Tastes

A (wider) re-release of an extant label (the "Crested Ten"), Jameson Crested's biggest problem is that it doesn't really seem to know where it fits in the already crowded Jame-o line-up: more expensive than the entry level, a couple bucks more than the Caskmates, and pretty close to the same price as the Black Barrel. In the long-run, I think that confusion's going to hurt it, but on its own merits, the whiskey itself is pretty nice. Smell is pot still dough/yeast, big honey, caramelized sugars, vanilla bean, grass and hay, maple syrup, and some slight syrupy red fruits (berries in the distance?). Taste has a bit of heat for 40% ABV, and shows a lot of similarities to the entry level Jameson: honey, bitter citrus, chalky vanilla, leafy, grassy, hay, apple skins, almonds--but again, there's that hint of the sherried fruitiness, if only slightly (raspberries? underripe strawberries?). A bit peppery. Body itself is slight, but not underwhelming (though--as with all Jameson offerings--it's crying out for more proof), with a decent creaminess. Finish is warming honeyed sweetness and just a touch of vanilla. Faint fruit salad in the far, far distance. A nice "I'm not thinking about this too much" whiskey, but I'm ultimately not sure if there's *enough* sherry character here (or added age) to differentiate it from the entry-level Jameson. Why the four-star rating then, you ask? Well, I guess I'm like Jimmy McNulty: never had a Jameson I didn't like.

(Barrel #JB5423) Like the so-so album from a favourite band, this one's for the completists only. In theory, it's a great idea--what would the entry-level Beam taste like with all the nonsene stripped away. But in practice, all the nonsense *isn't* being stripped away, because most of the uniqueness is still being filtered out, pre-bottling. Smell is mainly caramel corn, a bit of semi-sweet chocolate, plums, creamed corn, slight cherry syrup, and nutty Beam funk. But it's all pretty restrained, even at 95 proof. And the taste is even more restrained: surprisingly muted in ABV *and* flavour. Slightly watery texture, more caramel corn, tobacco, a bit of sour milk, some candied nuts, bitter citrus pith, bitter chocolate, chalk. A bit gritty and tannic on the finish. On the plus side, the Single Barrel dodges the main problem I have with entry-level Beam (the saccharine sweetness). On the other hand, I'd much prefer to dish out the extra $15 or $20 for Baker's or Booker's--two high-proof Beam offerings that aren't overly filtered, and thus have some genuine character.

The caveat here is that I've always thought Beam's ryes were the real stars of the line-up, with just enough spice and herb to play well with that funky yeast. I genuinely *like* Old Overholt, for example. And Beam Rye is basically Overholt at a higher proof and with just a whisper more age. Smell is herbal, vanilla, a bit of paint thinner, nutty, caramel, slightly medicinal, vegetal. Taste is sweet, herbal (caraway, clove, cinnamon), light bitter citrus, maple syrup, vanilla, chalk. The finish is where the nutty Beam yeast asserts itself. Short, drying, with a bit of a bitter dry wood tang. Not necessarily a sipper, but for the price, I'm on-board.

My first thought that this was just a silly gimmick. And don't get me wrong: it *is* certainly a silly gimmick (I suspect JW has long been using ex-rye barrels; they've just been treated as indistinguishable from ex-bourbon barrels--until now, when American whiskey has become huge business worth cashing in on). But it's also not a bad little blend, and (despite my doubts) a bit of the spicy, herbal, "green" American rye character actually *does* come through. Smell is vanilla, toffee, some interesting funk (reminiscent of something I've encountered in Nikka whiskeys before), bubblegum, caramel, clove, light baking spice, mint. Taste is pretty soft, with vanilla, clove, some generic fruitiness, and herbacious bite. A bit of dry wood that lingers on into the finish, along with some burnt caramels. We're not talking a world-class whisky here, but the novelty, the semi-craft presentation (46% ABV, though chill-filtered), semi-reasonable price ($45 USD), and otherwise limited selection at a lot of airport duty-free shops makes it a fairly attractive option for home-consumption or gifting alike. Splits the difference between the American and Scotch whisk(e)y categories--the sweetness and herbaciousness of a bourbon/rye, the delicacy of a scotch blend.

