Tastes

Picked this one up based upon recommendation from a local liquor rep and hats off to him. This is barrel 7385678 for Crown Liquors in IN. For the $30 and 107 proof this is a damn good bourbon. Taste was neat in glencairn. Nose - sweet vanilla frosting, orange, oak, and candy corn. Palate - nice texture good coating, front end sweet with a punch of vanilla and toffee, mid palate moves to orange, little bit of apple, and not a super strong oak flavor but a woodsy note, back end a big burst of cinnamon and spice, between the mid to end get a little bit of a spiced apple. Finish - that cinnamon spice and pepper really hangs on for a minute or two then starts to mellow out goes back to apple, little bit of oak and orange. Barrel picks obviously can vary a bit, but this particular barrel for $30 a no brainer. Good flavor and a really good amount of spice, doesn’t burn, but has a legit cinnamon and pepper flavor on the back end, thankful for the recommendation and well done Ezra Brooks/Lux Row. Cheers!

This in my opinion is a highly underrated product. I see this on the shelf all the time and can’t believe it hasn’t been snatched up. First off it’s just a good looking bottle and if you get the box with it even better. The gold is insanely smooth, does have a sweeter nose and palate, honey, maple, vanilla, banana. I didn’t experience the ash or bitterness as others have suggested. If you wanted to get someone started on whiskey and pull out a cool bottle at a party this is a good choice. If you like a burn/spice then this isn’t going to be for you. The flavor for me really shines in this one and just the uniqueness, I stress again, of how smooth this was. Had it not been for those I would rate this lower for a couple of key items, price, proof, and age. Price retail is going to be in the $90-$110 range or should be, it’s a NAS but estimated to be 4-6 years, and bottled at 80 proof. I can go low or high on proof and still enjoy it. Now the combination of the 3 some might issue with and I don’t disagree. That’s a pretty high price for what it is. You could easily find other quality bourbons or whiskeys for a lower cost, longer aged, and higher proof. I would only recommend drinking this neat, no water, no ice, no mixer just to get the full effect of the flavor of this one. If you like regular Jack Daniels you should like this one. Cheers!

I’m torn on Old 55. I really really want to like this bourbon. Being an IN native and having a distillery in your backyard not sourcing from the powerhouse MGP is commendable. I’ve had the single barrel and the single barrel BiB and have gotten drastically different flavors on both from the different batches. My first taste was batch 16c1 and that was just a flavor bomb of awesome. It had a really strong Cracker Jack flavor profile, corn, caramel, pecans, little bit of fruit, nice amount of spice on the back end and a balanced finish of oak and corn. Was delicious! The latest tasting is 16c3a and thus far just hasn’t had that same flavor. Neither had a really strong nose, the 3 is more caramel and orange but really strong on alcohol. Get a quick burst of sweetness on the front end. The palate has hints of caramel and orange, little bit of corn and pecan, big on spice and dries out with oak on the finish. This bottle I’ve seen range from $65-$75 approx. That first batch I’d have no problem being at $70, had great flavor and I’d pay a little extra to support a local. This 2nd is good, but not scratching the $70 mark for me, I’d put it more in the $50 or less range. I’m still a fan overall, but would like to see some consistency in releases to establish the base, and then experiment with barrels, aging, mash bills etc. Cheers! *Revisit, pretty much have just let this one open up over the past 3 months and has gotten considerably better. Caramel, maple butter, and corn are the prominent flavors, spice is there but it has toned down, and oak on the finish. It’s not as good as that first bottle, but there’s something there. It has good flavor and a really nice oily texture. If they let this go for another 4 years Old 55 just might be onto something.

Thought I’d finally give this one a shot and mark it off the bucket list. Tried neat. Nose - pretty strong alcohol scent, little bit of corn, probably should let this one open up a little bit longer, reminds me of a corn flake. Palate - sweet on the front end, very corn forward, obviously, like a creamed corn, mid and back end get a little bit of peanut and buttered popcorn, touch of butterscotch. It has some spice to it, those first few sips getting a nice Kentucky hug. Finish - quick fades fast with the peanut and popcorn Probably wouldn’t sip this one neat on a regular basis, as a mixer though can definitely see the appeal. I can see why bartenders like for mixing. For approx $15 is a great mixer.

