Tastes

A great all around whisky that shows off the different flavours of the scotch world: the spirit, the ex-bourbon, the sherry, the peat. If I had my druthers, Benromach would be the baseline malt for beginners, NOT Glenlivet or Glenfiddich.

It's okay in a pinch, but it's mixing whiskey through and through. Lacks the punch and the big flavours I associate with the Wild Turkey name. Much too tame for the dirty bird.

Rating closer to 3.5 than 3. It's not the 101 Rye, no, but as far as entry level straight ryes go, it's not bad: good balance of sweet and spice, fresh rye grain flavours and vanilla/caramel. Young and could use more proof, but as far as entry level straight ryes go it's a safe bet. Plays well in cocktails, too.

It's fine. Decent balance, interesting hints of banana. But it's a middle-shelf whiskey masquerading as a top-shelf choice. $55 in Canada, and so many better options out there for $10 or even $20 less.

Maybe it's just me, but this one was a huge disappointment. Nose shows a lot of promise--cotton candy, rich sweets, but the taste and finish are just unpleasant. Soggy, bitter, almost like bile. I'd take standard Woodford over this any day, and I'm not even a crazy big Woodford fan.

An early discovery on my bourbon journey, and not bad--smooth, sweet, the Beam nuttiness isn't egregious--but it's overpriced and is crying out desperately for 5-10 more ABV percentage points.

Wonderful stuff--caramel, cherry, apple, vanilla. Rich and flavorful. But there is barrel-to-barrel variance: I've had bottles that were merely good and bottles that were nearly transcendent. Usually, though, it's somewhere in between.