The knock against Peat Monster often seems to be that it's not peaty enough. But believe me: it's plenty peaty. Not Laphroaig-levels of phenol, but there's more than enough to go around. And because it's a blend, you get the different kinds of peat flavours mingling together: Smoke, BBQ, tar, vanilla, wet grass, a little caramel, some citrus. Youthful heat, but nice flavour, though you could benefit from rounding it off with some sherried fruitiness.

What surprises me most about Old Forester is that I actually like it more than its supposed "top shelf" older sibling, Woodford Reserve. It's not a perfect bourbon by any stretch (and, if pressed, I'd prefer its 100 proof iteration), but it's a good deal and would make for a decent enough "table whiskey," if that's your thing. Smell is cotton candy, peaches, baking spices, a bit of nuttiness, vanilla, caramel. Some heat/sharpness, some fatty smoked meat. Taste is a bit thin and hot, and the dominant note is the nuttiness (not too far from a Beam-type funk), but there are hints of what could be: that peach or peach juice, caramel, vanilla, faint pickle. The finish the weakest part of the equation--poorly integrated soggy wood, brine, caramel, char. Fix that finish and you've got a great low-mid-shelf steal.

Do not get me wrong: this is not a great whiskey, or even a well-above average whiskey. But for the price and purpose, it's gold. Tasting notes seem futile, given that this is something tailor-made to be consumed in shot form. But there's legitimate *flavour* here--sweetness, nuttiness, some herbal character and baking spice. And these, combined, make it a pleasant sip. I would not seek this out for its complexity, or for its character in cocktails (ABV is too low), but as a beer + back combo, it is--frankly--superb.

Aesthetically, I dig the re-branding. On principle, I'm annoyed by the loss of the age statement. But in practice, it's pretty much a wash anyway, because the whiskey itself is still pretty generic. Nose is custard and bananas. Some cinnamon and baking spice, quite a bit more singe on the nostrils than I’d expect from a premium offering. Mint, vanilla. Rye bread. Raw sugar? Barrel char. Faintly medicinal or herbal. Licorice? Light toffee. Slight mango? Almost malty and scotch-like (I’ve heard Barton uses more barley than most US distilleries in its mashbill)? Very similar to what I recall of its precursor. Taste is, again, similar to what I recall: hot, thin, light cherry liqueur, bitter citrus pith (grapefruit). Pretty dry, aside from an initial hit of sweetness right at the beginning of the sip. Custard, a touch of banana. Toasted wood, vanilla, a bit of butterscotch. Dry maple tree sap? Baking spices playing around in the background. Peppery throughout. Orange. Herbal, medicinal. A bit of caraway and clove? Finish is dry, herbal, woody, yeasty. Fine enough, but overpriced for what you're getting and--to be candid--it's not even substantively better than Very Old Barton Bottled-in-Bond.

Barrel #16-1353 (bottled 2-24-16). Colour on this guy is a surprising almost-wine-finished ruby/chestnut, although holding it up to the light reveals the colour to have a certain thin-ness to it. Initial smell (Distiller's notes ain't lying) IS seriously a pretty intense banana candy (Runts is the brand-name; if you've never had them, the other analogue might be that banana-flavoured medicine, Amoxicillin). Maple syrup. Fuzzy marker, slightly metallic. Creamed corn. Sweet mint and herbal notes, some floral character, and--way distant--are the bakery/deli smells I usually associate with rye (clove, dill, caraway, baking bread). Smoky BBQ sauce. Taste offers an initial soft sweetness, then the heat grows. But there are some interesting things going on here--think regular JD on steroids, but with a distinct sense of the grain: maple syrup, more banana, custard, bitter fruits (cranberry?), deli spices. As with most JD products, the weakness is in the finish, which leans a bit soggy, metallic, and faintly bile-ish--but less egregiously so than many of its siblings, I must say. All told, it's not bad. It's definitely a member of the JD family (the sugar maple, the banana-flavour, some corn sweetness), it's definitely a bit overpriced, and it could definitely use another year or so for the flavours to integrate more fully. All told, though, it's STILL my favourite entry in the Jack Daniel's line-up.