Tastes
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Balcones True Blue Cask Strength
Corn — Texas, USA
Reviewed February 10, 2022 (edited July 28, 2022)Buttercream frosting, cotton candy, candy corn. A little Texas funk. The finish goes a little bitter. I think the Blue Corn bourbon is better, although the up-front sweetness of this one might make this more of a crowd-pleaser. The Blue Corn bourbon is more complex and interesting for my tastes. I'll enjoy this bottle, but I'll prefer to buy more Blue Corn when I can find it. Update: this does seem to be preferred by friends who are more novice whiskey drinkers. This is more approachable, the Blue Corn is more complex and interesting.55.0 USD per Bottle -
Maker's Mark Wood Finishing Series 2021 FAE-02
Bourbon — Kentucky, USA
Reviewed February 9, 2022 (edited July 13, 2022)Haven't had much Maker's, so I can't really say how this compares to their regular offerings. This one comes with caramel, apple, oak, some chocolate, soft in the middle, with a little spicy finish. I had a small pour of OWA to compare and I like this a quarter to a half point better. The OWA came across as a little sour in comparison. I could see picking this one up if I come across it at SRP. I'm curious how it compares though to the regular cask strength, as I can find it around here for about $35. -
Barrell Dovetail (122.9 Proof)
Blended American Whiskey — (bottled in) Kentucky, USA
Reviewed February 8, 2022 (edited February 23, 2022)I’ve considered picking this up for some time, but was able to get a sample, and glad I did before buying. What I like about the Seagrass is that I can taste a bit of all of the secondary finishes, and they all play well with the rye. In this one, it seems like the balance is off, as the rum influence overpowers the other finishes. I have played with adding a little rum to some of my whiskies as a poor man’s take on rum-finished whiskey, and I’ve noticed that it takes very little to significantly change the experience. I have enjoyed this sample, but I don’t think I’ll be a buyer. -
Rossville Union Barrel Proof Straight Rye
Rye — Indiana , USA
Reviewed February 5, 2022 (edited September 30, 2022)It’s a classic battle of the “villes,” Rossville vs. Pikesville. I probably should’ve picked something with a more similar mashbill to compare, but since Pikesville is pound-for-pound one of my favorite ryes and maybe the best whiskey in the cabinet at 40 bucks and under, I decided to do a side-by-side of the 40$ Pikesville and the 60$ Rossville. On color alone, the Pikesville stands out as considerably darker. On the nose, the Rossville comes across as much more ryey, with the dill note jumping out of the glass. The palate follows suit with the strong herbal flavors, along with some cinnamon and orange. The Pikesville has more corny sweetness with the rye spice on the back end. I think the Rossville is nicely done. I like it. However, it’s pretty middle-of-the-road for rye and I feel like I’ve had this before, probably since MGP seems to supply half the whiskey I see on liquor store shelves. I really enjoy MGP, or Squibb and whatever, and I will surely continue to spend a lot of money on their whiskies, but I’m not buying this one, and not just because I like Pikesville better. For a more ryey profile at 60 bucks I’d rather buy Willett 4 year Rye, as it’s more interesting. I’d also prefer Wilderness Trail SiB at around the same price. If this was closer to 40$ I might be a buyer. Lastly, big thank you again to @ctbeck11 the sample. Glad to have been able to taste this without going out and buying a bottle and later wishing I had saved some money by buying Pikesville. -
Redbreast Small Batch (2021)
Single Pot Still — Ireland, Ireland
Reviewed February 4, 2022 (edited July 13, 2022)I haven't previously had an Irish whiskey that I've been that impressed with, so I come to this tasting a bit skeptical. I figured I would like it more than any other that I've tried, but wasn't expecting to want to go out and buy a bottle. Tasting blind I might've guessed this is a bourbon on the nose with a big dose of carmelized sugar, although this comes across as creamier and shows some of the green apple that I normally find in Irish. The taste is more like an Irish, but the high proof gives it much more concentrated flavors. Given the nose, the palate is a bit underwhelming, but still quite tasty, particularly for an Irish whiskey. I thought I might go out and buy a bottle, but then saw that this is nearly a Benjamin around here, and that's a little more than I'd like to spend on this. Big props again to @ctbeck11 for the sample! Really glad to have had the opportunity to try this one. -
This is decent, nothing especially unpleasant about it, has some nice vanilla and oak. I really enjoy the nose on this. However, on the palate it seems thin and under-proofed. Or I’ve just singed my taste buds with too much barrel proof whiskey. Either way, it’s fine, but I tend to use it primarily in blending, as a way to give whiskies a “rum barrel finish.”
