Tastes

Appearance: So the color I found in this prohibition superhero is burnished bronze. It’s legs on the inside of the glass are medium thin and oily. Nose: After bringing it up for a whiff I found the sweet nose with notes of caramel, pancakes and syrup, basil, oak, orange rind, honey, and saw dust. Taste: On the palate I found notes of salted almonds, vanilla latte, honey, and cantaloupe and honeydew melons. Finish: The finish was a bit sharp, but that faded quickly into a honeyed aftertaste. Thoughts: This Canadian whisky is a top seller; if memory serves, only Crown Royal sells more whisky than Club. With its bottom shelf price tag I wasn't expecting much, but I was pleasantly surprised. In fact, I liked it better than the more expensive Crown. I had no problems drinking it neat, and wouldn't mind getting this again or trying one of Club’s other family members. Thank you friends, I'm happy to join the Club! Cheers!

Appearance: The color on this Canadian blend is a light caramel. It’s legs are medium-thin and watery. Nose: this dram doesn't possess a strong bouquet, but you can tell it’s typical Canadian sweet: notes of vanilla, maple, caramel, with a slight note of wood furniture cleaner funk. Taste: The thin palate has notes of sweet corn, faint maple syrup, pear, and lemon. Finish: There's a fast finish with no burn to speak of. One is left with a slightly bitter and ashy aftertaste. Thoughts: This bottom shelf whisky is (in my humble opinion) not that bad, it's not going to be a hero by any means, but it isn't offensive. It actually has characteristics that remind me of tequila, so I actually made a margarita with some of this whisky to see how it holds up, and it really wasn't half bad! Thanks you guys! Cheers!

Appearance: The color I found in this blended scotch was a russet muscat according to the whiskey color chart (deep amber). Thin and semi-viscous legs made their way down the inside of my glass. Nose: The nose was overall fruity and floral with a sweet syrupy inflection. Notes of plums and cherries, soft ripe pear, banana, and light peat smoke and brine danced their way into my nose. Adding a splash of water made it too soft in my opinion and didn’t add anything worthwhile to the experience. Taste: The body of the whisky was oily and delicious. The palate contained notes of pears, red fruits, almonds, honey, aromatic pipe tobacco, and buttered toast. Adding a splash of water, much like the nose, made the scotch too light and just watered it down. Finish: The finish was medium in length, and it left behind a sweet honeyed flavor to remember it by. Thoughts: I really enjoyed this scotch! I like the entry level Chivas, but if you can spare the extra bucks to get this next step up, go for it! It’s bolder and has more complexity and flavor. I would recommend this scotch to anyone, and wouldn’t mind getting it again. Chivas Regal, many thanks! Sláinte!

Appearance: So, on this visit of my personal “bottom shelf matters” campaign, we come across another blended American. The color of which is a burnished bronze with extremely watery legs rushing down my glass’s interior. Nose: The simple nose does not lead you to expect much from the rest of the experience. The notes I did detect are caramel, honey, clover, wood chips and sawdust (Not a bad combination, really.) Taste: This whiskey’s unremarkable palate starts with sour pine sap as its first detectable note, followed by sourdough bread and overripe fruit all being laced together by a biting sour body. Finish: There is a short finish leaving behind a bitter grapefruit-like aftertaste. Thoughts: You know, I'm glad I tried it, but I think it was well named. Because much like the real Wall Street, it left a bad taste in my mouth (I’m joking). Seriously though, in my opinion, this whiskey is good to mix (I had a decent toddy the other night with this whiskey.) but I wouldn't have it again neat. If you'd like a real cheap mixer, this whiskey is for you. But if you'd like something that can stand on its own, I'd keep looking. Luxco, this one’s not for me, but thanks! Cheers!

Appearance: The color on this Tennessee styled rye was a darker tawny. The legs of the inside of the glass were medium sized and pretty oily. Nose: On the nose I picked up a delectable assortment of caramel, oak, honey, wildflowers, and rye grain notes, (The smell reminded me a lot of how Four Roses smells.), with additional notes of black licorice, and dill. After I added a splash of water the nose was ruined and basically nothing but floral. Taste: The palate definitely possessed a rye spiciness, some light dill, ginger, and a touch of cigar smoke and ash notes. But after I added a splash of water the palate also got really dull. Finish: The finish was medium length; it was still spicy but not hot going down. Thoughts: Jack made a good product with this one; and I would recommend this whiskey and would buy it for myself again! I enjoyed this dram! Thanks, Jack Daniel's! Keep up the good work! Cheers!

