Tastes

This whiskey proved to be as delicious on the pallet as on the nose. That mapley pancake& sausage on a stick nose/pallet is remarkable and crave worthy but the lack of complexity and balance left something to be desired. Amazing nose/pallet but room to improve with complexity/balance. Had to drop the score on this one. After becoming curious about the labeling choice of this whiskey, I.E. "rye whisky" and not "straight rye whiskey" I learned that it is in fact flavored whiskey. Not sure exactly what they're adding to it, and honestly I like the flavors. But I can't give it a high score when compared to other straight whiskey's whose flavors were developed through traditional methods and not by adding flavoring compounds.

I tried a couple pours in my Norlan glass. I was surprised by the nose. Not too bad really. Vanilla and corn are very present followed by nuttiness. No complexity but it hits those notes fairly well. The pallet follows suit with light sweetness and nuttiness. Nothing complex. It's thin but has a finish that belies the $9.99 I paid for it. At retail there's better options but for ten bucks it's a solid winner in my book. Simple and straight forward bourbon.

Appearance: Copper, reddish. It has the look you'd expect of a bourbon that aged 12 years. Nose: The oak was inescapable on this pour. Varnished wood shines through. There is a slight sweetness almost hidden in the nose, but that varnished wood, that dark charred oaky note mixed with pepper and spice are just inescapable. Taste: For my taste this whiskey is over oaked. I prefer aged whiskies that balance spice and oak with sweet vanilla, butterscotch, toffee and maple flavors. For me the Widow Jane 12 brings flavors of raw varnished oak to the table with no sweetness to balance. Finish: Medium. More oak...the oak never stops with this one. Sampled this one in a flight neat in a glencairn. I imagine people who prefer over oaked, dry, tannic whiskies will love this one. It's not for me.