Tastes

It's that time again. That magical time of year when all the "Best Whiskey of the Year" lists come out. I've been searching around and found that most of these lists consist of highly aged Scotch and limited release or allocated Bourbon, and while I'm sure these drams are delicious, the fact remains that most of us will likely never taste most of these, so over the next five days, I present to you this longhorn's humble top 5 whiskies of 2020. Most of us could agree that this was not our best year. However, all the time spent at home resulted in expanded imbibing of our favorite brown beverage. This is the criteria for my list: (1) The whiskey has to be readily available on store shelves. No special releases. This means the most excellent Wild Turkey Masters Keep expressions I tried and rated this year are out, though you should feel confident to buy on sight. (2) Every dram on my list is $80 or less. Everyone should be able to taste great whiskey, and yes, I realize my definition of "great" might be different than others, but that's the fun of what we all do here, and (3) I had to have tasted it in 2020. None of the whiskies on my list were released this year, but this year is when I finally got around to them. Coming in at #4 is a surprise for me and anybody who had one (or more) nights in college praying to the porcelain god after imbibing too much Jack and ________ (insert sugary mixer here). This bottle was spoken about in back rooms and hushed tones as an available, affordable, equally high proof alternative to the ever elusive Stagg Jr., but everyone was reluctant to admit they liked a Jack Daniels product given the brand's...cultural profile shall we say. Even my regular drinking partners were skeptical. So was I. I bought a 375 initially to confirm my suspicions, and with those heartily confirmed, I bought a full bottle. My bottle rings in at a whopping 66.5% ABV, with powerful notes of dark chocolate, walnuts, toffee, caramel, and yes, the JD banana, which I very much enjoy. In my review, I compared it to Ben & Jerry's Chunky Monkey ice cream. A little goes a long way, and water opens it up, but isn't necessary. As with any single barrel, mileage may vary, but feel empowered to buy with confidence. At around $50, it's a lot of whiskey for your $$$. Cheers!

It's that time again. That magical time of year when all the "Best Whiskey of the Year" lists come out. I've been searching around and found that most of these lists consist of highly aged Scotch and limited release or allocated Bourbon, and while I'm sure these drams are delicious, the fact remains that most of us will likely never taste most of these, so over the next five days, I present to you this longhorn's humble top 5 whiskies of 2020. Most of us could agree that this was not our best year. However, all the time spent at home resulted in expanded imbibing of our favorite brown beverage. This is the criteria for my list: (1) The whiskey has to be readily available on store shelves. No special releases. This means the most excellent Wild Turkey Masters Keep expressions I tried and rated this year are out, though you should feel confident to buy on sight. (2) Every dram on my list is $80 or less. Everyone should be able to taste great whiskey, and yes, I realize my definition of "great" might be different than others, but that's the fun of what we all do here, and (3) I had to have tasted it in 2020. None of the whiskies on my list were released this year, but this year is when I finally got around to them. Coming in at #5 was an early contender for this list. I've professed my love for Canadian whiskey and I don't care who knows. There's a lot of cool offerings out there once you move past the bottom shelf, even at 40%, and this one ticks off all the right boxes. Finished in Canadian oak barrels (who else can claim that!), this dram presents notes of maple, spice, butterscotch, toffee, and more. At $55 and bottled at 40% ABV, it packs a lot of flavor into a modern classic from the North. I've written (read: lamented) before about how Canada keeps all the best stuff for themselves, but this one makes it south to us here in the US, and any whiskeyfile should give this a go before they write off Canadian whiskey as a category. Those folks at Forty Creek know what they're doing. Pick up a bottle and try for yourself. Cheers!

I've been slowly making the rounds around the city, popping into local liquor stores to see if there's any dustys or surprises. So far not too much, and I generally leave empty handed. On this particular day, I went to a shop on the other side of the city that prides itself on its bourbon selection. Fair enough. That's an excuse to get out of the house. I get there, and not only is the bourbon selection rather small, it's mostly bottles I can get for $15-$20 less at a big store. I get it, the little guy doesn't have the buying power of Total Wine. There was a store pick of 1792 Full Proof which intrugiued me, but I didn't feel like spending $80 for it, not when there's holiday shopping to do. Enter this bottle. I was about to leave when the owner made the sad puppy dog face at me. You've all seen it. The one that says, "Please sir. Just one bottle." I didn't want to be a total Scrooge (or Mallory Archer) and leave the poor guy high and dry, especially after the year we've had, so I quickly scanned the shelf (realizing their scotch selection was actually quite extensive. I will go back for that), and grabbed this. I like Dewars White Label in a pinch if the bar has nothing else, and I was intrigued by the age statement (plus they market the hell out of this in Whisky Advocate). For $30, I was willing to take the risk. I've been nursing this now for a few days and I've got about 1/3 of the bottle empty, and I gotta say, I can't find anything bad to say about this whisky. The big boys know how to play, I'll give them that. This is at once creamy, interesting, and has enough complexity to keep me interested while being completely unobtrusive and easy to drink. The nose is perfume and incense and spice. There's notes of coconut, marzipan, vanilla fondant, and kettle corn, all wrapped in a warm sherry blanket. Dewars makes a point of their "aging after blending", which I suspect takes place in some second fill sherry casks. The palate is creamy and enveloping, like if a strawberry short cake could hug you. It's sweet and inviting and velvety and makes you want to come back for another sip. Anybody who dumps on grain whisky for being harsh and metallic (present company included) won't find that here. The grain component has been aged well and complements the malt in more of a partnership than a supporting role. The finish is warm and velvety, and lasts longer than any 40% ABV dram has the right to. As I said earlier, nothing bad to say about this. I suspect the bottle won't last long. If I were rating this on the merits of blended whisky alone, it would get a high score, but honestly, it's just a damn good drink. Most places have it for $20-$30, so why not try it for yourself. At the very least it's a nice drink with some complexity to savor while we wait for the Single Malt tariffs to be repealed and prices to resume some sanity. Cheers!

