Tastes

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this since Brimstone was my only experience with Balcones to date. I was pleasantly surprised at the complexity of this whisky. I sampled it right after a Macallan 15 and while different, the Texas single malt holds its own against the scotch. Sweet and buttery, with a hint of marmalade. I can tell this was made where Brimstone is distilled. There’s an ever-so-delicate whiff of smoke in the finish. Overall an enjoyable single malt whisky. 🥃

Nose on this is molasses, prunes, maltiness typical of scotch, and a kind of fruity syrup note. The smoke is very faint at only 3 ppm peat. The glass smelled of sweet chocolate milk an hour after finishing the dram. Mouthfeel is a very pleasant velvety richness Taste of honey, molasses, figs and dates, chocolate, vanilla, and a wee bit of smoke. Finish was medium. I wanted it to hang around a bit longer. Overall, a delicious dram!

For a budget whisky, Mellow Corn is pretty tasty. Sweet, honey butter corn dust, with a bit of vanilla. There’s some pepper, but you should expect that for a young 50% ABV whiskey. I’m glad I tried it but will most likely not repeat this one.

The nose is a bit on the musty hay side at first but it transitions to honey mead upon further nosing. The palate is light, a bit warm, and very honey forward. Malty, a bit of citrus. Overall this reminds me of a strong mead but with a lighter mouth feel. I’ll probably try another expression of Auchentoshan but not buy this one again.

This smoky Texas whisky is delicious! If you love Texas mesquite BBQ, the Brimstone is akin to licking a piece of mesquite wood AFTER smoking a rack of sauce-slathered ribs, and the oily fats and smoky juices have adhered themselves to the wood. Not for everyone, but certainly for me!