Tastes

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 24 I come into this drink with one question: is there enough of a difference between the 23 year and the 24 year to justify collecting all 6 years of Rhetorics? For the collector, the point is moot, but for the drinker, are the 6 different bottles more like 6 different Booker’s, or are they more like 6 different single barrels from a consistent product line (minor variations, but virtually indistinguishable)? The nose immediately takes me back to the 23 year. There’s a bitterness of brine and dust, but a sweetness of caramel too. There’s a tanginess that I get every now and then: tangerine, orange, cherry. That part is when the bitterness presents itself more as a sourness. It’s undeniably an older bourbon. The body is a delivery of the promises made by the nose. The caramel hits most clearly, with a brininess to follow. It takes some work, but I can get those fruity flavors from the nose. Finish is moderate heat, and though there’s not a huge flavor shift, this is where the sourness really kicks in. I really like this bourbon! My memory says this is identical to 23 year, but my current notes seem a bit different. This will require me to also open up a 23. Blind taste test time! For science. So they honestly are different, and it kind of pisses me off to say that. I was convinced that in a blind taste test, I wouldn’t be able to distinguish, but I could every time. Here’s the deal: noses are the same. If there’s a difference in the bodies, I can’t detect it. Finish is the way to know. Across multiple bottles now, the 23 year has a leathery, dusty finish. This 24 year is sour on the end. There’s no mistaking those trail offs. For the average drinker, I think it’d be safe to use these interchangeably. They are far more similar than they are different. But I’ll be damned if those finishes don’t give away who’s who. The 23 and the 24 are not like two different Booker’s, but they’re also a bit more different than 2 different single barrels of a consistent product line. My honest preference would be the 24 year, but they are both superb whiskeys. As a drinker, I do now yearn to at least collect a 20 and a 25. Perhaps those endpoints could help me map out what’s going on with each additional year. ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 7 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments.

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 23 This bottle has officially relieved a lot of my bourbon anxiety. For one, “Ready-To-Drink” still doesn’t mean premixed liqueur bull crap. Still very happy about that. Equally important to me: this is Bravo, one of my favorite surprise finds of 2018. When Bravo disappeared from all the shelves in my area, I panicked. But I’m good now. Found my Bravo juice again in this little guy. Let’s see if my tastes have changed. The nose is tropical, both sweet and fruity. Watermelon, orange, but of red apple. Freaking good. Body has a buttery feel, with that same intense watermelon flavor I recall from Bravo. The red apple and orange are also there, but watermelon is the main takeaway. You could argue there’s some sugar on the finish, but it’s more honest to say this one lacks any real finish. I don’t view that as a true knock, because I also like watermelon popsicles, and they don’t have a finish. Point is: I love the flavors this one delivers so much, I’ll overlook the noticeable lack of complexity. If you missed out on Bravo packaging, you should make sure to give this little guy a chance. ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 8 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments.

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 22 I debated whether or not I would create a new whiskey in Distiller for this one. So I poured this side-by-side with Batch 1, and immediately, it felt necessary. For starters, the colors are noticeably different. Batch 2 is much darker in color. However, it wasn’t until I tasted the two that I realized just how different they were. The nose is where I see the most resemblance. Caramel, leather, brine. There’s apple on batch 1, and for the life of me I can’t find it here. There is cane sugar though. Body is nutty and dusty. I get leather, pecans, powdered sugar. This is wholly different from the fruit on the body of batch 1. Finish, however, is fruity. The brininess transforms into a citrus on the sides of your tongue. It’s delicious. There’s a cinnamon and vanilla buzz that carries off on top of your tongue. This too is wholly different from batch 1. I can tell these batches are brothers. They both manipulate the same types of flavors, albeit at different times during the drink. I can tell that they are both expertly made, but they’re just too different to be considered the same. If I had to give the edge to one, it would be Batch 1, but it is extremely close. A large part of that vote would be personal preference only. Both batches are worth a go IMHO, should you find them. Just mentally adjust for the 375 mL trickery. ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 9 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments.

