily outdoes Glen Droch 12. This is decadent. Score goes up and another pour is in order...