Tastes

Cream of kentucky is one of these never ending older kentucky bourbons that seems to be coming out lately. It's proofed well enough. I don't know much about where it was sourced from. I do know it's got a good age statement and so far the releases have been good but not exciting. Nose - generic and classic bourbon. Vanilla, caramel, corn, very light oak to the point I could have forgotten about it. There's a nice amount of nutty oak elements but the balance here and the focus is really on that "classic" vanilla, caramel, and corn. Taste - The name cream of kentucky makes it impossible for me to not think cream when I drink this. It's creamy vanilla with a lightly spiced oak. The real showcase here is a very nice sweet opening that's not over the top. The finish is starting to show that 13 year old bourbon, and while this might be the lightest oaked 13 year ever, it's still there. Overall this is a pretty well made bourbon, it's full of flavor but nothing jumps out, it's creamy and thick without being 60%. Should you run out and buy this? I dunno about that. It doesn't really blow your mind in any way. It's just really balanced and well made bourbon. I'm at a 2.5 here. A part of me wants to go 3.0 just because I think this is in a way a perfect bourbon, but I need something a bit more to go there. 130 bucks is also an odd and difficult price. It's not EXPENSIVE, but I don't know a single bourbon lover who doesn't see 130 as really expensive...and yet I see weller's going for 200+ and by that this is a value. If you like the idea of a creamy mouth feel with vanilla and mellow bourbon opening with a nice oak spice at the end. Well then this is your bottle. For whatever it is worth, I bought 2 bottles so I was pretty pleased with it and I'll be happy to have this one down the line.

So I don't love reviewing peat, it's just hard to do it. I love it, it's my wheel house but words? Well meh? But now going back to an NAS ardbeg? Oh boy...will I like this still? nose - So getting some peat, oak, vanilla, I always go to some kinda sweet smelling baby and vomit or spit or something with that sweet milk thing, and at the end a very distinct sherry element. Chocolate and dark fruit smoked over an oak barrel seasoning sauce is kinda what this comes off as. It's very nice but simple. Going back but a clean menthol/mint note. Taste - So the flavor is a bit more direct and complex. You get that distinct ardbeg iodine and camp fire thing. I'm bad with these terms guys.But you then get a huge sherry note and then mellow vanilla oak and then a finish of a touch of smoke and clean islay malt. Going back - a bit more mint and medical supplies. I gotta say, I was worried I'd get all this crazy young terrible whisky which has become the ardbeg standard in their recently limited releases. This isn't anything like that. It's not old but it's not YOUNG. It's well made and there is even good sherry casking, not great, on here. Why are the recent limited releases more expensive and terrible? Guys....do more of this but better! 2.75, it's that stupid good. I'm adjusting this one down to 2.5. I over scored it.

Been reviewing all these americans lately, time to get back to the good good! Nose - apple, vanilla, custard, very nicely done light oak toast, berry's, orchard fruits, and just classic scotch from this region with a focus on sweet and balanced. Taste - Just an explosion of flavor with apples, pears, vanilla, oak tannins, European oak spices, nutmeg, toffee, dare I say all spice, and old leathery oak. The richness and complexity at all steps of the way here is amazing. But lets add water. Water lightens the sweetness up front, showcases all that spicy european and bodega casks and then the finish hits yo with this hard shift to baking spices and mellow oak and pastry crust. There's sherry here for sure but better bourbon casks I think. It's amazing use of recharted oak and a mix of young and older whisky. This is the 3rd time I'm coming back to this seriously judging it and I've poured it for 3 friends and send samples out to another. I'm loving this whisky as I seem to love EVERY diageo NAS over priced offering. I kinda hate myself for that, but darn it, their NAS stuff is really good. Anyway the abv and body so insanely rich and mouth coating. You do get some youth as there's some 15 or younger whisky in here and on a damn 600++ retail bottle I can see people being upset, but so well done. So complex. 4.25. I really like this bottle and I'd buy more at the 400 I paid. I'm really happy with this one. Thank you for the clearance price.