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 21 When I think about 21, I think about Portwood. When I think about Portwood that’s some heavenly juice. When I think about Heaven, I think about Angel’s (Envy). When I think about Angel’s (Envy), I think about port again. Oops. Unfortunately, I’ve already tried Portwood, so today I’ll have to settle for this younger brother. It’s wholly new to my pallet, and as a huge fan of Balvenie in general, I’m excited. Begin political rant. My whiskey overlord warned me that the next time I buy this bottle, it may cost $20 more. I looked it up, and now I understand. Scotch fans in America are on track to be political casualties in a tariff war with EU. There’s a 25% cost increase on single malt scotches, and it has already been in the books for months. It’s not “if” but “when” it affects each of us locally in the greater distribution cycle. In my area, it’ll filter in with the next reorder. To put this into perspective, it’d be like one day, you’re at your honey hole and you pick up this $70 scotch and take it to the counter. You do a double take when it rings up at $93 after sales tax. So you ask: “Why is the US government making me pay an extra 25% sales tax on my specific purchase? The guy buying Wild Turkey doesn’t have to pay an extra 25% sales tax. This seems arbitrary and mean.” So in that scenario you’re reasonably pissed off, and you should be equally pissed off by this tariff because it’s essentially the same thing. The price jumps up before you get to the register, so it feels different. But the reality is you’re paying 25% more money in a reimbursement chain that ends up in the pocket of the US government every time you want to buy a scotch (assuming the scotch in question continues to distribute to America). It’s a targeted tax, and the taxpayer is the American who likes scotches. Because: politics. Something is wrong with the world when politics alone can make your booze of choice harder to get. Thank original American 8 pound 6 ounce sweet baby Jesus that bourbon can’t be subject to tariffs. For me, anyway. This concludes my political rant. The nose is Balvenie standard. Raisin is the main scent here. There’s a bit of peat if I really hunt. Always a pleasure. Body differs though. I certainly get the raisin from the sherry influence and some peanuts, but there’s some new stuff here. There’s cane sugar, oak, and a hint of citrus. Finish carries out with the citrus and raisin. There’s a hint of peat, far more than I recall from Doublewood. It’s quite tropical overall. This is very enjoyable. It sort of hits a sweet spot for me. I’m a bourbon soul who sometimes wants a scotch, and I truly get the first fill American oak influence. Yet, I could see this facing the same problem as Redbreast Lustau. Who would ever reach for this specific bottle, and why? I’m glad I have it, but it won’t beat my bourbons when that’s the craving. It might itch the Balvenie craving for me, but I doubt it would scratch the surface for a true scotch fan. If you too are a bourbon soul who occasionally likes a scotch, this is a must try for you. ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 10 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments.

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 20 So you might be wondering what this little guy has to do with the number 20. Fun fact: when you hold this next to a Barterhouse 20 on December 20th, you realize that you CAN bear to pop the top on this bottle. Nose is sugary. Honestly reminds me of gummy bears, and I like that concept more than I think I should. I get grape jam. Small hint of pickle juice, probably from a rye mixed in. Body is very sweet. I get where that gummy bear/grape jam was coming from. As a flavor, I’d say it’s more of a raisin, but when you mix in that rye influence, it tricks your taste buds. I can get gummy bears, figs, prunes, sangria, all kinds of screwy stuff. I don’t love too many of the flavors, but I do find it interesting. Finish is dry like a red wine, with a bit of anise and licorice. Some of that brine comes back in the end. I find this interesting and complex. I can see the artistry, but to be honest, I don’t care for the flavor profiles. I’m quite certain there are people that would love this, but not me. ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 11 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments. Don’t say WLW. I lied, I have 2.

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 19 Recommended by DMOYER. Thanks! I’ve had an encounter with Rabbit Hole before, with the PX sherry finish version. It was pretty good, but ultimately not as good as WT Revival (though I don’t think that was a fair matchup based on age statement alone). This little guy has a 3 year age statement. It’s a straight bourbon whiskey at 95 proof. Nose reminds me strongly of Woodford. I get banana, oak, sugar, and caramel. The sweet banana scent wins overall. This is a very gentle, approachable body, which somehow tastes nothing like Woodford. My nose Pinocchioed me. It’s sweet and fruity, and the fruit activates in the back of my mouth, around my molars. This is a trick that (to date) I’ve only ever experienced from much older whiskeys, so that’s interesting. It’s more of a candy fruit flavor than something natural, but if I had to pick a fruit, I’d pick a golden delicious apple. Hold on to your hat. Finish takes a hard left into spice world. Spice up your life, bruh. You get used to that hard cut over the course of the drink, but that first sip almost tore my ACL all over again. I get strong cinnamon, but there’s a sweetness too. Like a hot toddy without the mint. Tongue buzz on the front. I know the body/finish demarcation line is a bit subjective, but for me the finish starts either right after you swallow or right when you notice a drastic change. This one has such a change that swallow or not, big red is coming. I have rarely tasted bourbons that have thoroughly different mission statements on nose, body, and finish. When I do, assuming the flavors are enjoyable and not Bertie Bott’s style, the bourbon tends to become a permanent member of my shelf. I can tell already that this little guy will be no different. This is one of my favorite new finds (of the readily available stuff) of 2019. Thanks again to DMOYER for turning my eyes back toward this distillery. They’re actually pretty legit! ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 12 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments. Don’t say WLW. I have a 2019, but I’m saving it. Edit: I just noticed the community score. I know I probably say this too much to avoid entering holier-than-thou territory here, but the community at large got this wrong. Give it a shot if you like the flavors listed in this review. I got your back, Rabbit Hole.