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New Riff Kentucky Straight Bourbon Bottled In Bond
Bourbon — Kentucky, USA
Reviewed February 2, 2022 (edited February 6, 2022)Big thanks to @ctbeck11 for this sample. New Riff unfortunately does not yet distribute to Oklahoma, so I'm glad to get a chance to try. I did a mini blind to see if this is better than Evan Williams BiB. I was able to guess which is which, and good news for New Riff, it edged out the EWBiB. The nose on the two isn't that far off, and I couldn't decide which was which on the nose. Both have a fairly typical bourbon nose, with the NR a little richer, more brown sugar, and the EW comes across as slightly sour and flat in comparison. On the palate the two separated themselves. The NR has a more viscous mouthfeel. There's not a ton of flavor on the mid palate, but it has a decent finish with a nice lingering sweetness. It's an easy drinker, and for 30-something dollars, I think this is not a bad buy for a younger craft bourbon. It wins the better-than-12$-bourbon test and is possibly something I could see picking up if I come across it outside of Oklahoma. -
Weller Antique 107 Bourbon
Bourbon — Kentucky, USA
Reviewed January 29, 2022 (edited February 20, 2022)It's a punchier version of SR. I bought this at SRP for about 50$, which seems honestly too high. It's not twice as good as Special Reserve, as the SR can be found locally for 23 and change. I did a side-by-side-by-side with Lone Elm Straight Wheat Single Barrel and Balcones Blue Corn Bourbon, as I wanted to see how the Lone Elm compared to another Texas whiskey and a well-regarded wheated bourbon. The Balcones was my favorite, followed by the Lone Elm. Since there's a fair difference in proof, I added some water to the higher proofed whiskies, and the preferences were closer, but still the same. That's not to say that W107 is a bad whiskey. I quite like Special Reserve, and this is a nice step up, but I don't think it should command twice the price, let alone four times the price according to secondary value. I actually enjoy this and would give it 4 stars if it was about 10 bucks cheaper and not nearly impossible to find even at 50 bucks.49.0 USD per Bottle -
Lone Elm Single Barrel Texas Straight Wheat Whiskey
Wheat Whiskey — Texas, USA
Reviewed January 28, 2022 (edited February 12, 2024)Another Texas winner for me. This particular single barrel is 60.8% ABV. The nose is vanilla, sugary cinnamon roll, cherry, grape candy, dusty oak, and a little Texas funk. The palate is buttery, milk chocolate, dark cherry, grape soda. Some bourbony vanilla and caramel show up. Some tannic oak on the finish. This is different, but good. I'll have to run it up against some of my Texas favorites, but I definitely think it deserves a spot at the table with the big Texas whiskies. It's good - I can imagine wanting to replace this when I finish. Update: giving this a bump in score after SbS w/Larceny BP C921. This has more fruit, particularly grape soda, than the Larceny, but is a little more tannic. The Larceny comes across as more peanutty. I actually think I prefer this to the Larceny. It's also better than Weller 107.50.0 USD per Bottle -
Evan Williams White Label Bottled in Bond Bourbon
Bourbon — Kentucky, USA
Reviewed January 27, 2022 (edited January 30, 2022)Is this the star of the bottom shelf? I have passed by this more times than I could count, but the recent @Milliardo review convinced me to finally fork over the hard-earned $11.95 for a bottle, and that's not the cheapest I've seen it in town. Now, there's not a lot to this. It's pretty much high fructose corn syrup all the way down, but it's surprisingly drinkable for 12 bucks. There's a little funk on the finish, a parting shot that serves as a reminder that this did come from the bottom shelf. But at the price, it's not much of a quibble. I could actually see keeping this in the cabinet, if for nothing else as a cheaper ingredient than I normally use for my favorite smoked salmon recipe. I think it could also work as a good comparison point for younger craft bourbons. I suspect there are many that can't pass the better-than-12$-bourbon test.12.0 USD per Bottle
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