You know, I like to put prices....I didn't even ask or look. I have no idea what this cost. Nose - there will be a running theme here but this is a CLASSIC buffalo trace product. Nose is cherry and hence fourth (scotch test dummy shout out) Boofalo Trace oak profile. Alcohol is kinda playing a blocker on me here, it's not bad but I can't get all in there. Some sweet vanilla and lightly toasted caramelized oak. Non offensive, very middle of the road and I think this will go over well with hipsters who want their boofalo trace. Taste - and more of the classic boofalo trace cherry, but now that this has had a bit of time to open up, there's a rich creamy caramel now coming through. Again that classic boofalo trace oak ,which is sweeter and more mellow. It's more a toast vs char effect. I get some walnut nutty notes. The finish is actually where its the sweetest with more werther's caramels on the end. There is even with water and even a good amount of water still an oak bitter finish as well I should note. Overall I've always been a Stagg JR over ECBP in terms of my profile and I'm still there. That said the recent ECBP batches have been so far and away more complex that I don't want this score to confuse what I like with what is better in my mind in terms of grading whisky. So I'm at a 2.75 here. So hear me out. I LOVE boofalo trace's oak and cherry profile. Which is odd as I hate cherry in makers. But there's not a lot of nuance here. It's that oak that cherry and some other classic bourbon notes. I'm not getting a big transition, there is one on the finish. So while I'm a fan of the profile and if you are then this is going to be your jam, I don' think this drinks as old or as complex or as nuanced. I think the batch 12 is a step above and the batch 13 is a hair better too.

Nose - oddly refined and mellow. Light smoke over a gentle sweetness. I can't believe this is higher abv. When I let it sit a bit I get a nice sweet and warm caramel and peated and powerful note, but a second nosing and it's gone. This one isn't the most aromatic whisky out there if you don't let it build it, but if you do, it's rewarding. Taste - Well forget everything on the nose. Punch you in the face balcones single malt. Cinnamon, oak, funk, texas heat, caramel, vanilla, and well peat? OK so yeah I see some peat here it's subtle and hidden for sure, but at the same time it's overt and in your face. That's kinda the magic of this pour. If you've had balcones single malt it's a BIG BOLD whisky and this is even more so and in that you can miss what is actually a hell of a peat punch because it's hidden in the oak or the oak is hidden in the peat? I can't tell. However on the finish you really do get a nice lingering peat element...and cinnamon and oak..and texas. I'm doing it, a rare 3.0 from me. I'm digging the living hell out of this. Uniqueness is driving me higher but not for uniqueness but because I want more of this intense balcones sweetness and sugars and spice with peat. This is pushing 150 dollar bottle quality, get one of these if you can. I might have to workout a bottle shipment myself. Heavy water pour for science. It has been my experience that water when applied to CS can really pull out the flaws so lets see if this holds up to the higher standards. So the water has done ZERO to the flavor. It's just honestly it's not even thinner. The flavors are slightly muted but again the same. I added like 20% water here. There's a touch of mineral coming out but I think that's from the water itself as I didn't have a bottled water ready. Really REALLY well done balcones.

Nose - dare I say smoked bbq chips? Not enough salt or savory for meats but chips...yeah. Then a young and kinda funky oak is just barely there, you gotta look for it. Taste - So the big take away is a bit of a strang and kinda odd bitterness. I almost get a weird tap water element here. Now the big show stoppers of course are BBQ, mesquite for sure, some smoked meat notes (not salted or savory still), a huge brown sugar element, and the finish is oak and smokey funk. I have to agree with another tasting note, this is not a sipping whisky. This is a whisky to pair with smoked meats and frankly, I rarely have whisky that I think "I need food with this". I need for with this one. I'm starting to have a theme with a lot of texas whisky. It's not GREAT and some isn't even "good" (better than average), but it's unique and it has a time and place where it's the whisky to drink. This is just that. I don't really love this. Alcohol punch is over the top for me. The profile and flavors are intense but not complex. But with some bacon or BBQ or even some kind of smoked really anything, I think I'd be in heaven with a glass of this. I'm doing a 1.75 as there's no way I'd ever want this by itself as it's just not for me and I doubt it's what any whisky drinker wants just for a night cap. But if I had some smoked meats, I'd be on it and frankly I want a bottle for just that. I'm not sure I should score this higher due to that, but for me and for right now, yeah I gotta stick with this score. Very cool profile and I'm going to be bubbly and possessive for these unique younger but flavorful drams. I'm 100% into what they're doing. I'd much rather have a sub optimal whisky like this than 99.9% of the others out there that I'd score the same.