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 18 To my knowledge, this was a one time release back in 2017 that is no longer available. I paid $130, originally on sale at distillery for $85. You know how it goes. According to their announcement flyer, some ghosts took only 61 bottles worth of ten-year-old “Eighteen 33,” a name choice that has always bothered me in some deep but unknown way, and finished the batch in a Tonnellerie Sauternes wine barrel. I don’t know enough about wine for that to mean much, other than it’s a sweet white. Additionally, I’ve never had Boone County juice before, and I don’t understand the ghosts bit. Like at all. Only leg-up I have here is a decent exposure to barrel-finished bourbon, and as someone who is generally pro-barrel finishes when used as additional options from a given distillery (read: not the ONLY output of a given distillery, wagging my finger at you Angel’s Envy), I’m very excited to try this little guy. For a white wine finish, this drink is absurdly dark. It looks a lot like AE in color. I get a heavy load of raisin on the nose. Reminds me of Balvenie, but with the astringency of a higher-proof bourbon. There’s some vanilla and sugar there as well, but overall, raisin wins. It’s pretty interesting. I love it when there’s this much stuff going on in a body, regardless of how I feel about all the flavors. This one is very busy. The most obvious flavor is sweet wine. Fair amount of dust, oak, raisin. Cane sugar and citrus fade in and out around the more powerful wine flavor. It’s sweet and dry, and it’s actually quite good. Finish carries off with raisin, orange, and a bit of cinnamon. Very low heat, very dry, still sweet. This drink makes me very curious about the underlying bourbon. I don’t know what the ghosts are doing, but so far I’m a fan. If I had to guess, I’d say the standard 1833 is reminiscent of Wild Turkey juice, and the Sauternes does the rest. By WT juice, I mean I could see this fitting in with the 80/101/KY Spirit portfolio, not the Russels Reserve one. As a sincere WT fan, I mean that as a compliment. In 10 years, BC has accomplished some stuff I generally don’t expect until 15+ years, and them ghosts deserve a pat on the back. I still really want to know wtf is going on with the ghosts bit. Seriously. And yes, I do intend to start a resistance that henceforth calls this bourbon “1833.” I’ll be accepting applications for community organizers beginning March 2020. Edit: I just read a great review that explained the ghosts thing. So just go back and manually change all my consternation to mad respect. Edit 2: I just found out the ghost thing is explained in full on the label. You might be wondering if Milliardo is just a lazy drunkard. In my defense, the bottle is currently down a flight of steps. So yes. ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 13 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments. Don’t say WLW.

