Tastes

After being highly disappointed by the Four Roses Single Barrel I tried previously, I opted to give this well-respected brand another go. The Small Batch was definitely better than the Single Barrel I had. Deep, beautiful hue. Familiar bourbon vanilla and caramel, not a lot of nuance, no reinventing the wheel here. It’s just bourbon. Drinking it neat, there was almost a bitter quality to it. There is some ethanol heat and a lingering spicy finish, but drinking it over ice helped to tame it and make it a much more pleasant experience, allowing the sweetness to open up and shine. I didn’t like it enough to buy a bottle for my collection, but I would happily drink it again, on the rocks, at a restaurant or at a gathering.

I searched for this one for awhile and finally found it. I was excited to try it, but disappointed. It’s a young, young rye- and unless you enjoy the mouth-burning spice, it’s really just too young. Adding some ice helped to tame that spice down, but it was honestly so overwhelming that the flavor notes pale in comparison. My husband couldn’t even finish it. His comment: “That is RAW!” Finish is short. I think that it could be a very good rye if it ages longer and mellows out a bit. As it stands, I’d only use this in a cocktail.

A beautiful deep amber, thick and viscous. On the nose: buttery caramel corn and burnt sugar. From appearance and and nose, I thought the taste would be a totally different experience. In my opinion, this is not a smooth drinker- the heat is obvious from the get-go. Very, very spicy. Obvious and typical vanilla and caramel notes. Adding water tames the heat and allows the creme brûlée sweetness to shine. One taster in our group noticed a sourness on the finish that went away with water. Once it’s gone, you can feel it in your mouth for far longer than you can taste it. Out of the three of us who tried it, all three agreed it was better with water and two thought it was better with one ice cube. If you prefer to drink it neat, letting it sit in a rocks glass for about 10 minutes allows the ethanol heat to burn off, making it more smooth and sweet without watering it down.