Tastes

375ml poured neat into mini snifter at home. Nose is classic straight bourbon vanilla and oak, touch of heat. Taste more of the same, with some mild spice notes, nice lasting well-balanced finish. A solid bourbon. 7/3/19

750ml poured neat in a rocks glass at B Side in Merrifield, VA. Nose is mild, with apple peel, lite grass. Taste has spice, oak, hay. Finish has lingering spice. This is good. 7/3/19

Somehow I have never tasted this until now. 750ml poured neat in rocks glass at B Side in Merrifield, VA. Nose has vanilla, apples, chestnut. Mild, buttery. Taste is spicy, touch of heat, baking spices (getting cloves and nutmeg), maybe cedar. Lingering spice all over. Good, quite good. 7/3/19

Bottle pour neat at Partisan DC. Decent price of $14 for a high-end DC spot. Spicy oak, caramel, and vanilla on the nose. Taste has more heat and more spice, some complex grains playing around. Very long finish, tons of character here. I really enjoy this. 7/3/19

Two ounces poured neat in Glencairn at The Partisan in DC. Vanilla, spice, grains, hay, cherries. Lasting complex finish, lingering spice with touch of heat. Beautiful. At $14 a pour in an upscale DC establishment, this was a true steal. Love this. 7/3/19

Poured neat into Glencairn at home. Nose has caramel, Dr. Pepper, oak. Nice. Taste is a tad bitter, more spicy, more oak on the finish. Touch thin. Lingering spicy aftertaste. Water opens up some vanilla and malt. OK. 6/26/19

50ml bottle neat in Glencairn at home [came attached as a bonus on a bottle of Balcones classic]. Nose is a smack of popcorn and ethanol, with some dried grass and a hint of sweet caramel. Taste is more popcorn, less heat, some grass and hay. Some lingering burnt heat in the back of throat. Nope, not for me. 6/26/19.

50ml poured neat into Glencairn at home. Bottle proclaims this was "AGED 12 MONTHS" with the "12" accentuated in an almost comically misleading way. Nose is full of hay, grass, dust, spent rye. Lack of age really showing here. Taste is more of the same, with an unpleasant thin rye bite. Cardboard and kerosene immediately come to mind. Thin, grassy, really unpleasant. Total fail, frankly doubt that actually aging this for an appreciable amount of time would do any good. tl;dr - "Yuck" 6/21/19

750ml poured neat into Glencairn at home. Nose is fiery, with rye spice, oak, and some orange peel. Taste is more subdued on the front, with the spice and oak balanced fairly well. The finish is a lingering spicy kick. One dimensional, though not without some character. Would be decent as a strong cocktail base. Neat, well ... eh. Hell of a bargain for the proof anyway.