Tastes

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.

Nose – ok let this one sit out for a LONG time and it punched me with vanilla. After the sweetness comes oak and funk. Very much a wooden cabinet. But I get a bit of a nutty element ,deep and old nuts. Touch of cherry and I’m thinking bourbon. Taste – oaky and funky for sure. Very high proof, super sweet for about a second then the sweetness comes back later. And then the funky oak blast hits you again. I’m struggling to get much more as this is just so much of a punch. Ok water was needed and now I’m getting more fruity notes. I also cheated and looked up that this has a port finish and yeah I get that. I don’t however get peat, unless that’s what I’m getting as heavy oak and funk. The thing is that the finish here reminds me of harbinger which I don’t like much. OK doing more, and yeah this has a peat like the new riff backsetter which I hated. So this is a hard pass. Too sweet. Too weird. The sweetness and the funk are both over powering. 1.75 stars but I could honestly go upwards of 2.25 just on how dang unique. I once again gotta thank Matt for samples and I'm so glad I got this one just again UNIQUE but yeah not really good.

Nose – some nice oak and then boom buffalo trace level’s of cherry but then it just keeps going, it’s cough syrup levels. There’s an odd muted kinda oak blanket coating bringing down the nose. It’s weird. OK there’s a but of fresh cut grass. Taste – It’s like port, spearmint, oak, it reminds me of that really good tasting grape cough medicine I had as a kid. What in the world. The finish is oaky but neither pleasant or not. Some leather and a touch of funk. I’m describing a really odd whisky but this is pretty cool. Has a lot of bourbon notes, it’s not “Texas funk” at all. I’d really be happy with this at 60-70, no clue the price point but under 100 and this wouldn’t be a terrible buy. I’m more like 50 if I were to get 2 bottles. Score 2.25. This is above average, unique, but not a wow bottle.

OK blind Texas whisky, we’ll see if I can even review this here. Thanks to Matt – Whisky Crusader. Nose – apple cinnamon roll? It’s orchard fruit, it’s sweet, so sweet. Then there’s a nice spice. Very much an apple pie or cinnamon roll or some kind of nice smelling fruity dessert. Very lacking in oak or char or really anything. Ok it's opened up some and it's more honey sweet and more mellow with some vanilla. Less fruity sweet. Taste – what in the hell is this. Sweet and so familiar with a wine cask finish for sure. It’s apple pie and odd baking spices, some bitter notes, some herbal for sure, and perhaps some kind of jam or jelly, and I just want to say the jelly is kinda yellow orange….I don’t know the fruit but that’s the color. Well hot damn, now to score this. I know ZERO about this whisky. I assume it’s a single malt. I’m going with 3.25 stars guys. This is shockingly good. No clue on the price but I’d buy this up to 100 bucks and I might go more. One note this is 56.2 so it might be a special cask? No clue.

Reviewing a sample which I hate doing and worse yet a 1 oz sample but I wanted notes on this one as I'll be deciding on a purchase based on this. Nose - this is the most grapefruity grapefruit ever. Dry very fruit forward without sugar notes. You get notes of oak, light and sweet, with vanilla and then a bit of old grain whisky comes through.With time some dark fruits start to creep in and some tropical fruit notes as well. Taste - Up front it's sweet and bold, then grain whisky with RICH creamy vanilla, then turns to fruits (mango, pears, and all kinds of topical notes with a touch of grapefruit bitter), and then finishes with lightly toasted oaks and malts. This whisky seems to change 3 or 4 times while in my mouth, with transition after transition. I can't dare myself to add water to this as it drinks just perfectly as it. Creamy and just viscous enough. Alcohol waits to hit and even then it's gentle and inviting. So the elephant in the room is if I'd buy a bottle at say 550 which I know I can get it for. And....I think I'm passing. At 400, I'm getting one for sure. less than that and I'd have 2. It's such a good whisky but I don't think it does anything so well that I'm compelled to rush out and get one. But I still really want a bottle. If Irish is your jam, this is a must. If you're like me and a bit more agnostic towards Irish, if you find a deal buy, but otherwise try before you buy.

batch 18-12 bottle 1379 I feel perhaps we need to discuss batches on this one more and this is going to be a case of this. Nose - sweet baby fruits and brown sugars. Sharp alcohol notes, really surprising on this, but yeah alcohol bites at 46%. Tart and tannic oak, very bitter. Those oak notes are tough to get past. Raisins and dates and all kinds of dark fruits with little sweetness are really strong here on the mid to finish of the nose. Up front no bourbon sweetness but it's there, just hard to get to. Taste - Dry, bitter, HEAVY oak and then on the finish it transitions to more oak. Not that vanilla barrel influenced oak, but more just a dry wood plank. There's just this light fruity sherry thing that's generic and boring that then gives way to the tannins. I'd give a more complete review but I can't get past the oak. This is one of the least enjoyable finished bourbons I have had. There is a good whisky in here, but it's been killed. I"m at a 1 star. That said I think some batches are less oaked and you'll enjoy them. But I want to be clear, this is a different oak than over oaked old whisky. It's young oak over oaked and I like that even less.