The 2 big port finished players in the bourbon space would be Isaac Bowman and Angel’s Envy. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Port wine it typically is a desert wine, sweet, and a higher ABV than most wines. Nose - lot of sweetness, brown sugar, I can definitely pick up the grape port flavor, little bit of citrus. Palate - brown sugar and grapes/raisins right out the gate, some caramel and butterscotch, then rolls into the port tannins, little bit of oak, barrel char, I personally thought a really nice amount of pepper on the back end. If you’ve had a port wine before then shouldn’t be any mistaking the wine flavor. Finish - goes dry with oak, mint, then the grape and the sweetness starts to creep back a little bit. I didn’t get much in bitterness as I’ve seen in other reviews, thought it balanced out pretty well. If you like finished bourbons then yes highly recommend. If you like a sweeter bourbon then definitely recommend. If you’re normally a rum drinker then I might actually recommend this as an alternative spirit. If you are a tried and true straight bourbon then this might be out of your comfort zone a little bit. I have an idea for what I want this bourbon to be and I think it largely centers around proof and maybe slightly longer aged in each barrel just to step it up a little bit. It didn’t have a buttery or mouth coating texture which I think would really complement the flavor profile. An over 100 proof I’d really be interested in trying. With that being said this has some really good flavor to it and with it being a finished bourbon at the price it sells that’s a good buy all day.

First had this at a local restaurant and then able to pick up a bottle few months later. Coming from a distillery in Chicago and has an interesting mash bill of corn and millet, aged under 4 years. Taste is done neat. Nose - mild, hints of vanilla and butterscotch, has a grain or earthy smell, sweet grass. Palate - butterscotch, carmel, and vanilla quick up front, has a pleasant buttery texture. Moves to corn and grain, don’t know a lot about millet, but in comparison to the other grains you typically get in other bourbons (rye and barley) I think this provides that buttery quality but a mild flavor profile. Pick up a little bit of oak and leather on the back end. Nice amount of spice mid palate, but fades fast. Finish - quick finish, dry with corn, little bit of oak. For a small craft distiller applaud the farm to bottle approach. I didn’t think it had a huge flavor profile, but it’s an enjoyable glass. Smooth and easy to drink. As the distillery starts to get some product under their belt would like to see this bourbon with a little more age on it, can tell it’s a young bourbon. They’re trying to do something new and a little different with their mash bill. If you like to experiment with new bourbons then give this a try. Cheers.

Seems to be a lot of ups and downs on this one. Tried it once after opening and again a few days later. Both tastes were neat, one in glencairn and second in rocks glass. Nose - sweet, like candy in a glass, vanilla, brown sugar, cherry, getting the marshmallow, but not as strong as some suggest, has some smokiness to it, and little bit of oak. Palate - marshmallow and cherry quick up front, but quickly milds out with oak, barrel char, some vanilla, definitely has a smokiness to it, and some pepper. I can see why there are references to s’mores, but it doesn’t have the level of sweetness I would expect from a s’more. Would almost describe it as a less sweet Cherry Vanilla Coke flavor on the front end. To me this does not taste as sweet as it smells. Not very oily or buttery, fairly light texture. Finish - moderate, pleasant, cherry and oak, little bit of cinnamon, still hang on to that smokiness, even a little bit of clove. Empty glass smelled like that next morning campfire where you’ve got the mixture of the wet grass and those few remnants of coals still smoking, that brought back some memories. I don’t agree with the expert review on the spiciness at all. I got some spice, but overall thought it was extremely mild. There is some complexity to this one. The nose to palate really threw me, I was expecting a lot of sweetness, but the oak and smokiness real toned it down. I personally really enjoyed this. I do recommend letting it open up a little bit, in the few days after opening the 2nd glass had a bigger flavor profile. I would absolutely buy again. This will probably be a favorite for fall and winter time.

Tasting was neat and with a small splash of water in a glencarin glass. Nose - for a 107 proof I thought it was extremely subtle, not an overwhelming aroma, but also not smacking you in the face as some high ABVs can be. Strongest scent is vanilla and cherry, picking up a dryer note like maybe a toasted oat, with a little bit of brown sugar. Palate - quick burst of sweet vanilla and cherry, followed up by a nice cinnamon and spice burn. The spice drys it out, but it isn’t harsh it actually balances nicely with the vanilla and cherry. I don’t get a strong oak flavor, but it does have something that mellows it out the sweetness besides the spice, had a hard time placing the flavor and kept going back to the toasted oats or maybe even an oatmeal cookie. This is extremely smooth, has a nice velvety feel to it. Finish - love the finish, holds on for a bit, and whereas you get a lot of bourbons that will really go dry where you pick up the oak, leather, tobacco flavors, this actually goes back to a nice balance, dried cherries, vanilla, some cinnamon, little bit of leather, little bit of honey. The water didn’t really change much for me other than dulling that spice a bit, overall still a really good taste. Weller can be hard to find depending on your market. The suggested retail is $50, and for that price a no brainer. I’d be willing to go $20-$30 over SRP. Some of the stores and secondary markets going over $100 or even $200 is insane. It’s good and if you want it for the poor mans Pappy recipe then make sure to get it at the poor mans price and not what you would pay for Pappy SRP. You’ll probably have a harder time finding the Weller 12 anyways, and with NAS on antique I’m guessing this is probably anywhere from a 5-8yr bourbon. If I’m going to shell out over a $100 then I’d rather get something with a little more age and exclusivity to it. With that being said the antique is a delicious bourbon, very easy to drink. Has a nice balanced flavor, really good finish, and extremely smooth for the proof. If you see it on the shelf for a decent price then absolutely add this one to the collection.

