Tastes

Rating: 10/23 I've read good things about this in places and it's been weirdly unavailable recently, so I figure there might be some people out there who have discovered a big secret. I saw this next to Ancient Age on the shelf today after they were both absent for some time and thought about getting both, but decided to go with just this since I've had poor experiences with bottom shelf bourbons (heck - bottom shelf anything) in the past. N: Light. Lots of mineral, light caramel, a hint of musty wood or cardboard, a dash of cinnamon. Something kind of fruity and oily that reminds me a little bit of Irish whiskey. Not a very impressive nose, but there isn't anything offensive about it either. P: Very smooth and sweet. Nothing objectionable here, but nothing interesting either. It tastes young, but not so young that the white dog flavor starts coming through. There's a standard caramel flavor that maybe borders on butterscotch at times, along with some vanilla, anise (nothing at all close to that Jim Beam Black licorice though), a bit of cinnamon, and some mild tartness. There's a bit of woody richness that borders on milk chocolate at moments as well. That Irish whiskey oily fruit comes through here as well. There's definitely an alcohol flavor as well. It isn't bitter, harsh, or laced with chemicals, but it definitely makes me think of vodka. It's also kind of watery from the low proof and young age. Side by side with Wild Turkey 101, the ethanol really does come out and I get more of the vodka character. It has less heat than Ezra Brooks, but also less character. It's oilier and smoother. There's a sort of nectar quality that makes this surprisingly enjoyable, but far from great. F: The anise comes to the fore here, along with a bit of black pepper, and the alcohol of course. There's a lot of mineral and the caramel and other sweet flavors vanish fairly rapidly. Not great, but there still aren't any bad flavors in here. It's sweet and smooth, so it's as an intro and works OK for mixing. I tried it in a boulevardier and the result was pretty good. In this case though, I think that it might be a somewhat uniquely suitable choice because a boulevardier is just a slight variation on a negroni, which is lighter in the usual bourbon dimensions because, well, it uses gin. Side by side with Ezra Brooks though, this is just as light and is also less complex. Ezra is probably not as good as an intro bourbon, but it's definitely better overall. In a boulevardier, Ezra also adds more complexity. Given that the prices are so close, I don't see a reason to take this over Ezra. Wild Turkey 101 is absolutely better neat, but I can understand someone taking this instead in a boulevardier because it's so much sweeter. The Wild Turkey is more complex and herbal, but that does blur a bit with the Campari, so it's at least challenging. I actually might take the Ezra Brooks boulevardier over either of them. The more I have of this, the more it grows on me as an easy sipper. I still don't like it, but it's quite unobjectionable, so I don't mind having it around. At the end of the day, this is not at all challenging to sip, but it's boring. If I'm consuming stuff this bad for me, I want it to actually taste good (or at least be a small quantity and provide a unique experience). For a little bit more, Ezra Brooks (and probably also Evan Williams Black) is a slightly better choice in my book - though I can see how some will disagree. Even those though, I generally wouldn't buy because I can get Wild Turkey 101 for $20 or less. Yeah, it's twice as much as this, but it's quite sippable on its own. It isn't as easy of an introduction for bourbon novices though, so if that's what you're looking for, Early Times may be the right choice. Unless I'm trying to serve that specific situation of introducing someone to bourbon (or far less likely - putting cheap bourbon in a watered down mixed drink at a rager), I probably won't be buying this again. It's not awful (in fact, it's easy to down a dangerous amount of), but I'd rather pay up at least a little bit to get better quality. I'm going with a 10, though I wouldn't be shocked if I came back and increased that to an 11.

Rating: 15/23 I don't think that this is as excellent as I once did, but as a $20 bourbon (if you buy the handle), it's a good choice. N: Rich, woody, nutty, spicy, a bit oily. A very nice nose. There's some tartness and vanilla, but nothing too strong here. This smells decently old, though certainly not the 12 years that it used to be. I really enjoy this nose, moreso than I do that of Wild Turkey 101, which would be my other choice in the $20 range. P: Vanilla, caramel, spices (especially cinnamon), nuttiness, rich wood. This is a decadent palate. I'm quite impressed by this as a $20 bourbon. It isn't all that complex and the wood does show a bit much, leaving a hint of a used teabag flavor a times, but it's still a very enjoyable palate. Some air in the glass really does wonders for this too. F: The vanilla, cinnamon, and spices all really linger here. The heat does too, but it doesn't leave me with a sense of alcohol. It's quite a nice finish. This particular tasting actually surprised me. Side by side with Wild Turkey 101, I have to say that this came out on top. It didn't come out on top by a wide margin, but it did win. I don't think that it quite reaches the level of 1792 Single Barrel, though the two are closer than I'd expected. Russell's Reserve 10, on the other hand, is clearly superior to this, despite being lighter, due to its nicer balance and complexity. I started this tasting expecting to be pinning a 14 to this, but I'm now leaning toward a 15. Either way, it's a steal if you buy the handle.

