Tastes

I got a fifth for $29.99 at the Mountain Run location of Kelly Liquors here in Albuquerque. It's 80 proof, which is lower than I generally like but didn't hurt the whisky in this case. There's no age statement, but since it's straight bourbon it had to age for at least two years. It's a nice golden straw color in the glass. NOSE: Bananas, butterscotch, and a faint medicinal/grass note which I didn't care for, but which didn't mar the taste. TASTE: Butterscotch, butter, brown sugar, coffee cake, and a tiny bit of oak. FINISH: There's an oak note which is there throughout, ad which lingers, making this a medium finish. And right at the beginning there's a very short but definite impression of cool spring water. Overall this isn't a very complex bourbon, especially in the nose and the finish, but it's a very good bourbon. It doesn't necessarily drink better than its price, but for what I paid, I definitely got what I paid for.

I got this on someone's recommendation because it's a wheated bourbon, and he knows I like Maker's Mark. I got a fifth for $28.99 at Kelly Liquors in Albuquerque. It's 92 proof, and comes from a mash bill of 68% corn, 20% wheat, and 12% malted barley. There's no age statement, but it had to age at least two years to be a straight bourbon. I first tasted it right after I'd had a bad cold, and it took a month for my palate to get back to normal; this is the third or fourth glass I've had from the bottle, and the first one which I liked without reservation. The nose presents caramel, apple, and butterscotch notes. The taste begins with cereal, then moves on to oak, and then chocolate. The finish is short, and consists of chocolate and oak. I wonder how much of what I tasted previous was artifacts of my retreating cold, since on previous occasions I detected notes that I didn't tonight, including a hay or grass note that I've never liked no matter where I've found it. Tonight I found Larceny to be a pretty simple bourbon, but a much better one than I'd previously experienced. I'd begun to think I'd just chuck the bottle, but if it's going to taste like this from now on, I'll keep it. It isn't complex and intense enough to rate four or five stars, but it's a lot better than some I've tried.

Having tried three other corn whiskies, and found two of them awful, I wanted to try this both because of recommendations, and to see if everything other than Balcones was sour and undrinkable. Well, this is NOT sour and undrinkable - it's actually pretty good. It's 100 proof, and being bottled in bond it's aged at least four years. I found two separate mash bills online, and I don't know which (if either) is the right one - 90% corn, 10% rye and malted barley; 80% corn, 8% rye, 12% barley. The fifth cost me $17 and change, but either I didn't get the receipt or I lost it somewhere, so I can't give an exact price. NOSE: Sweet alcohol, roasted slightly scorched corn, butterscotch, caramel, and a slightly sour note TASTE: Creamy mouthfeel, caramel, honey, sweet corn FINISH: Honeyed corn, faint oak - lingers longer than you'd think This isn't a complex whisky, which isn't surprising considering the barrels it ages in, but it's a good whisky. It's not great - I just gave it three stars - but it's much better than Longhorn or New Mexico Blue, which are foul. It can't compare with Balcones Baby Blue, but overall I'm glad I bought it, and I'll buy more in the future.

For the price this is great whisky - it drinks at least $5 more than I actually paid for it. I've had several tastes recently that greatly underwhelmed me, but this one exceeded my expectations - which were pretty high based on the No. 8. This is a nice, sweet, authoritative whisky that's liable to become one of my favorites. NOSE: Alcohol, corn, vanilla, fried bananas. TASTE: A generic sweetness, brown sugar, cinnamon, pie crust, and honey - it's like apple pie, except I didn't taste any apples. And I didn't detect any oak here, which surprised me; it also surprised me that I didn't mind, because I've come to enjoy some oak flavor. FINISH: Alcohol, spicy honey, and finally an oak that lingers and lingers.

I couldn't find any information on the mash bill, but I'd guess it's very low rye - indeed, if I learned it's a wheated bourbon it wouldn't surprise me, though I don't believe that it is. There's no age statement either, and it tastes like a young bourbon - not bad, but young. It's 90 proof, and the color in the glass is copper with a hint of gold. I got a fifth for $30.19 at Kelly Liquors here in Albuquerque. NOSE: Sweet corn, a pleasant sting of alcohol, and a candy note that's either butterscotch or caramel, but which I couldn't be sure. TASTE: Alcohol, a quick strong spice bite, a slight saltiness, and a corn undertone. FINISH: Long, with an alcohol sting fading into oak. This isn't a complex bourbon, and it's not as good as the hype. But it's certainly a good bourbon, and perhaps its reputation will adjust to fit the reality.

This was on a recommendation from an employee at "my" Total Wine store, when he learned that I wanted Bulleit rye but they were out of fifths and I didn't want to get an entire liter. I had hoped, therefore, that this would remind me of Bulleit, but in fact it's the weakest rye whisky I've had thus far. I couldn't find any information about the mash bill - all I know, therefore, is that it's at least 51% rye. It's 90 proof, the age is a minimum of three years (according to the label), and it's a coppery gold color in the glass. On the NOSE this is a simple whisky. I got a light whiff of alcohol, and spicy grass. When I came to TASTE the whisky, I found a creamy mouthfeel. There was some spice, but nowhere near what I expect from a rye whisky. There's a faint grassy note, and an undertone of milk chocolate. The FINISH is short, and gives chocolate, oak, and spice. It's an all right whisky, and unlike some things I've tried I won't toss this out, but it's not worth the price.

I like a good rye whisky now and then, and I've enjoyed the stuff I've had from Balcones Distilling. I hadn't planned on getting this today, but there it was, it was within what I could afford (though right up at the very top of that range), and I'd wanted to try it, so I got it. I hate to say it, but I wish I'd gotten a bottle of Bulleit rye, or gone for a bottle of Maker's Mark bourbon. It's not that this is bad whisky, it's just that it's not all that good. The color is a beautiful copper in the glass. This is - as the label says - a 100 proof whisky, with a mash bill of 100% rye (various varieties). Per the Balcones custom, the label says that it's AGED AT LEAST 24 MONTHS IN OAK. NOSE: Warm smoke, alfalfa hay, a hint of grass, and alcohol. TASTE: Of course there's the spiciness of rye, then grass, salt, a very faint oak note, and semi-sweet chocolate. This whisky brought out the saliva like crazy, something I've never experienced before, and there's a much thinner mouthfeel than I'd've expected at 100 proof. FINISH: Long, with just two notes - chocolate and bitter oak. This will go next to the Brimstone. Neither one is the best that Balcones produces, and certainly this isn't the best rye whisky I've ever had. I don't think I'll buy another bottle, not with Bulleit rye out there.

I paid $35.49 for a 375ml "boot flask," and while this is good whisky, it's not worth that much. It's 94 proof, has no age statement, and comes from a mash of 74% Panhandle white corn, 14% red winter wheat, and 11% barley. In the glass it's a red-gold amber color. NOSE: Grass, sweet corn, something not and sweet that I can't identify, alcohol, some kind of light woodiness, and brine. TASTE: Alcohol sting, caramel, grass, salt, and a faint dark chocolate note. FINISH: Medium, with grass, alcohol, and mild oak.