I was excited to see this one finally arrive stateside at my local Total Wine. I've been a big fan of the work Dr. Don Livermore has done in the past, but a lot of his best work never makes it south of the Canadian border. Some of the best Canadien whiskies I've tried have been Lot 40 and the Wisers 18, both of which possess what I call "subtle complexity". This one is the highest rated of the four core offerings from Corby Distillers LTD. (Lot 40, Wisers, Pike Creek, G&W) here on Distiller, so what are we gonna find? At first whiff when I popped the cork, I thought I was smelling bourbon. Layers of oak and vanilla, with a hint of rye spice. After some time in the glass, the more "traditional" Canadian profile starts to show up, with maple syrup and dusty lumber making their fashionably late entrances. After that, it's vanilla. Vanilla pudding, creme brule, vanilla ice cream, cream cheese frosting, and cafe latte. Quite a bit of lovely stuff packed in to the nose here. It's unmistakably Canadian on the palate, but Dr. Don has shown us that this isn't necessarily a bad thing. The expert blending really shines here, with corn and wheat sweetness, an oily mouth coating from the malt, and the rye shows up on the back palate with a spiciness that evolves into the finish. The proof is quite precise at 44.4 percent, and you can really feel it on the finish, which lasts longer than any Canadian whisky normally does. I'm going 4.25 on this. I like this just as much as Wisers 18, but it doesn't quite beat out 40 Creek Confederation Oak. Very happy with my bottle purchase. Don't go into this expecting bourbon, but do go in expecting a quality dram at an affordable price. Cheers!

Been working on this for a bit. Think I’m finally ready to share my thoughts. I’ll admit, I bought this out of scarcity mentality since it’s been discontinued (though the new model seems to be quite similar). I’ve got a 2018 bottling which has a blend of bourbon, rum, and virgin oak casks. Nose is campfire up front, but a fruity, ashy smoke as opposed to the Islay brine and rope smoke. Peeling back the layers reveals some grilled pineapple, vanilla, and white pepper. Taste is similar, with an added layer of maltiness and a lingering sweetness from the rum casks. Medium finish. Not an overly complex dram, but a highly pleasant sipper. Glad I got the chance to try it before it slips out of availability. Also, I’m down to five bottles of whisky now. I gotta admit, I kinda prefer this to having 284858294858 bottles on my shelf at once. It allows me an easy choice: bourbon, Irish, Smokey, or sherry. Plus a special occasion bottle. When one’s gone, I can replace it with the same bottle or try something different within that category. After so many years of chasing down drams and trying different pours, it feels good to have a tidy bottle collection comprised of quality pours that I’ve vetted from many different whiskies. Try it for yourself! Cheers!

After revisiting my bottle of Russell's Reserve Single Barrel Rye last night and basking in its magnificence, I thought it high time that I review this bottle, which I spent a considerable amount of time hunting down, only to be moderately disappointed, and relegated it to making the most expensive Old Fashioned's I've ever made. The bottle's been open about a month and a half, and it's about halfway empty with plenty of air. How does it hold up? Nose is rye. Rye, rye, rye. No mistake what you're drinking here. Digging deeper, we find some chocolate (more dark than milk), brown sugar, cherry, and dusty oak. Ok, fine. The palate betrays the proof. At 55.1%, it drinks like 43%, even into the finish. I will say, the taste is intriguing. It's unlike any rye I've tried. It has a distinctly malty character to it, which indicates a high percentage of malted barley in the mix. It almost reminds me of a Kudos bar (when I was a kid they would have those as snacks after baseball games, which are basically granola bars with either a chocolate glaze or chocolate chips in them). Interesting nostalgia hit taking me back thirty years...There's no mistake you're drinking a rye, but it's not in your face like RYE! The finish is a bit underwhelming, again, betraying the proof. For a cask strength dram, I expected longer. So what to rate? It took me months to hunt this down in Texas. SRP for this hovers around $60, but I paid around $90 for it at the one shop in all of central Texas I found this at. Stupid markups...it's not like Buffalo Trace made this...Do I think this is worth $90? No way. How about $60? Still no. I'm not loving sipping on this. I want that wow factor for what I paid for this. It does make a damn good cocktail, but so does Rittenhouse or Old Overholt for a fraction of the price. I'll give it a 3, because it's good and does make a good cocktail, but the VFM really isn't there. I can see why this is a shelf turd in California. Save your money and buy RR SiB if you want a good sipping rye, or perhaps one of the Sagamore cask finished ryes. I'm disappointed given the high rating it has from the community here, but such is life. Cheers all, and happy weekend. Hopefully for all my American friends this long nightmare of an election week is almost over. It could almost drive a fella to drink...

