Tastes

Uncut, unfiltered, at 127.2 proof. My local liquor store has been getting a ton of these batches over the last couple of years, so I guess Heaven Hill was right when they said pulling the 12 year age statement from the small batch (back in 2016) would allow them to produce more barrel proof product as well as keep it at 12 years old. It took a couple of years, but I have definitely noticed an uptick in it’s availability. N: Chocolatey cherries, maple creme, fresh ground nutmeg, anise, a dusting of cinnamon. P: chocolate covered cherries, maple syrup, heavily iced cinnamon rolls, a touch of licorice and cornbread. F: Nice cinnamon and cherry action trail off slowly. The candied barrel notes mix well with a bit of spice here. Tilting more to the sweet side. These barrel proof versions are always great. Sure, some people have their favorites, but they are all fairly similiar - and well put together. I could easily drink this bourbon as my only bourbon, if I had to be held to just one bourbon. I was interested to know how many barrels goes into a barrel proof batch, so I called Heaven Hill. They told me it’s about 100 barrels per barrel proof batch vs. about 200 barrels that typically go into the normal Elijah Craig 94 proof small batch. I would have thought they pulled more barrels for these, judging by how many of these are out there and the fact these are bottled at barrel proof and not 94. I’m trying to double check this info from another source at Heaven Hill, but I have not heard back yet. Cheers!

100 proof at least 4 years old. Part of the Benchmark Series (Single barrel, Small Batch, Bonded, Full Proof, and Top Floor). Currently only available in Indiana, but will be expanding to other States eventually - per Buffalo Trace. N: Cinnamon, cornbread, brown sugar, and seasoned oak. P: Buttered cornbread, brown sugar, toffee, lemon drops. F: Cornbread and brown sugar linger. Again, a nice buttery mouth feel. Very similar to the small batch and single barrel in this series. Closer to the small batch though. This one holds up a little better than the small batch. I think the proof helps it here, but I prefer the single barrel overall so far. So, far all have had a pretty consistent brown sugar motif throughout. The cornbread goes well with that as well. Not really much more to expound upon here, other then it’s a good value. $17.99 for 750mL.

43% ABV. Blended Speyside malt Scotch whisky. “Batch 27 Smooth and Rich”. N: Warm applesauce covered biscuits, dates, old leather, hints of iced cinnamon roles. P: Malty buttered biscuits, raisins and a touch of sherry. F: Hints of sherry flirt and pass fast, while malt hangs on longer. My wife actually bought this for me because they drink this sometimes on one of those crime shows that she enjoys so much. This is definitely mild mannered and an easy drinker. Malt is the primary player here. There is not whole lot going on, but I actually enjoyed this. It’s relatively inexpensive as well. I’m not really sure what my wife paid for it, but I think it’s $30 to $35 around here.

90 proof. At least 4 years old. The Benchmark series (Single Barrel, Small Batch, Bonded, Full Proof, and Top Floor), is currently Indiana exclusive. Once supplies increase, they plan on expanding to other States. I got this information directly from Buffalo Trace. N: Hints of acetone, seasoned oak, toffee, brown sugar, sour apples, and a floral floral. P: Cinnamon and brown sugar, bits of caramel, slightly burnt buttered popcorn, tannic oak. F: Astringent oak, tannic, and drying. Still better than the original 80 proof Benchmark, but not nearly as good as the single barrel version of this that I had recently. However, not surprisingly, it shares some similar properties. The brown sugar notes are not as strong as the single barrel, which was of it’s main features. This has a drying and tannic palate - but mainly on the finish and is definitely a put off. Still, it’s decent for the $16.99 I paid for it.

