Tastes

So I took a trip to Newport today and among others things stopped at New Riff hoping to fin some winter whiskey. No luck but the lady in the gift shop suggested I try the Balboa Rye. It's 95%Balboa rye and 5% malted rye. Distilled, aged and bottled in Newport. At least 4 years old This one has a deep amber color. A swirl leaves a thick coat on the glass and legs are slow to form. Oh what a nose! It's lemon dill forward and a light caramel background. I sniffed it for nearly an hour before I tasted it. It does not evolve much but the dill becomes more pronounced and the lemon fades a bit. It's a touch hot as you roll it on the palate and it numbs the roof of my mouth. No doubt it's great for a sore throat. First taste, dill leads the way and there's a nice black pepper finish and boy does it last. A couple sips later and I get caramel and citrus.The peppery back end persists. (Did I mention that fabulous nose). There's a chewy mouth feel and the finish really goes. Love that black pepper. This is a neck pour so it may be different in a couple weeks. When at my son's for Thanksgiving, I found the last two ounces of The Winter Whiskey from last year's bottle. Wow that was fabulous and I expect this one to get better too.

Up front, I will say that as much as I want to like Bardstown Bourbon's product some how they fall short. I have tried them at their restaurant but never sprung for a bottle. Their products are too young for my tastes even when blending with older brands that I truly enjoy. This bottle came through a bourbon club to a friend that offered up a taste after Thanksgiving. With my biases on display I find the nose a tad hot but nice caramel, oak and nutmeg on display. There is a green apple fruitiness as well. On the palate, I get more of a nuttiness with the caramel. The body is a tad light and the oakey finish could be a bit longer. My quandary with this (and other BBC products) is the pricing. This is a good bourbon but not outstanding and when someone shells out $125 on a bottle it should at least be near outstanding.

Cocktail night in St Pete and my son has been holding out on me. This was his contribution to the party. Incredibly rich and complex nose, Butterscotch, green apples, nutmeg all easily discernible. I consider finished bourbons as in the "cheater class" as they are not pure bourbon. This one is done in such a way as not to be obvious. The Cognac, Armagnac and Sherry sit in the background and do not overwhelm a young bourbon to make it taste- wait for it- like bourbon. Well done Magnus, the finishing is well integrated. Great barrel and rye flavors lead on the palate. The body is rich and chewy. I like it neat or with a cube, the ethanol lets you know it's there but drinks more like a mid ninety proof until you stop talking to the crowd and take a step. This was the hit of the evening but we're not finished yet. Not sure I can properly critique the next. Frank has Bardstown Bourbon's latest collaboration up next. It's already been a great evening.

Now we're talking. Second up tonight is Remus V. Best single word description is rich. I prefer this to IV but it's fairly close to III. There's butterscotch and note of nutmeg, Vanilla and green apple. Can you spell c-o-m-p-l-e-x and great balance. The palate follows through with these flavors and then a long lasting finish with dry oak. Highly recommended!

One of the offerings at the cocktail party. I hear it's expensive but I am not impressed. The nose is muted and I notice high rye fragrances that missed the mark. There's freshly mowed grass and a vegetal element but the nose is shy and the body thin. Bitter leads the way on the palate and carries into the finish. I'm not liking this one.

This is the last of our tastings for Thanksgiving. The bottle showed up at my sons and no one seems to know where it came from? Of those we have tasted, Noble Oak and Crittenden's A Cut Above were the crowd pleasers and on in the bottom half of pricing. Pinhook Bourbon Heist was at the bottom followed closely by Stellum Cygnus and both were in the upper half of pricing. Also tasted were Dickel 8 yr, Huling Station small batch blend, Smoke Wagon Haloween Limited, Chatanooga 111 and Balcones Rye. So how about this one? In a word bland. Maybe I burned out my tastes buds through the week but the turkey soup at lunch sure was good. The nose is very tight even after a couple drops of water. There's a bit of barrel vanilla and some vegetal rye. Not much more. There's a touch of caramel on the palate and zero finish. But there is no noticeable alcohol. I've had worse but mostly better and I certainly would not buy at any price. Just announced an impromptu cocktail party. The street has been closed of and everyone is to bring their favorite bottle to share! Stay tuned.

Straight forward and simple. It screams bourbon. Let it sit a few minutes on ice and the generous nose gives you buttered caramel corn. There's a brown sugar maple in there as well. At eight years, I was hoping for more complexity but it's hard to find. The palate shows a touch of baking spice but the body is thin. Goes oakey on the finish but could last longer. I will continue to pay $5-10 more for the bib releases.

So Thanksgiving has been a rye day for me after finishing the half dram of New Riff winter whiskey. Rye is a change of pace for me but I do enjoy one on occasion and my son has an open bottle. Apple and pumpkin pie on the plate and Pikesville in a glencairn. After it sits 10 minutes and have finished most of the apple pie, I nose it. Wow, a lot going on here First I get cinnamon red hots and a touch of burnt marshmallow, deep down there's black tea, Let it breathe some more and there's a bready element. Back to some pie and then a taste. I get that cinnamon burn and sweet corn in the background. The tea really comes through on the finish and nicely dries the palate for that next bite of pie. This is a really good one but my last indulgence was the Kentucky Owl which was outstanding. In one respect I may judge this more harshly but then it is about 1/4 the price which makes me bring it back up? This is a staple here with my Florida family and friends and I understand why. My first taste but it will be a regular in my liquor cabinet from now on. Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. We certainly did. 75 degrees at meal time and set up tables for the whole neighbor hood in the middle of the street.

This is our Thanksgiving splurge in Florida. Several families get together and we have a block party. What a nose, super complex and ever evolving. It started with pure butterscotch, then fresh mown hay, later Milwaukee dill pickles way down in the glass Palate looses the dill and the butterscotch is faint, green apples come on. Body is a bit thin but the dry oak finish lasts Think I'll have another