Tastes

I have run into this at least 5 or 6 times with people who swear by its incredible value. So although I rarely drink Scotch, I'm checking it out properly. Vibrant golden/ slightly tarnished brass in color. Fairly sticky on the glass... Fairly wide spaced legs emerge and run slowly off the sides of the glass. Nose is honey, buttered toast, fresh cut alfalfa hay, sawdust, a hint of eucalyptus. Big, rich mouth feel coats with a sweet front. Honey, shortbread, and a hint of toasted pecans. It yields shortly to a warm, gently spiced mid palate before returning to the sweetness without overcoming the hints of oak coming through on the medium finish. It's very good. I will stock this on the bar.

Pale golden straw body Legs appear slowly, but once running our voluminous and speedy. Ethanol is a major contributor to the nose. Getting past that, there is some toasted white bread and a touch of vanilla that comes through the Pine-Sol. A bit of clove and green apple round out the underwhelming nose. Palate is soft and a bit sticky in a very pleasant way. Like those yellow wrapped butterscotch candies... The sweetness makes itself known, and stays nearly all the way throughout. There's almost a bitter, dry woody moment following the swallow, followed by the off-putting ethanol. It turns around with a moderately long but not complex finish. It tastes better than it smells, and it makes a very good old fashioned with some help from some quality bitters and a proper cocktail cherry. That is definitely what it will be used for in our house over the holidays.

Picked this up to have as a mixing bourbon for family and friends during the holidays. Never put a serious rating to it. Pale golden/dark straw in color. Legs appear relatively quickly and move with similar speed. They do hang well on the glass. Nose shows plenty of vanilla, with a touch of sugar cookie with a fresh cut through old oak boards. Whispy hints of lemon and eucalyptus. Soft but thin mouth feel, it's initially slightly sweet but well balanced with some spice and oak. Light caramel, butterscotch, and barrel char round out the short to medium finish. I would say this is a generally faultless bourbon. It's not impressive in any way, but it's not offensive either!

Seasonally appropriate deep orange hue to the amber body. Slow-forming legs with a ring of beads that never moves. Nose is loaded with baking spices but shows granny Smith apples, toasted oak, orange peel and hints of vanilla and cobwebby corners of the barn. Grandma's wooden jewelry box... A wood paneled supper club. This is cozy and interesting. Finish is long but thins out quickly, but there's a return of a sticky vanilla bean that hangs on for a remarkable amount of time before sending off with old oak panels, or an unused wood shop.

Dark copper/tarnished brass in color a few legs form after quite a bit of time... Hangs on the glass as one big sheet. Nose is loaded with rich oak and leather with dark chocolate covered cherries. Hints of baking spices pop through, along with a faint note of malted milk balls. Instantly warming, it's sweetness is present, but not the main player until the mid palate/early finish. The finish is long and interesting, unfolding in the reverse of the nose. A wonderful cherry wood character mingles with barrel char and burnt caramel. I definitely pick up the lemon peel/citrucy thing too It loosens up and reveals some vanilla with a few drops of water. I'm disappointed that the price is up to $49.99, but I'll still snap up every one I see.

Dark, slightly tarnished copper color. Lots of legs. Slow forming, but fast to run. Nose shows baking spice through creamed corn, vanilla, musty stored grains from the malted barley, hints of burnt caramel and chocolate. Sweet up front, it gives way to a Mid palate is oak, clove, nutmeg and then a slightly bitter woody tone. Finish is medium to long. Not complex, but there's a wonderful note of chocolate covered nuts that hangs around and pops through the sweet, rich dark caramel. Next time I roll through Kentucky, I'm buying a case of this. It's just worth having on the shelf and such an incredible value. There's nothing to write home about, but it's bourbon, and that's great.

Brought back from TX by John. Quite dark in color... Mahogany tones. Super sticky for a whiskey this proof. Nose is cacao, plenty of malt, oak, and undertones of baking spice. Soft and syrupy on the palate, wildly drinkable for the proof, the slight sweetness and creamy caramel balance out the heat from the spice and the alcohol. Dark malted milk balls linger with tons of oak. Really opens up and stretches out with a bit of water in it... Medium to long finish is dominated by the grain bill. It's interesting and quite tasty... Not mind blowing, but I'd be glad to have another!

Pale golden straw color with wide, slow moving legs. Nose is what I'd expect based on the EW family: light toasted bread and caramel seep through vanilla, freshly split dry oak, hints of rye grains and baking spice. Nothing super exciting, but it's all in there. A bit dry and woody on the palate. The hint of sweetness fades quickly, but leaves a finish of decent length. Some herbal/baled hay tones hang on and a bit of stickiness holds it all together. It's drinkable neat and does make a good old fashioned. Excellent value.

Tarnished brass in color. Only a few slow-forming legs. Quite sticky indeed. Nose is a shock: herbal, fruity and floral... Bordering on perfumey... notes of sage, white grapes, danjou pear, jasmine and spring spruce tips. The barrel sneaks in a bit, but it's background noise until it reappears on the finish... It's a bit oily in texture and nudges the edge of cloying at first. There's a bit of an analgesic quality and I can't tell if it's mint and clove or just the ethanol. This is balanced, in part, by the tart apple, clove, licorice, and floral explosion. The finish is where the barrel finally has a chance to shine. Buttered toast, fresh cut green saplings and a hint of coconut push through the lingering "perfume". It's definitely a wild ride up to the edges of what I've come to expect out of an American rye. It's interesting and an excellent quality product for sure... It's just not my favorite.

Well. They're not wrong. It's obvious that it's MGP juice... Which isn't a bad thing at all. Caramel, vanilla, a hint of pear or green apple and a nice dose of toasted oak. There are some herbal undertones in there as well... A bit of alfalfa or clover perhaps... It reminds me of an early morning walk through pastures in late spring. Mostly sweeth throughout, it yields a bit to some spice and wood, mid-palate. Medium finish shows some notes of cacao and leather. Although nothing special, it is superbly drinkable and an excellent value.