Tastes

Look: Sazerac appears a burnt orange, with golden hues. Plenty of pacing is prominent on the glass, with thick alcohol legs pulled down by gravity toward the bottom of the glass Aroma: while rye spices are the first thing that pop in the nose, this has the scent of a not so high rye mash bill. Slight cinnamon, clove, then more brown sugar and vanilla notes. The aroma seems somewhat faint compared to others with a similar price point. Taste: the rye makes a strong presence initially, with peppery notes and cinnamon showing their way to the middle of my tongue. The middle shows more sweetness which continues in the finish. Feel: minimal heat, Sazerac is very easy to drink, medium bodied, with a pretty mellow finish. Overall: Sazerac, a well known rye, is tasty, but not as flavorful as I had hoped for. While a minimal finish may be appealing to some, the weak finish was a disappointment. Good, not great.

Look: burnt orange, like the sun going down on a spring evening, such as tonight. Tons of lacing as I move the juice around, leaving alcohol legs dripping down the sides. Aroma: without swirling, I am hit with rye spice initially on the nose, and brown sugar. Swirling opens up more sweet notes of caramel, vanilla, slight oaky notes, nothing crazy. Palate: I get more vanilla, fruity notes than I’d expect from the nose up front, mid palate getting some spiciness and a finish that is very caramel forward. The rye notes hit the high gear in the finish as well. Finish: this is one of the hotter bourbons I’ve had, with the finish lingering long, and strong. Very nice, and reminds you what to look forward to in the next sip. Overall: An incredible value buy, Old Grand Dad BiB was looked over by myself due to the price point, and ratings I’d seen on this site. Recommended by others for value, and given a sample by a co worker, I see no reason not to grab this regularly.

Look: a nice golden wheat color, small lacing on the glass when swirled Nose: almost all that medicinal, minty rye aroma, some sweet oaky notes as well. Taste: baking spices, oak, mint, cloves, slight caramel sweetness. Good stuff Feel: fairly limited burn, with a pretty quick finish. Oily mouthfeel. Overall: this is a great rye, enough rye to give you some exciting flavors, but also very little alcohol burn that makes it hard to drink neat

Look: burnt orange, as usual, though not terribly dark. Plenty of legs on this guy. Nose: dill, brown sugar Taste: dill, cinnamon brown sugar Feel: long and lingering, Willet 3 Year has a burn in the finish, and really lasts. Overall: My first reaction was positive, but after trying again, I get the dill that’s noted by others and strong rubbing alcohol. Not in love with this.

Look: a very dark burnt orange, Wild Turkey 101 looks great in the glass. Not much for pacing or alcohol legs when swirling the bourbon in the glass. Nose: initial notes are almonds, with caramel vanilla, oak and rye coming with more agitation of the bourbon. Taste: sweet initially with the brown sugar, rye and the almond flavor come more mid palate, with the rye spices dominating the finish. Feel: this being 101 proof, there’s certainly a burn in the finish, as well a long finish. Overall: Wild Turkey 101 is my go to bourbon under $30. Underrated, and flavorful.

Look: the color comes in at a burnt orange, fairy dark, but not exactly brown. Slight alcohol legs show with a swirl of the glass. Nose: plenty of rye aspects pop out, but seem a little light. All spice, clove, caramel. Taste: plenty of the rye shows initially, with spice hitting the front of my tongue. After a few sips, the middle of the mouth gets some pear/apple/fruity notes, followed by more caramel, vanilla and rye. Feel: the heat isn’t terribly high on this, with little burn. The finish is shorter as well. Overall: a nice bourbon, but it’s not going to knock Rittenhouse rye off my preferred bottled in bond rye. Probably about a 3.5

Nose: initially a milder nose, caramel, oak, then more rye cinnamon. Taste: rye comes to play in a big way with the cinnamon being around throughout, some sweetness closer to the front of the tongue caramel oakiness, brown sugar Finish: there’s definitely some heat on this bottle, with a lingering burn and flavor sticking around. Relatively drying as well.

Nose had lots of vanilla, cherry, almonds, Taste: more spice than expected with some of that fruit, oakiness and slight nuttiness

Nose: cinnamon, vanilla, so much spice Taste: serious cinnamon all spice, pepper, followed by waves of vanilla and sweetness. Caught a slight cola and an apple pear note The finish has a slight lingering burn with that sweet vanilla caramel lingering. My favorite rye

The nose shows lots of vanilla, some spice, and more sweetness The first thing that hits is spice on the tip of my tongue. The flavor then mellows out to sweeter vanilla, corn, and more subdued rye and some fruity notes The feel has some hotter notes initially, but mellows out with a short lingering sweetness