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 17 When I first got into bourbon, I made the decision to collect 2 things. I’ve made many more collection decisions since then, but on day 1, at a random liquor store near Bardstown, my decision was to do the Blanton’s letter catch-em all challenge, and to pick a batch and start collecting all Booker’s from that batch on. The batch I picked was 2015.01 (mainly because back then I couldn’t understand the pre-2015 batch nomenclature). To date, I have collected them all up to 2019.03, including the 30th anniversary bottle. But in doing this December experiment, I’ve learned something. Booker’s are for drinking, not saving. Tommy’s Batch, or 2017.01, comes in at 64.25%. I think my default stance on Booker’s nose is positive. They’re all classic bourbon noses, but the astringency blocks much of what’s going on until you’re a good finger in. This one is no different. Starting out, I get honey, powdered sugar, and a few singed nose hairs. After I go back, toward the end of the drink, I can also pick out some pecan and pepper. Hot damn. Not for the faint of heart nor the chapped of lips, this one. I get a dark chocolate here, more bitter than sweet. There’s also a ton of leather. I’d say overall, the leather wins. Finish brings me brine and black pepper. Very salty, very dry feeling. Pleasant buzz on the sides of your tongue. With ice: wow, the nuttiness really pops on the nose now. It’s definitely become the main actor. A little sugar still, but most of the scents are gone. The leather on the body is now pleasantly subdued for the preferable (in my opinion) dark chocolate. It’s still bitter and dry, but more like a Cabernet and less like the underside of a frequently used but infrequently cleaned saddle. Finish is more of an afterthought in this mode, but if I had to pick a flavor, I’d say walnuts. Those really bitter ones. I’m actually getting excited about the (have to guess here because I have such a bourbon hoarding problem that I don’t actually know) 30+ bottles of Booker’s I am officially authorizing myself to consume. Booker’s will never be my favorite bourbon, but what’s cool about the product line is every now and then they do something better that the generally recognized champ. I’d put “Off Your Rocker” in a blind competition for best representation of milk chocolate. Bring your champion, no stave finishes allowed. In the obscure category of “Best in show once poured over ice and allowed to sit for about 5 minutes”, I’d say this guy wouldn’t win, but he’d beat both Blanton’s SFTB and Blanton’s Gold. I’m calling them out because that’s honesty what this reminds me of when you water it down a bit. It’s good juice, and I guess that’s my point. Christmas came early this year in Milliardo’s man cave. ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 14 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments. Don’t say WLW.

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 16 My kids have this movie they love where Lego Brainiac tries to shrink the planet Earth in order to complete his alphabetized collection of planets. Ultimately, the Lego Justice League is able to save the world by refocusing his compulsive collecting disorder toward collecting coins. But what happens when he finishes his collection? Lego Batman points out that this is impossible, since new coins are minted every year. Effectively, Lego Batman found a way to eternally imprison Lego Brainiac into a compulsive collecting habit which, to Lego Brainiac, may have seemed like a good idea at first, but over time his efforts would indubitably feel fruitless and his ever-expanding collection devoid of any kind of meaningful satisfaction. Anyway, tonight I’m popping open Booker’s 2016-05, “Off Your Rocker.” 64.85%! Nose is good, but not special. There’s caramel, and it’s super astringent (which makes sense). I’d say lemon too, in the sour/bitter form. After sipping for a while, I go back and can get a nutty scent too. Body: wow that’s hot. Hadn’t had a Booker’s in a while and you forget. I get brown sugar, and tons of milk chocolate. Very sweet, very tasty. I like this a lot. On the finish I get sugared pecans. This is one of the most delicious finishes I can remember. Appropriate tongue buzz, relatively short overall. With ice: this tones down the bite a ton. Per usual, you barter some complexity for accessibility. This one fares better than most though, and I wouldn’t hesitate to alternate this bottle between neat and rocks pours. This is in the running for my favorite Booker’s to date. I’ve only tasted 5 or so, but I have a feeling that number will be going up a lot in the near future. Lego Brainiac has raised the white flag. ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 15 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments.

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 15 It is sincerely stupid how much time I pumped into trying to make the number 15 work with my existing bourbon collection. I ended up settling on the fact that in Vermont and Maine, the refund value for this bottle is 15 cents. Ladies and gentlemen, please hold your applause until the end of the review. Nose is bitter. A hint of caramel, but mostly leather and brine. Some apple if I really hunt for it. Body is sweet, and it feels very natural. Sometimes sweetness can seem syrupy and forced, but not here. That complete denial of my expectations was impressive. I get caramel apples, tangerine, and a bit of cane sugar. Finish goes back to the nose for me. There is leather, brine, and a bit of caramel. It’s hot on the back of your tongue, but only in feel. Flavors are bitter here. I’m really happy with this juice. I was worried after seeing the community average, but I think that number is too low. This batch really does do a good job, although I do understand the value/dollar argument could go against this little guy. You didn’t trick me Bond & Lillard. $60 for a 375mL means I expect $120 in value. I did that math in my head just now. Is this twice the value of a Rock Hill Farms? No. Is it 2.5 the value of a EHT Small Batch? No. But unlike those 2 delicious bourbons, in my area this is readily available, and if you have $60 to burn and want to try some unique and tasty juice, I certainly recommend. ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 16 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments.