Tastes

So a unique mash bill on a bourbon made god knows where. 130 bucks for 15 year CS bouron...at least that seems reasonable. Nose - Orchard fruits, sweet sugars, of course your caramel and vanilla. A lighter profile but very gentle and inviting. Taste - I don't think it's barton lol....as that seems to be ALL the 12-15 year old juice coming out lately. But it could be? There's this nutty finish and a sweet, really sweet clean candy up front. There's oak on the back end but we're far from too much oak. Spicy notes on the finish, super sweet up front. Dang this is a tasty bourbon. Just well done mix of sweet, spice, and a touch of dusty notes. The funny thing is this very well could have been aged another 5 years I gave a 3.25 to this year's 2020 four roses. I'm going to give this one the same score. It's not better, in many ways it is less complex, but it's also really well done in a lot of ways. More importantly, it is less flawed. If you see this one, 2600 bottles...buy it.

So I grabbed this yesterday for 170 + I had to spend 1k at the store for the right. Thankfully a store I spend money at so I just grabbed a four gate batch 1 and got this to go with it. Win win? Well lets see. Nose - rich sweetness and yet thin? Classic four roses well aged notes, well aged of course for 2020 where 10 years is well aged, not 2000 where 15-18 was normal. The more I dig in I get OLD whisky but burnt and over charred oak, but wonderful butter sweet and brown sugar and baking spices and all that wonderful four roses good notes. The nose is very nice and good but kinda to be honest the oak is old but the sweetness is young and that is fine on the nose. Actually, I get young and old here...it's weird, a part of me before I read the age statements thought this didn't have anything over 15 years, but there is that over oaked note. Taste - So the flavor is that of a nice four roses where I get spice and brown sugar BIG TIME! But the more I dig the more I get over oaked notes like an EC18 mixed in with rich rich four roses. There's a wonderful sweetness up front but it's not really topping a sam houston 14 year in terms of apples and cinnamon. So yeah I find this as a wonderful four roses pick or something, the problem is this is the 170 dollar LE where they blend it with 12+ year old bourbons. This is 12-19 year old boubon and my only "old" note is over oaked EC18....that sucks! I did a blind today with this in it with the 2019, a 10 year single cask, and an old carter batch 5 (I'm on record as not a fan). Anyway I had this 3rd behind the single barrel at 10 years and 3 months. This is really nice but it's not up to their standards. So I'm between a 2.75 and a 3.0. I gave the 2019 a 4.25, So maybe this is a 3.25. Yeah I'm upping my gut score because the complexity here is crazy but guys....this is over oaked on one of the barrels and it isn't helping. They missed the mark but didn't miss as this is still wonderful stuff that for 100 bucks I'd grab 2 of.

So been working on this for a bit, I'll do my best. nose - Traditional grain notes with a lot of vanilla, grain, grape, and a hint of dark fruit. Some richer creams and alcohol. Taste - Again grain, classic grain scotch. There's a lot of creamy buttery vanilla desserts. Pastry crust for sure. Then we have some metallic notes on the finish. Gosh the up front is so soft and sweet. The finish brings in some chocolates and chewy nugget notes. Clean and light white chocolate here. So yeah this is reasonable old for scotch but for grain blends it's ok. A huge step up from the standard but I'm still just at a 2.0. I won't consider buying again. I like it enough, but it's pretty average overall and the price sucks. I can see why some are bigger fans and if you like grain go for it. I like "The Muse" WAY WAY more, it's far richer and better made. I scored that a 3.0 which might be low but this isn't close.

Oh what is wrong with me? I buy whisky with no chance? Oh well So bottle is stupid looking, thanks Nike designer. The butterfly is kinda cool, I guess? Or tacky? Anyway no value in the display, but props on the synthetic cork. nose - a good depth and body to the nose. Vanilla sweetness, clean oak, but the alcohol is still there in spades. I'll see how water works. Water makes the oak more clear and it's a nice oak. Taste - Barton is known for being clean but this isn't just barton. This remains super clean whisky but there's a depth and backbone to this one. It's rich and flavorful, but not complex. This is generic bourbon but there's a depth and mineral note on the back end. The focus is creamy and rich, but not spicy or that rich dark sugar's sweetness either. Water teases out more sweetness. This is good but I can't really describe it as it's barton, it's boring and yet good. Balanced and even is really what barton does. So score? Well the bottle is a 0, lol. Ok the bourbon? 2.5. Above average but lacking.

So this will have me complete in my reviews of the local barely range. This one is also a sample I hate to say, but here we go. 100% bourbon casks here. Nose - well yeah a bit uneventful front so I can see where the wine casks were helping before. That barely and springbank sweetness is still here. I'm oddly not getting a lot of funk or peat or salt here, it's there but this is a softer version. I do get a touch of apple and pear, slight. Then some oak, wet oak. Young whisky for sure but well done malt and good casks with a nice abv. Taste - Chocolate, salted caramel, oak, earthy notes. Finish is long, intense, and coating. Guys, this is why I LOVE springbank. The malt is so complex with that mix of peat and funk and just the dunnage warehouse epic....and then they turn it up with freaking locally grown barely? Everything about this is youthful rich bourbon casks and spirits but springbank does it SO WELL. This is just truly epic distillate where mistakes don't matter. Now back to objective reviewing. Yeah it's a bit young, the spirit is a touch hot. It's good, very very good. But am I in love with it? Yeah...I kinda am lol. Will you be though? And that's the rub, do you REALLY love what springbank does? if so yep, it's for you. If you're more into older or more wine finished bottles from them, this isn't for you. This is SPRINGBANK at 11. I'm a 3.75 for this one. It's great and I could do this all day, but an assertive younger whisky that's got great distillate is still just that, even if it's my favorite of favorites.

This review shouldn't exist. I have way too little of this to even try and review it, but I MUST because I need to mark this day and this memory down. So I won't dwell long on politics but lets just say these last two elections have been a drain on me, and dang near everyone else alive. It seems we in the US have a new President, we'll see, and while the stress of no longer having to listen to and deal with the day to day insanity seems good, god we didn't really upgrade. So in celebration of ending my least favorite president of my life time and to drowned my pain for a new president I hate too....lets do something SPECIAL! A whisky selling for near 1k and while I have less than half an oz...I'll do my best guys. Sorry to bring in politics but that's why I'm pouring and perhaps that's important to know the mindset of the drinker. Happy and yet not happy, 2020 in a nutshell? Ok nose - Oh my! Salty sweet and oaky. I get the love already. I can't make out this fruit on here but there's a glorious fruit with sugars and salt on it. The overall profile here is candy sugar and sweetness to 11 with salty and peaty notes to balance from the springbank. I'm not picking up distinct barely just yet. Ok going back in the local barely element is there, but it's candied barely, you can tell the age of this has shifted it form a the newer spirit forward expressions and this which has good cask maturation coming in. Still at 16 years the spirit hasn't lost its vibrancy. Taste - Rich and malty, chocolatey, savory, salty, a mars bar, and then swallowing a wonderful peaty and earthy springbank finish. OK now getting some more chocolates and even some dark french vanilla, and just oak and peat. Man this is peated. The nice barely from springbank is coming in. A second pour and that finish is amazing and the peat and barely and sweetness. Tootsie rolls are coming out both the vanilla and regular. I hate to score this on such a small sample but this is better than the first 10 year. The richness and depth is just perfect. 4.25. No, not a 1k bottle but god bless this is good.

So I got a very small sample of this and plan to re-review tomorrow or the next day on the second half of this one. Nose - This is bright and really fresh. Almost taking me to one of those commercial for ocean spray where fruits and sea water slash you in the face. It's clean and without much fuss and no element is jumping out. Digging deeper however I start to get earthy note, barely, and oak. The fruit that was never strong subsides. Then the whisky starts to yield to sweetness of the malt. Nothing complex, nothing exciting. Just nice pleasant sweetness. Overall this is less cask forward than the 9 year and less fruity and sherry forward than the first 10 year. I'm however finding it less interesting than either. Adding water and sugary sweetness comes out but so does wet saw dust and salty sea air. Taste - unlike the nose the taste is much more bold and over powering. Sugary sweet, salty, and oak driven with a long oaky and smokey finish. Water increases the sugars, very classic cane sugar, then in comes new make springbank peated glory. Barely quickly takes over and dominates the finish and mouth. Unlike the 9 year which I think is new make forward with some citrus notes, the new 10 brings in some bourbon cask sweetness and while young the youthful exuberance is exciting and leads to a lot of detective work as I try and figure this bold flavor bomb out. This reminds me of a bookers bourbon, big, BOLD, rich, pushing loudly forward with the distillery character as well as the local barley character, but kinda lacking in the depth and complexity and ultimately drinking like a far less expensive whisky. As I love the complexity of springbank and the barely notes, I cannot drop this one too far down, but to read that this is 30% sherry and 3% port...I'm barely finding any distinct cask notes, or at least I didn't until I added a 3rd rather large drop of water. With that yes some of those notes do start to bubble up, but none the less I think this one is a step down from the last edition. 3 stars, good stuff, but only buy if you're a springbank geek.

