Tastes

Nose: vanilla ice cream, vanilla cream soda, vanilla bean pods. Yes, it’s a vanilla bomb Palate: literally everything in the nose, some mild smoky char Finish: everything above with a tail end of oak and a little drying astringency This thing piles on the vanilla with some barrel char smoke and oak. Yes, it’s a little one note. But it’s sweet, smooth for the proof and really tasty. Almost a decadent bourbon. Good stuff!

Distilled in my local area, so let’s give it a go: Nose: baking spices, wood, fruit hard candies Palate: fresh raspberries, cinnamon, some brown sugar, wood Finish: mild pepper, citrus rind, faint dark sweets (caramel?), woody astringency Good, but not really good or great. Not sure worth the price. Better at 45-50 a bottle than the 75-100 you see. I will say this, it is ASTONISHINGLY smooth for its 126 proof.

Nose: dried fruit and alcohol Palate: caramel, oaky tannin and a hint of menthol, hint of roasted nuts Finish: citrus, faint cherry, oak and mild barrel char This isn’t my favorite ECBP release. My favorite have been chewy, viscous cinnamon bombs. Having said that, it’s still great bourbon, and better than most you’ll find. It’s just that the ECBP releases set an insanely high bar when compared to themselves. Still absolutely worth the $69.99 price tag. I’ll always buy this when I see it, because even when it’s not at its best, it’s still very good. Edit: This bottle gets better as it oxidizes: the palate turns into a sweet creme caramel bomb and the finish also picks up walnuts and shoe polish. Great complexity. Give this one time. It really improves.

Nose is all hot buttered toast. LOADS of butter. Some brown sugar as well. Hint of dried fruit Palate: caramel popcorn and some fresh red fruit Finish: hint of mossy peat, white pepper, juicy fruit gum For the price, this is a great buy. Good malt blend. Cheaper than Johnnie Green and same quality.

Nose: mixed candied nuts, distant tannic red wine, boozy ethanol Palate: brown sugar, fresh red fruits, walnuts Finish: menthol, white pepper, faint oak Nice flavor. Pricey. Seems a little younger, but a solid pour. Up to the individual to determine if worth the price. This really improves with the addition of water. It brings some strawberry cream to the palate, a little dried fruit to the nose as well as some ripe cantaloupe, and softens the finish with a not unpleasant fresh celery note added at the tail end.

Nose: brine, faint dark fruits, a hint of maple lurking in the background Palate: brown sugar, really mild mossy peat, some pastry shop, and strawberry cream hard candy Finish: white pepper, citrus peel, mixed nuts, menthol, a hint of leather. With time some cherry emerges. The finish is surprisingly long, actually This bottle gets sweeter as it oxidizes. As others have suggested, decant it, put it back in the bottle and let it sit for a few weeks-months. It really improves with time. The bottle makes a good every day sipper at this price point and I like the no chill filtration and proof. Thumbs up.

Nose: vanilla, grape juice Palate: cinnamon, vanilla, mild nuttiness Finish: citrus, mixed nuts Straightforward but solid sherried malt.

Nose: dark maple sweets, mildly resinous red wine, walnuts, small amount of boozy alcohol Palate: caramel, mild red berries, slight menthol Finish: menthol, nuts, mild white pepper, mild citrus, strawberry hard candy A tasty bourbon. I really dig this and their sherry finish as well.

Nose: resinous sherry, balsamic, dark fruits, brown sugar Palate: sherry, lemon juice, brown sugar, black pepper Finish: lemon juice, black pepper, strawberry menthol Solid sherried pour and a decent price for a quality 18 year. Nice pour.

Nose: cola, spice, a very mild sting of ethanol Palate: caramel, cola, baking spices, white pepper, some distant red fruit candy, waaay in the back maybe something floral Finish: sharp rye spice, more of that fruit candy, a hint of drying oak This stuff is super tasty. Not the most refined rye out there, but the flavor is excellent and for $26 a bottle (in Colorado) it absolutely cannot be beat.