Tastes

Nose: raisins and other dark fruits, nuts Taste: cherries and oak Finish: medium Overpriced. When this first came out it reminded me of Double Oaked. Now its closer to OF100.

Still one of my absolute favorite, always available, perfectly-price bourbons on the shelf. Nose: oak, cherries, cocoa, apples, cinnamon Taste: vanilla and baking spices, rich fruit Finish: medium

I used to find this at $30 a bottle. It was a steal! Others have caught on and I see this at $50 in 2024, so the rating and value have dropped a bit. Still it’s a great, findable 10-year age stated bourbon that is consistently good. Nose: oak, corn, molasses, mint, caramel Taste: vanilla, baking spices Finish: medium

Glendronach 12 is one of my favorite scotches. This older version doesn’t disappoint & at under $100 is a decent value. Nose: toasted caramel, tobacco, slightly smoked fruit hints of dusty oak Taste: rich sweet berries, vanilla, baking spices, malt I hear the old version was better but never had it to compare. Finished: medium

It’s been years since I had a Jefferson’s Ocean bourbon that was memorable. But this rye is very unique. Nose: toast and molasses, dill pickle, candy corn Taste: clasic rye but hints of vanilla baking spice you’d find in bourbon. Finish: medium

I have reviewed this whiskey a lot, but I just picked up a bottle for $20! At that price this 101-proof bourbon is the best on the shelf period.

I really wanted to like this bourbon. But I can’t get past the price point. It’s a solid $35 bourbon that I could see going up against Knob Creek 120 or Wild Turkey 101 but it’s definitely not worth double that — even with the barrel proof. Nose: caramel, cinnamon, fruits Taste: vanilla and baking spices Finish: more cinnamon but short

I reviewed this bourbon about two years ago, and I think it’s gotten even better. Can’t go wrong with the 9, 12 or (if you can find it at retail) the 15-year. KC is one of the consistently top 5 bourbons every year.

I like a good cheap bottle of JW Black, but I was underwhelmed by this. Definitely not worth the price point to me. It tasted like a $75 bottle, not $200. Nose: dried fruit, sweet wheat biscuit cereal Taste: strawberries with decent smoke Finish: medium to long, with a waxy aftertaste

Nose: cherries and oak, cherries and oak, cherries and oak. Taste: unlike Makers Mark which also has a flavorful cherries and oak smell, Larceny’s does not carry over to the palate. Just ethanol and wheat spice. Bitter. Finish: short. The older Fitzgeralds are great (too bad you can’t find them anywhere). But this is not. Occasionally a barrel pick will shine but I mostly avoid this. Makers is better in every way.