The new and oldest Big Peat at 33 year old, one of 1500 bottles, aged in XO and Sherry casks, and priced under 300 USD. Checking some boxes! Nose - one of the most interesting experiences of the year. Cognac is dominate here. Earthy and classic "scotchy butter scotch" with slight orchard fruit, and billowing smoke. Deep whiffs into the copita bring out some alcohol bite. Marmalade and custards are showing up. I get an ever so light hint of wood, but more of an exotic oak, not your traditional oaks. There's an ever so light funky oak, almost a wet oak. Hint of confectionery sugar. Even a hint of grape (cognac?). Overall the net nose is leaning savory with salty elements and buttery notes balancing the sweet. 30+ minutes in the glass and spices are coming up, slightly baking spices and slightly oak spice. Complex as heck for sure, but I'm not sure I'm there in terms of greatness. Here's to hoping it tastes epic! Taste - well, i'm kinda less impressed. Second, pour as the first left me a bit underwhelmed. The opening is rich sweetness with light oak notes, rich sugars and a nice mix of that cognac and yes now sherry casks are clearly coming out. Then it transitions to mint and menthol and then loads of bitter oak. Super cooling on the finish after being warm and inviting up front. I'm digging it. So I'm at a 3.5 but I'll come back to see if it opens up. A good value but not great.

Re-review this time with batch 20-01 and it came out before the new 108.7 standard which was belle meade accepting they were putting out an inconsistent product! Nose - So there's a bit of a fruity and yet dry and not sweet element to the nose. Earthy oak notes are balanced with alcohol and bourbon in a really nice neutral level. That said the nose is really enjoyable. It's this caramelized sugar that means a dusty barn with some clean hay and some pastry crust with a really nice touch of savory on an otherwise sweet dram. Balanced in a way that's rare with single malts or bourbons. Taste - This is such a classic bourbon. The nose leads me to expect something a bit out there and MGP can be just that. This isn't at all. It's a rush of vanilla and caramel with an ever so slight rye spice and then just wonderfully balanced oak coming in to bring things together. The rye here is playing so wonderfully well with this creamy Sweet vanilla. Where buffalo trace is the definition of a classic bourbon if you're into 100 or less proof stuff, this is classic bourbon at 112 proof with a rye kick for connoisseurs. Medium finish. Slight funky elements and maybe the most vanilla forward CS whisky I can recall. I'm feeling generous as heck and want to go 3.0, but my rational self will stay 2.75. This batch at about 70 is an easy as hell buy. Heck get 2. These sell fast here but they're not impossible to get or even that hard, I've seen multiple bottles at multiple stores. Oh well, I'm just glad it means I can find better bourbon while other chase blantons for their cute little polo topper.

I'm back and bringing yet another Old Carter review. For those out of the loop the Old Carter line is whiskey that's been blended by a couple in I believe the Louisville area who have a back ground from blending wine. They generally are sourcing MGP and they pay absolute top dollars to get any barrel they want. They however dabble in just about everything from rye to bourbon to american to now....a Kentucky Straight Whiskey. So we know this one isn't MGP. I've not yet been able to figure out the source but when (not if) I figure it out I'll let you know. Nose - The nose is very floral, almost like going into a bed bath and beyond. I am picking up some distinct almost orange cleanser. Oak here is very much on the pine spectrum giving me a youthful note and this being NAS, I suppose it might just be that. As it warms I get a VERY distinct spice that I KNOW I've gotten on beers in the past, but for the life of me I can't place. It had me in the Juniper or Hibiscus...kinda spices added to a belgium white ale or something along those lines. And more of that rich orange cleaner note. Taste - That orange cleaner explodes on the front of the tongue. It's rich and citrus as really know other whisky has ever done. Once I swallow there's a wave of alcohol oak and floral spice. One hell of a big bold and crazy unique ride. Water brings out more oak and tames some of the drying effects of the high proof but not all. I'm not sure orange cleaner has ever been used as a favorable whisky note, I know it sounds awful to me, but I'm rather enjoying this. It's about as big a kick in the mouth from alcohol and spice as I've had. It's also just down right enjoyable. I have no idea what the Carters did here, but I'm in for a 2.75, very good whisky, but not getting into anything that's a real stand out. I wouldn't say it's a good value at 180 bucks, but it's so unique and different that I think it just might be worth a one time buy to share with friends and explore a different flavor profile than we're used to. I look forward to coming back to this bottle a few years down the road and seeing how it has changed and I look forward to seeing batch 2 to see how weird they go.