So as I recall the low abv one is pretty boring and candy corn. Nose - ok right away there's a huge kick of caramel and yes candy corn here. A lot of oak. Huge vanilla notes. Wow this is really working well. There's a richness that isn't in the regular and it's making a world of difference. Taste - There's oak and sweetness and corn frankly. It's puckering amounts of vanilla with spices and rich bakery notes. That said, it's pretty simple at the same time. Sweet, rich, big, bold, and vanilla corn. This is really well done and is the ONLY way the true blue should be showcased. I feel I'm getting biased on texas whisky but 2.25. Again thanks matt for the sample. And thanks to balcones who are putting out some killer stuff. Even this pretty basic and simple bottle is well good.

Dark as heck Nose - well hello sweet oaky goodness. Where have you been? The nose is like some really dark wooden table. Then a jammy note and some possible cherries and berry note. Tobacco, leather, all those older whisky notes. Taste - The flavor is much the same, only turned up to 11. This is shockingly drying, super oaky, and yet couldn't be a more enjoyable oak flavor. I get some of the transitional balcones single malt elements. Cinnamon, kinda funky and burned malt. A bit more sweetness with a drop of water. I get some almost maple like notes and oddly not a lot of bite from the french oak that I'd expect, just a more full and intense oak. Or is there so much french oak spice that I can't separate it from just drying alcohol? If you want a white oak element with the balcones malt, you really can't go wrong with this. once again thanks to matt for the sample. I hate reviewing off just a sample and this might be the one I most hate reviewing from a sample as I would really like to spend a week with this. It's got real potential to move into my higher scores but for now 2.50, firmly above average but I set the bar awfully high on a 3.0. That said I think this one has all the makings of a 3.0 and could be there if it were a bit less drying.

Nose – ok I’m getting a bit of a scotch note here. Refill casks with citrus and some pineapple and a good bit of oak. The oak here however is a second fill or so bourbon cask like element. Taste – Very fruity, light, tropical fruits, a touch of salt, light wood, dry but not offensively so on the tongue. This is very much reminding me of a 10-15-year-old speyside or highland fruity light malted whisky from refilled bourbon casks (though could have first fill in the mix). There’s some bite from the oak casks and it’s a bit more drying as I sip. The finish had herbal spices and some lemon grass elements. Oh, a touch of menthol just showed up on the finish. I also might change the herbal idea to tea, green tea. Overall, I get ZERO Texas notes here. I frankly was confused as I started this blind and quickly started to wonder how in the heck it was a Texas whisky. I like it and I think this could pass as a 100-150-dollar scotch. Not one I’d be happy about, but I could see it. 60-80 bucks is about where I’d guess that value is here, but I’d rather it be less. The more I go back to this pour the less I am impressed. I guess as that shock value fades. Anyway, another thanks to Matt and another Texas whisky I’m impressed with. We’re going 2.0 here. It’s honestly an average whisky but let’s be real the average whisky these days is pretty tasty and that’s exactly what this is. There is something to be said about the cool factor of this really being like a scotch, but I can't bump the score over just that.

So, I don't have a bottle as this is a sample from Matt - Whiskey crusader. And this is the likely to be MUCH discussed "youtuber" barrel pick. I'll move if someone ever puts that up. Nose – spicy and cinnamon with oak and leather. There’s some vanilla and sweetness that’s just kinda generic, maybe marzipan (I have zero idea what that is). Taste – oh (yes I said that out loud when I tried it), rich and powerful flavors, and insanely drying. High proof and different. There’s a sweetness almost like a pie filling but not distinct. There’s a touch of that Texas funk but not bad at all not over powering and on here very inviting. I’ve gone from not impressed to impressed. I went from good to great to good. I’m all over the place here. I can’t honestly believe this is the same bourbon as the regular harbinger this is a million times better. 3.5 which is a very high Texas whisky score from me. If you want a Texas "ECBP" then this is it. It tastes older, it's rich, it's deep, and powerful. God this is 150+ dollar bourbon guys.