I'm not sure, but I think Old Forester was one of the first bourbons I ever purchased. Just like an old friend you may have not spoken to for years, this bourbon brand tends to get looked over when I'm shopping, but also like an old friend, when we do reconnect, we remember why we were friends in the first place, and it's as if no time has passed since our last meeting. Old Forester 1920 gets all the accolades among whisky geeks, and for the hardcore collectors, people go for the Birthday Bourbon. The 1910 gets a bit lost in the mix. Initially I was puzzled by the low 82 rating here, but an average 4.02 user rating. This is a "finished" bourbon, in this case meaning that matured Old Forester was put into a new toasted, heavily charred barrel. Why they're copying Woodford Reserve Double Oaked is anybody's guess, since they're both Brown-Foreman products, but either way, nice to have this as an option in the market. This is an easy drinking bourbon. If a mocha latte were turned into a whisky, this would be it. The nose is candy chocolate and coffee grounds enveloping dark caramels and brown sugars, like warm brownies right out of the oven. As it hits your palate, you're greeted with milk chocolate, coffee, cocoa powder, oak, and brown sugar. No Brown-Foreman banana in this one. This is desert in a glass. The finish is medium length, and I do wish it would last a little longer, as the flavors are o so nice. I do think I like this better than the Woodford Double Oaked. I'm not rating it higher, though. While the proof point is similar for both, this one feels a bit thin in the mouthfeel, whereas the Woodford is more mouth coating. At a similar price point, it's dealer's choice which one you should buy. They're both great, and both possess those rich, chocolaty notes. A fine desert bourbon if there ever was one. It'll certainly provide some comfort tonight with a few fingers in a rocks glass while I sit and watch the election returns come in. Red or Blue, I think everyone can agree that this is a delicious bourbon. Cheers!

Re-review at bottle kill. Opened June 2020 Departed November 2020 I’m gonna split this review into two parts. If you’re reading this and you’re looking to dip your toe into peated whisky for the first time, keep reading. If you’re one of my regular readers, skip to the end. For those of you new to scotch. Perhaps you’ve had a nice fruity speyside or highlander, or you’ve tried something matured in a sherry barrel and enjoy the dark fruit and spice that offers, but you’re looking to try the smoky beasts from the south you’ve heard about, I recommend you start here. When you’re looking to get into smokey scotch, most people start at one of three places: Laphroaig 10, Lagavulin 16 (or 8), or Ardbeg 10. I think you ought to start here because (1) Laphroaig is a acquired taste. People either love it or hate it. I’ve been drinking whisky for a while and I still struggle with Laphroaig. Try this one, and if you like it, then move on to Laphroaig. (2) Lagavulin is damned expensive. Yes, it’s Ron Swanson’s scotch, but it’s also $100 on average in the US now because of a combination of import tariffs and Diageo (Lagavulin and others’ corporate overlords) charge an arm and a leg for their products because they no people will pay it, bit the price doesn’t always reflect the quality. Again, try the Ardbeg 10 and if you like it, but are looking for some more complexity and a bit more sweetness, go for the Lagavulin. Let’s be clear, Ardbeg is still a peat monster, bit I know there’s a lot of new whisky drinkers and users on this app (certainly compared to when I joined) and if you’re looking for your first smokey, start here. It has smoke, yes, but underneath the smoke the malt is quite sweet, with notes of lemon and a slight hint of coconut. Really quite lovely. Plus at 46% ABV, it’s still manageable for a less experienced palate but still offers a lot of flavor. I hope you like this as you go along your whisky journey! NOW, for my regular readers, here’s the scoop. I meant what I said above, but I think I’ll be moving on from Ardbeg 10. As I finished this bottle I was almost overwhelmed at how sweet it was. After so many years of heavy peat, I hardly notice it (though the Mrs. still hates when I drink it as she claims it stinks up the kitchen, a designation I wear with honor!) and all I can detect is this sweet malt like it’s made in speyside or something. Maybe it’s palate fatigue. Maybe it’s just a more evolved palate. I still have yet to buy a bottle of Cory. Might be my next stop. Loved Ugi. Loved An Oa (despite popular opinion). This was good but left me wanting. Like I said, good first smokey, bit after many years and many drams, doesn’t pack the same punch as it once did. Hope to find that again with the Cory. Cheers all!