Another product out of Buffalo Trace so I’m sure it’ll be snatched up quick. The way it was described to me was poor mans Stagg. I’ve never had Stagg yet so can’t compare, maybe one day. This is Buffalo Trace’s introduction into the low end competitors market and the Top Floor label does a pretty darn good job. I would recommend letting this rest a little bit before drinking if going with neat or rocks. Right out of the bottle very mild flavors, after about 5-10 minutes flavors were improved. My taste was neat in rocks glass. Nose - mild, picked up cherry, toasted caramel and butterscotch, little bit of oak, and definitely hints of tobacco. Palate - overall a pretty balanced flavor, little hints of sweetness. Very light in texture/mouth feel. Almost reminds me of a campfire, has almost like a burnt caramel flavor, hint of cherry, and then pick up some oak and the tobacco flavor with just a little bit of pepper. Finish - surprisingly is pretty good if you like a sweet tobacco flavor. What it reminds me of is a cigar or more specifically that black and milds scent. The glass after it was finished you would’ve thought you had just walked out of a cigar bar, strong tobacco scent. If you don’t like the tobacco flavor then I’d probably steer clear of this one. If you do then for the price this is an easy sipper, very smooth, flavors aren’t going to wow you, but it is well balanced. It’s something I could easily break out for a sip around the campfire or hanging outside on a cool fall night. If this stayed in a $20-$25 range absolutely would buy this again, no question.

Before even getting to the tasting the branding and labeling has got to be addressed. The name Krogman’s does have some history behind it. What is being presented today is drastically different, and in a tongue in cheek fashion is poking fun at what the bourbon/whiskey industry has become. The labeling of the bottles is downright comical. Simple bottles, but these loud over the top labels are a throwback to the 80’s esque artwork and coloring. With names like Waxx Dippzz, Flipperzz, Smash Bill, Maxx Profitzz, etc. you can see the industry jabs. The barrels themselves are also nicknamed, with the bottle I have the barrel was nicknamed Toffee Coffee. It’s not like anything else you’ll find in the bourbon aisle that’s for sure. The lineup consists of 9 different MGP mashbills and I believe all of them being single barrels. Price I’ve seen has been around the $32-$40 range. The Waxx Dippzz is 51% corn, 45% wheat, 4% barley, aged 2 years, and at 58.4 ABV. First taste was neat, did a 2nd with a little splash of water. Nose- the barrel nickname is fitting, toffee, little bit of vanilla almost like cake frosting, definitely pick up corn, nose is pleasant, but subtle. Palate - burst of sweetness on the front end like simple syrup, definitely a corn forward profile, initially has a really nice buttery texture, get very little of the toffee and frosting as the nose would suggest, little pepper, didn’t get much fruit flavor maybe just a hint of banana. You can tell it’s a very young bourbon. For the ABV it is extremely smooth though which I would attribute to it being a wheated bourbon. Finish - mild to medium finish, finishes fairly dry, mostly corn and leather, little bit of oak. The splash of water didn’t do much for my tasting, preferred it more without, thought the water detracted from the flavors. I did let it rest for about 10 minutes and thought that did help with pulling out some more flavor. For what this bourbon is it’s decent. Your getting basically a cask strength single barrel for under $40. Even despite the popularity of MGP for some I wouldn’t go over $40 for this and ideally would keep it under $35, the age being my biggest hiccup. I think if this were to age at least another two years this becomes a much better product. What it does have going for it is that is incredibly smooth for that ABV, decent price, and flavor profile is good. The mashbiils are present on most if not all the brands so if you know something you gravitate towards as far as a rye, heavy corn, wheated, etc. style then chances are Krogman’s will have something you can compare. I’d buy again as long as under $35, if start getting higher than that I’d probably move on to a tried and true that I know what I’m getting even if not at cask strength. Would be a good bourbon to bring to a party or for a mixer. I could do it as an everyday sipper, but it wouldn’t be my go to, have others out there in the price range that have better flavor and more complexity. Would really like to see this particular mashbill aged another two years.