95 proof. At least 4 years old. The Benchmark series (Single Barrel, Small Batch, Bonded, Full Proof, and Top Floor), is currently Indiana exclusive. When supplies increase, they plan on expanding to other States. I got this information directly from Buffalo Trace. N: Lots of brown sugar mingling with some toffee, cornbread and a touch of spearmint. P: Palate follows nose with brown sugar, toffee, a taste of cornbread, and a touch of spearmint. F: Brown sugar on cornbread settles a nice finish. Head and shoulders above the original 80 proof Benchmark. I know that is not saying much, but this is actually enjoyable neat. While I’m not a fan the original Benchmark, this is entirely different. Brown sugar dominant all the way through while cornbread and toffee work themselves in as well. I would liken the profile to that which is similar to Buffalo Trace. At $22.99 this is a great purchase.

Floor 3 from Warehouse I 90 proof Nose: Cloves, vanilla, oak, peppermint, Tangerine, caramel (with air time). Palate: Orange marmalade, cinnamon, brown sugar, vanilla, peppermint, with a touch of lemon. Finish: Oily with fading peppermint. Primarily a spice and fruit driven palate with a few candied notes. It was a little of a disappointment because I had a wonderful Single Barrel sample (from a different barrel) a few weeks prior to working through this bottle. While it was a bit of a let down, it was decent. It also highlights the difference’s between single barrels. While I would not purchase a bottle again from this particular barrel, I would definitely try another.

Distilled from 100% Islay sourced barley from six different farms. Peated to 40ppm. Non-chill filtered and no color added. N: Very salty with bandaids and phenol counterpunching, hints of lemon, vanilla, biscuits, pine needles. P: Smoked oily peaty peanut butter on biscuits with salt and pepper with some lemon on the side. F: Black pepper, burnt oak, and a briny and oily mouth feel. Leaves an astringent and drying finish. Salty on the nose while medicinal/phenolic and peaty. Some fruit notes peek through, but are not on the forefront. Salty and drying throughout. It makes me thirsty for water, actually. I’m not really a fan of this, mainly because of the bold astringency, especially on the finish. I see this has several good reviews on here, but it didn’t go that way for me. This review is based off of an entire bottle. I spent quite a bit of time with it. I even let it set less than half full for a few months. I actually thought that it improved a little after that, but not significantly. Cheers!

Only 1,000 cases were produced, and it was only released (2018) in Wyoming. A 90 proof straight bourbon whiskey with an age statement of 5 years. This whiskey is named after the famous bucking horse (1896-1914). N: Corn, ethanol, vanilla, oak. P: Candy Corn, vanilla, caramel and a little mint. F: Short and sweet, corn and butterscotch. While I would not recommend this to anyone, it seemed fitting to drink a bottle of this while here in Wyoming this week for the 123rd Cheyenne Frontier Days. It’s sweeter than your average bourbon and not any oak on the palate or finish. The sweetness has a corn and caramel flavor to it, but it also possesses a weird “chemical corn syrup sweetness” component to it that seems artificial, but we know it can’t be because this is labeled as straight bourbon. Interesting, none the less.

I rated/reviewed this on the Barreled app a few years ago. I thought that I would revisit this. I’ve picked this up quite frequently over the years because it was always pretty decent for the price - around $20 for a 750ml. N: Vanilla, corn, peppermint, oak, tootsie rolls, light grassy notes, pears, lemon zest. P: Oak, teaberry, cinnamon, pears, lemon, vanilla and honey. F: Oak and peppermint. Although I’m not a huge fan of this, I have always liked this for the price. I probably wouldn’t pay much more for this than somewhere in the $20 area. This has been kind of like an “old stand-by” for me, but it’s not really anymore. It’s an easy drinker and does not try and be too much.

Barrel 17-342, rickhouse B, floor 6 59 1. N: Typical Wild Turkey oaken cinnamon nutmeg blend and brown sugar burst, while maple and toffee follow closely behind with a bit of herbal mint. P: Cinnamon, vanilla, brown sugar, toffee, maple, nutmeg, and hints of mint. F: Toasted oak, nutmeg, anise. I enjoyed this quite a bit. It checks just about all of the boxes. It blends sweetness and spice together very well. It packs heavy doses of maple and toffee. The Russell Reserves are usually very good, and this is no exception. Rickhouse B has a reputation for churning out some fantastic single barrel’s. While this does fall short of fantastic; it does qualify as very good.