Tastes

Nose: brown sweets (caramel, brown sugar, maple, vanilla wafer cookies), fresh baked wheat bread, small distant whiff of ethanol, buttery pancakes fresh off the griddle Palate: bitter dark chocolate, oak, vanilla, brown sugar Finish: oak, ginger ale, faint fresh strawberries, brown sugar, vanilla, hint of menthol Solid pour. Easy to find. GREAT nose. Mild but consistent. I prefer the higher proof MM’s, but the original is an icon that led to the craft bourbon boom. I’ll never refuse a glass.

Nose: dried dark fruit, resinous sherry, brown sugar. The nose is mouthwatering. Nary a hint of alcohol. Palate: fresh red fruits, cinnamon, melon, caramel, lemon oil, dark dried fruit. Delicious. Finish: melon, menthol, fresh red fruit, cinnamon, black pepper, fruit hard candies, dark chocolate, licorice Finish goes on for daaaaaaays. Great freaking whisky.

Nose: meaty Cabernet Sauvignon, grape soda, light brown sugar, distant dried fruit, touch of ethanol, maple syrup, maybe a trace of vegetal peat? The nose is all about the red wine finish. Palate: some caramel, vanilla, hint of either peat or iodine, fresh red fruit, hazelnut, whisper of cinnamon. A little hot. Finish: strawberry hard candy, cantaloupe, orange pith, watermelon, red fresh fruit, lemon, black pepper. The port influence is evident. Beyond the nose, it also has a pinkish hue. Solid pour.

Nose: grape, maple syrup, brown sugar, black tea, vanilla Palate: vanilla, walnuts, a little ethanol, malt, some brown sugar Finish: some oak, malty sweetness, bitter lemon rind, vanilla Solid pour. The nose is killer. Whether it’s worth it’s high price is something everyone will decide for themselves.

Nose: vanilla, brown sugar, French toast, lots of pastry shop sweets Palate: juicy fruit gum, pistachio ice cream, light citrus, almond liqueur, cherry, some ethanol fumes (very mild), baking spices Finish: almond liqueur, lemon juice, cherry, walnuts Tasty stuff.

Nose: dried fruit, a little wood, brown sugar, whiff of balsamic Palate: dried fruit, some fresh red fruit, light barrel spice, leather Finish: light oak, perfume, candied nuts, white pepper, hint of melon (cantaloupe?) This stuff is really tasty. Great sherry influence and smooth as glass. Pricey. Edit: after bottle sits open a few months it develops a nice maple character on the nose and palate. This becomes more pronounced with a splash of water.,

Nose: iodine, faint maple, faint fresh strawberries, and a distant whiff of glue Palate: brown sugar, fresh red berries, mild white pepper, iodine Finish: hard fruit candy, slight vegetal essence...maybe celery? A hint of peat?, mild cinnamon, apple skin, leather A surprisingly mild malt given its proof. Decent...but probably won’t buy again.

Nose: hickory smoke, mesquite smoke, menthol, faint orange blossom, leather, cocoa Palate: sweet malt, cinnamon, menthol, peaches, creme brûlée, walnuts, leather, smoke Finish: menthol, pepper, vanilla, lemon juice, wintergreen, white cake frosting, leather and smoke Good proof. Complex. Smokey and sweet. A great core whiskey to have in your home bar.

Nose: fresh dark fruits like blackberries/boysenberries, and given the proof, a blast of boozy alcohol, brown sugar and something like Kool Aid Palate: sugary, dark berries, black tea, sharp alcohol, sweet tarts candy, Angostura bitters, cinnamon, lime juice Finish: black pepper, alcohol fumes, dark berries, sweet tarts again A surprising rye and not overly beastly given the proof (132 proof/66%). It’s sweet and sugary and a bit sharp. I didn’t get much in the way of rye spice off of it (just some black pepper and cinnamon). It’s like a boozy blackberry danish. It’s good. Quite good. But I prefer Pikesville to this. The Pikesville isn’t as intense, but has a spicier character, is almost as sweet, and I find it a little more “rounded” than this. However, while the Pikesville makes a much better balanced Manhattan, I have to admit I preferred the Alberta Premium cask strength in an Old Fashioned.