Rating: 17/23 Eagle Rare always baffles me because depending on the state of my palate, it will either be mature and fruity with a bit of smoke or lightly fruity with bland minerals. Weirdly, the latter case is what I normally get when I have what I would consider to be a pristine palate. Bottle kill tasting here, with a sneak peek at my next bottle at the end. This bottle is almost comically low and it has seen a lot of oxygen. So glad I have a couple more in the bunker. Next time I find this for $30 or less, I need to buy half a case (unless this tasting makes me hate Eagle Rare or something). N: This is a really interesting nose. I'm getting the smoke and nice cherry this time along with some marzipan, mellow-yet-mature wood, and acceptable minerals a la Russell's Reserve 10. This seems richer than Russell's Reserve 10 though, going more toward hedonism than edgy cleanness. There's perhaps a hint of savoriness left over from the distillation, but after 10 years, it's mostly gone. P: Sweet, ripe cherry that at times borders on candy, mixed with some clean minerals and a rich, mellow, nutty wood layer that gradually brings in a little bit of candied orange peel and rich vanilla, then some light smoke to round it out. There's a layer of spice that is just a bit of pepper and cinnamon, keeping this from tasting watery. It's a nice balance of very nice flavors that all stand out and while the flavor is a bit light in a couple of areas, it does come across as mature and smooth. F: The fruit really remains, along with some wood richness and a dash of creosote bitterness that ties the wood to the smoke nicely. The spices include some clove as well here and the minerality remains, but does not overly detract from the core richness. This is a darned fine bourbon. While there are moments when I find the minerality to be a bit much, it's very mature with some delightful flavors to it that balance well. At $30, this is a steal! I'm putting this in the 17 to 18 range, but I haven't quite made up my mind yet. So how does it compare with my next bottle? Well, I have to say that I do not like the next one's neck pour all that much. It's a solid bourbon, but it's vastly inferior to this one. It has a lot more mineral, its cherry is more youthful, and the alcohol is a bit more biting. It has a bit of that metallic element that annoys me in WTRB. Side-by-side, Russell's Reserve 10 is a fuller and more complex. I don't have enough bottles in this range on hand at this moment to compare my new bottle with to establish a rating I really trust, but it seems fairly similar in quality to Elijah Craig Small Batch. Based on what I do have available and my recollections of other bourbons, I would guess that the new bottle is currently in the 14 to 15 range. Not a bad buy at $30, but for about the same price, I'd lean toward Russell's Reserve 10. As disappointing as this may sound though, I actually interpret it a likely good news! I haven't heard complaints of Eagle Rare batch variation, so my interpretation is that while the new Eagle Rare tastes immature, the one that's been heavily oxidizing for something like a year now has improved substantially. This makes me hopeful that the Sazerac that I recently opened and was disappointed by the immaturity of will improve similarly. It also makes me hopeful that my Russell's Reserve 10 will improve similarly with age, eclipsing Eagle Rare 10 so that I don't need to keep hunting for this stuff as its price heads skyward. It will be interesting to compare my new Russell's Reserve Single Barrel with the incredibly heavily oxidized one that I'm about to kill to see if I notice a development of similar character. If so, this also suggests that Wild Turkey Rare Breed could continue to improve with age! So, yeah, that's a 14-15 for the neck of the new bottle and a 17-18 for the old one. I'd kind of decided that Wild Turkey Rare Breed (116) was a 19 and this was about halfway between that and Russell's Reserve 10 (a 16), but I wasn't sure whether I'd be calling it a high 17 or a low 18. Side by side with a Wild Turkey that's had a good 20 minutes to breathe, I have to say that the gap in quality between the two is more than I'd expected, so I need to go with a 17 for this.

Spices and red fruit are clearly present. Cinnamon and ginger are there at the start, but then the cinnamon is replaced by a little bit of clove as the red fruit fades away. The flavor is mild and sweet, though its quick finish tends to dry the mouth. I wish that the four were smoother and had more depth so that it didn't taste like cherries in vodka, but I appreciate that there is not an overpowering flavor of sour wood. I'm not sure what the point of this drink is though since it isn't deep enough to be sippable and is too mild for mixing. The floral notes that come with a big sip push it up past the ranks of those somewhat interesting but oppressively woody Bourbons though. Dry with some spice (cinnamon and white pepper) and minerals. The spice isn't overpoweringly strong, but it is definitely present. As it goes on, a bit of wood comes out and mingles with some rye and hints of orange. Fruit waves it's arms desperately in the background, but it is not very strong and it's hard to pick out just what fruit it is. There are hints of vanilla and some lighter floral notes, but they are barely present. I appreciate how it backs off from the in-your-face attitude that is characteristic of many Bourbons and how it has a variety of mostly balanced flavors, but it errs a bit much on the subtle side. There is a nice underlying rich flavor, but I wish there were more of it. I would sip this, but not enthusiastically. There's rye, but not an overwhelming spiciness (though there is plenty of cinnamon). Some red fruit is here and it mixes its flavor in well. It's sweet, but also drying in a balanced way. There is a little showing of rich toastiness in here, but it is not as much as I would like. The bitter finish with a bit much alcohol and rye is not great and there could be some more complexity, but the overall flavor is still good. I wish that it had less mineral and a more robust flavor, but it is actually quite good. It smells rancid, but also light and fruity with some complexity from floral notes. The palate is mild for a bourbon, with a lot of minerals and floral flavors coming through. Spices do prick their way in, but this isn't a fiery drink. There are lots of subtle notes that can be appreciated even though the mineral flavor is a bit strong considering the floral presence.