Tastes

Nose: a mainline malted scotch, nothing too out of the ordinary, honey, vanilla and a nice hint of cherries; bourbon lovers might recognize the nose once they get past the malt Palate: this is where this whisky shines, rich and balanced, baking spices, fruits Finish: medium with less spice at the end A very pleasant scotch from start to finish

Nose: sweet corn, vanilla, hints of cherry Palate: richer than the 80 proof but spicier than expected as the lower proof Rebel Yell was always pretty smooth if one dimensional. Finish: short to medium The nutty nose on this especially betrays what I imagine is Heaven Hill sourcing. I’d say this is a few points better than the 80 proof and since the price point is pretty similar I’d go for this one over the 80.

This is a single barrel store pick (but not barrel proof) from Cox’s & Evergreen, Louisville, KY USA Age: 6 years (barreled March 3, 2013) Barrel number: 6357498 Rickhouse: FF, Floor: 4 Nose: sweet dusty corn, vanilla, hints of baking spices and light fruits Palate: bright and spicy, with notes of orange and cinnamon Finish: creamy at first then ethanol flies in at the end with a decent bite and medium finish OK, as a Weller 12 & 107 superfan, I regularly recommend (and drink) widely available wheaters that I believe are just as good as Weller Special Reserve since that old staple has now been relegated to the Pappy insanity train. Makers Cask Strength, Makers 46 and Larceny are three I highly recommend. The two Makers Mark offerings more closely resemble Weller in my opinion and I would drink those any day since Weller has become so restricted under the supervision of Buffalo Trace. Larceny however is a toss up. It has the familiar Heaven Hill nuttiness that is polarizing in the bourbon community. I enjoy it. Some do not. Larceny barrel picks are pretty rare to find but I hope more barrels are provided going forward to see what this “baby Fitz” has to offer.

Batch 3: 2019 Purportedly a blend of 12 to 15-year-old bourbon from Tennessee. Can’t find the mashbill but previous releases have had 8% barley and 8% rye with the rest being corn. Nose: dusty dark fruits, possibly a little cherry, oak, vanilla, hints of cinnamon and apple Palate: rich and oily with plenty of rye spice, hint of more dark fruits, more oak Finish: medium to long, more rye spice Surprisingly spicy but as this is the first pour out of the bottle, I will revisit in a couple of weeks.

My 175th review. One of the staples that punches above its weight. Low-proof but rich in flavor and always dependable. Nose: vanilla, baking spices and hints of oak and honey (side note: *one or two* drops of water — and I emphasize one or two because that’s all you need to open up a little extra mint on the nose) Palate: rye spice comes in here and adds some extra bite not expected from an 80-proof whiskey Finish: medium, with smoothness not expected from a young, entry-level bourbon. Vanilla sweet returns here as well. One of the best $20-and-under bourbons you can buy, in my opinion.

Nose: raisins, caramel, hints of apple and nutmeg Palate: pleasantly spicy and rich, with cinnamon, banana Finish: short to medium

My favorite Irish at the moment. Twelve years for this is what 15 years is to many other whiskeys sans maybe bourbon. Nose: bright, great balance of barley notes with candied vanilla and butterscotch, hints of apple and honey biscuits Palate: sweet vanilla, pears and light nutmeg Finish: medium which is the weakest point of this whiskey. But overall fantastic.

Coming back to this after a few months... Nose: candy corn, vanilla, fruity Palate: rich with sweet and bright, with spicy vanilla, hints of butterscotch; the oaky flavors are rich but not overly oaked likely due to the only six years of aging Finish: medium with some lingering spice. A dash of water brightens this bourbon up and reminds me a lot of Bakers which is probably my favorite of the Beam small batches behind Knob Creek.

Nose: bready and light, the unmalted barley really helps offset the overly yeasty nose that many single malt scotches exhibit, hints of oak, vanilla, caramel and honey The nose and palate both are quite bright while also maintaining a complexity and richness. Palate: quite rich, as the age really shines in those oloroso sherry casks, and the single pot still opens up those grains; very balanced, and not too malty, nice vanilla spices and hints of citrus Finish: medium but the 80 proof drizzles down very smoothly. One of the richest 80-proof whiskeys you’ll taste. It’s quite impressive. This is also a great starter whiskey for bourbon fans to try when they want to branch out.

Placed firmly with what I like to call the staples of bourbon, Woodford Reserve is a great daily sipper; it’s always reliable and good for bourbon newcomers. It sits alongside the other staples of the price point: Elijah Craig, Buffalo Trace, Four Roses, Makers Mark and Wild Turkey. These five bourbons are a great introduction to high and low rye mashbills, wheaters and non. All are very approachable and reliable. Nose: vanilla, oak, hints of citrus. Palate: slight ethanol, but creamy enough to show off some brown sugar flavors and more vanilla and some baking spices. Finish: short to medium — the proof and age won’t win any complexity contests but this is a great definition of a classic standard bourbon