Appearance: Alright, so this American blended whiskey’s color was a “russet muscat” darker caramel. The legs here were medium sized but the wateriest I had ever seen. Nose: The nose was not too complex; notes of caramel, oak, vanilla, Smarties candy, and strangely enough a note of Buddig turkey lunchmeat. After adding a splash of water there was a light nutty tobacco note as well. Taste: The palate was also uncomplicated with discernible notes of sweet corn, caramel, and cherry candy. After adding a splash of water it got even more boring and had the essence of lukewarm almond milk. Finish: The finish had surprisingly no burn, but it was quite short and anticlimactic. Thoughts: If I hadn’t know what this was, beforehand, I would have believed it was a bourbon. It's not a whiskey worth having a fan club or even a T-shirt, but it was better than I was expecting. It was decent neat, and good in a hot toddy as well! Thanks McCormick Distilling! Cheers!

Appearance: Looking into my Glencairn the color of this blended American whiskey is a sweet corn light yellow. With a swirl I notice the legs are very thin and watery. Nose: After my initial sniff, my first impression is “sweet.” Upon closer inspection I detect notes of caramel, cotton candy, Sour Patch Watermelon candy, and I also detect a note of carrot cake with the cream cheese frosting. Taste: The body is well-rounded with just a small sharpness in the taste. The palate is not as pronounced as the nose, but I detect notes of oak, almond, sourdough pretzel, blackberry, and ash & BBQ char (This note coming from, if I were to guess, from the 8 charcoal filters used in production). Finish: The finish is short and the final sensation is a clingy dry sour in the back of the throat. Thoughts: In the overall category of “Blended American Whiskey” I find, at least in the whiskies I’ve tried, that products are either hit or miss. For me anyway, what I mean is other categories I have generally liked. Overall, they are good. In this category it’s a bit more risky because it could be good or crap. All that to say, I am happy with this whiskey and though it may not be the best or win an award from me, it’s a decent dram I’d be happy to drink. I say give it a try, it may be a hit or miss for you, but if you’re curious I’d say go for it. Mystic Mountain, thanks and keep it up! Cheers!

Appearance: The color for this American blend was a surprisingly dark, tawny leather. Its legs were also extremely thin and surprisingly oily. Nose: On the nose I found notes caramel, musty straw, Smarties candy, and weirdly enough, kale. Taste: There was not much here as far as taste. Notes of corn syrup, overripe peach, and slight bit of oak were there and after dash of water a cherry note came out. Finish: The finish was short, and hot & biting on the way down. It left a gulp of soda kind of aftertaste. Thoughts: The good news is, this whiskey can be found pretty much everywhere and for real cheap! The bad news is, this whiskey is not, in my opinion, worthy of anything more than getting mixed in with soda or getting someone smashed fast (which I do not condone.) I'm happy I can say I tried it, to have the experience to guide friends away from it. Sorry Kentucky Deluxe. Cheers!

Appearance: The color is darker than I’d expect as a tawny leather. The legs are extra thin, nearly nonexistent, and watery dribbling their way back into the rest of the whiskey at the bottom of the glass. Nose: The overall nose is very dessert-like. Notes of cinnamon, brown sugar, caramel, chocolate fudge, and dark cherry draw you in with a note of polyurethane varnish to balance out the sweet with some rough girth. Taste: The nose is a bit misleading as the palate doesn’t offer nearly as much as was being built up. However, the palate that’s there has notes of cream soda, orange, peach, and snickerdoodle cookies. There’s also a bitter taste I can’t quite put my finger on. Finish: The finish takes off from that strange bitter note in the taste and fades into the short-medium length finish with a citrusy and root beer tang. Thoughts: Overall, I like this whiskey. It has its moments where it’s tough and “spikey” and makes you feel like it’s putting hair on your chest. But other times it’s friendly and not challenging. It felt like the kind of something an outlaw might drink back in the old west. I may not buy it again, but I would happily drink it if offered to me! This would be a good going-camping-with-friends whiskey. Mystic Mountain, thanks for what you’re doing! Cheers!

Appearance: I compared this scotch to its 12 year old sister, and this one is a bit darker; the color is a burnished bronze. The legs for this one are thin and oily. Nose: Compared to the 12, this scotch is less harsh and richer. The nose is fruity with notes of plum, pear, red apple, dark cherry candy, banana flavored Laffy Taffy, as well as other notes like grass, the slightest hint of salty brine and peat, and this is going to sound crazy, but I also got a passing whiff of Cheetos! Taste: The taste is smoother than the 12 and more rounded and fruity too. There are delicious notes of honey, sour green apple, salted caramel, pineapple, and like the nose, the slight touch of briney peat. Finish: The finish is not as “spikey” as the 12’s finish, and is medium to long lasting in length. Thoughts: So I compared this scotch to the Glenlivet 12, which is a whisky I really like, but I do have to say, this dram takes the cake. It is comparatively more rounded and flavorful and that French oak really does impart a lot of fruity nuance into the scotch. I would buy this again, and I think this would be a good whisky to compliment a Thanksgiving meal. Yum! Glenlivet, you do good work, thanks again! Sláinte!