Tastes

Tried this neat in a glencairn glass. The nose for me is smoky, caramel and lightly sweet. I enjoy the nose quite a bit. For the palate I'm getting more wood, like a campfire taste, with cherry flavors. Then the finish just continues with the smoky wood through and through. The more I drink it the better the palate is and the smokier the finish is. I bet this would be lighter on the smoke side with ice…tried it with ice and I much prefer this neat. Definitely recommend for $69.

I heard great things about high west and really wanted to try this bottle. Tried it neat in a glencairn glass after resting for 10-15min. The nose is full of rye spice, vanilla, orange and tobacco. The tobacco is subtle and the overall nose is great. The mouthfeel is viscous and way more than expected for a 92 proof rye. The palate continues the rye spice of course, orange and tobacco. Some vanilla cones through as well. The finish is long and fulfills the palate. I really like the finish. Nice, easy, and continues with the flavor above. At the very end a little hint of mint comes through (odd) and maybe this is the rye spice. Overall, this is a great drink. I wouldn’t mix it with anything and when adding ice, the flavor profile loses a bit. I’d recommend this bottle for those who like ryes.

I was super excited to try this as I’ve heard great things about this bottle. Tried it neat in a glencairn glass, let it sit for 10-15min. The nose was really all rye, not much spice. I normally get pepper, baking spice, etc, in a rye but this was more rye, caramel and vanilla. Had a wonderful nose. The palate was had a ton of rye spice where it was like Christmas morning. The taste had apple too which was delightful. I really enjoyed this as the flavors were delicious. The finish kept going and going! You get a ton of rye in the finish with a bit of a burn. The burn doesn’t last long at all but the finish definitely does. More caramel comes out and it makes you want another sip. Definitely enjoyable. This is a great rye. I highly recommend trying this for the price! Scale: 4

I wanted to get this to try it as I’ve heard good and bad things. Tried this neat in a glencairn glass after waiting 10-15min. The nose was odd. Nothing in particular I could pinpoint. Some peanuts maybe and vanilla but nothing truly that stood out for me. If anything I got some heat. The palate had some brown sugar and a light mouthfeel. After the first 5 seconds the heat really started to come through. It made me double check the proof (BIB obviously) but felt much higher due to the heat. The finish was all ethanol and heat for me. Some caramel but still all heat. I wasn’t a fan of this and wouldn’t buy another bottle. I tried this as an old fashioned and also didn’t like it. The only time I thought it was decent was with ice where it watered everything down. Then the taste was just a normal bourbon and nothing special. Scale: 1

I’m a fan of woodford for an old fashioned and heard great things about this bottle. Got it and tried it neat in a Glencairn glass. The nose is vanilla, chocolate, and full of sweet notes. It’s a great nose. The palate is classic caramel and vanilla. Towards the middle you get the chocolate taste but this is different. This is like a different chocolate or cocoa because of the bitterness. The finish is full on butter chocolate which at times works well with the vanilla. It’s a decent finish and medium mouthfeel. It’s not as great as I was told but still not bad. I tried this as an old fashioned and no, no, no, so not do it haha. Overall, I’d drink this at a bar but wouldn’t buy another bottle. Scale: 2.5

I was able to get this in Chicago while traveling as you can’t find it in Houston. Had it neat in a glencairn and let it rest for 10-15min. The nose was bad brown sugar, vanilla and some heat to it. I got excited to try it as it continued with a pepper finish. Not bad at all. The palate was completely different than I expected. The spice was overpowering and all I could taste was a strange flavor that I knew I didn’t like. I finally picked it out as black licorice. This was just too overpowering for me. The finish continued with the heat, pepper and licorice flavor. I tried this with ice and it still just wasn’t my dram. I believe some could like this but for me, the licorice was just too much as a flavor. I’d pass on getting another bottle of this. Scale 1.5

I enjoy trying new bourbons at our local bar and this was one I’ve never had. Had this in a glencairn glass neat. The nose was sweet but that was it. Almost like it wasn’t a bourbon but a brown liquid. The palate thin, sour, like drinking water purée through dirt. Just not drinkable. The finish was so fast it felt like all you tasted was the palate “dirt” you had before. Overall, no, don’t, just don’t. If someone puts this in front of you, I’d recommend to slowly step back and politely bring up a different bottle to drink. Scale: .25

I was able to try this at a bar. Never heard of it and figured why not. Had this neat in a glencairn glass. Well, I’ll be short with this review. It was awful. The nose was classic caramel with nothing else. The palate tasted like oak but a bad burnt oak and the finish was terrible. Have you ever drank bourbon right after you brushed your teeth in accident, that was the taste. Absolutely awful. Overall, I’d avoid this. You are not missing out.

I’ve heard the 15 year bourbon was fabulous and kept seeing this in the shelf for about $55. I like ryes and thought, what the heck, let’s give this a try. The nose is quite enjoyable. A ton of spice with citrus and heat. You can tell upfront this is a high proof rye but it isn’t super overpowering. Some of the nose is sweet, like an orange citrus candy. The palate is really good. A great mouthfeel that coats in caramel and spice with a touch of heat. This really coats everything and goes perfect into the finish. So far the mouthfeel and palate are my favorite. The finish has a toffee note that combines with the continued citrus flavor. The finish doesn’t fade for quite sometime. The very end has a touch of pepper with the citrus notes. Overall, this is pretty good. I enjoy this bottle and happy I was able to try it. Would I buy it again, I’m not too sure. $55 isn’t a bad price but I do like other ryes better. I’m happy to try this bottle and even tested it as an old fashioned. Does really well!

I’ve heard great things about this bottle and was excited to try it. I had it quite a long time ago, before I really started drinking bourbon and wasn’t a fan. I thought this would be a great second try now that I’ve grown to respect the flavors. The nose was strong, like you could smell the heat and ethanol. Almost tingled a bit with dark flavors and brown sugar. The palate continued with the “dark” flavors, almost like a stout beer. It again didn’t taste “good” to me. The taste was overpowering with the heat/ethanol. I usually enjoy stronger proofs but the heat just didn’t sit well with me. The finish continued the heat with pepper that didn’t last too long. The pepper taste was all I could get and I didn’t enjoy it. Overall, this confirms I wasn’t a fan. I’ll keep trying pours from this distillery, however, this will be the last taste I have of 1920. Just isn’t for me. Scale: 1