Hi, I'm Dustin and this review might trigger some people. So bought this recently because of my "Irish guy" and if you know me you know him, he RAVES about this. So I had to get into it. The first thing is WOW this is a nice box. And I mean that as a guy, read my reviews, who has had some nice bottles and with them some nice boxes. This might be near the top, right there with my best kavalan boxes and in some ways this is better even than them. OK so I wasn't impressed and with that, I'm trying this next to John Lane's 12 year to see if I'm crazy. Nose - First off the nose is soft and it's a struggle to pull things out. Certainly jammy, oak notes are here, it's very approachable, calm, but has the bones of some older oaked influence and some traditional irish unmalted barely grainy notes coming through. This would totally work as a higher end starter whisky if that makes any sense. Oh it's opening up more and now I'm getting more citrus notes, a bit of a bite from them, very cool change, but still that jammy sweetness balances it out. Taste - Again this is approachable upfront but there's a very good spicy kick at the end, almost too much for my starter group I listed above. There's a good oak note here. It's sweet, but overall it's a very generic irish whisky. So my first impressions were that this was mostly 12-15 year old whisky with some 20 year old stuff. I'm told it's mostly 10 year old with up to 25 year old whisky in it. So there's something to be said about the complexity of the oak and there's a nice spice and flavor profile here. It however does nothing to wow me and does nothing that 200 dollar bottle should do. Finish is however pretty good and long, but it's mostly just well aged irish on the finish, not old, just well aged. OK so back to that powers. It's bolder, fruitier, the spices are the same flavor but the way they approach your tongue is different, they're more scattered vs concentrated. It gives the powers a bit more of a younger and less refined feel. The Barry really is an irish take on showcasing oak and in a good way. The powers is bubbly and fruity and it's like meeting a lovely 21 year old blonde at a bar and talking to her. You're smiling because she's lovely and she's just full of energy and life, but lets be real....she doesn't have much to say. The barry is more of an interesting conversation with someone less "interesting on the eyes". It's objectively better, but I'm not sure I'd not have more fun with the powers. The thing is, while I do objectively see that the Barry Crockett is more expensive and better whisky, it's not that much better. But at the same time, maybe it is? And I say this because as I nose and drink the two side by side, I see the refinement that Barry has, I see the more concentrated older oak notes vs the more bubbly and sweet notes of the powers. But these are two whiskies coming from really really similar bases and neither strike a note of "wow" neither strike a note of "special" and neither have an off character that might send me elsewhere. So score, I gave the powers a 2.5 and frankly, I think I'd rather drink it. It's just a bit more flavorful and sweet, but Barry Crockett is a more refined whisky. So an objective score which isn't just about how much I like something, I have to give the edge to Barry crockett, but is it enough better for a higher score? Yeah, I think there's enough here. I'm going 2.75 and I know Im going to get some upset Irish whisky lovers on this one. I feel this is the irish whisky you get for a doctor or a lawyer to put on his shelf who wants a bit more flavor than a "very rare" gives. I don't think this is something anyone should buy who isn't just a die hard irish lover. And don't get me wrong, it's very well made whisky but it's very well made 100 dollar whisky and it's not the best of anything.

So I like or maybe even love the bay. It is one of my favorite low priced peated whiskies and as I mature as a drinker and become...well a bit of a snob it remains one that I still very much like and come back to. That said I've always kinda ignored this one due to the price and well, I'm not sure it's going to really work. So I bit the bullet, lets find out. nose - I get a distinct mint right off the bat. Heck it's spearmint. Touch of fruity elements but subtle. Then a slightly medicinal or putty clay peat. There's a lot here but it's not overly strong smelling. taste - Overly oaked, charred, BBQ, with a sweet BBQ sauce (some citrus and salty elements here for sure). That's this glass in a nut shell. The the finish is candy cigarettes, light oak, and just sugar crystals. There's a lingering slightly earthy and oak finished here too. Now I can see someone picking up some chocolate, some earth, a lot of dried leaves, and man it's menthol and spearmint all the way through. Do I like this more than the bay? Honestly, not really. It's a bit more complex and there's some older whisky in it. The higher sherry content however doesn't really help this one imo. It doesn't hurt it either, it's just a different expression. This is a HARD whisky to score. OK so talking out loud, it's insanely complex so 4 stars. The complexity has a lot to do with off and youthful notes. So maybe 2 stars? The alcohol is perfectly balanced and the whisky drinks far more full bodied and rich and intense than any 46% whisky, so 3 stars? Hell I'm going 3.25 stars here. There's a case that this is far better and a case that I'm over rating it. Overall a good buy at about 100 bucks. Really complex and a must try for peat lovers. Will I buy again? You know, I'll start buying each year's batch but maybe not backups.