Tastes

Taste: 2 oz pour neat in glen cairn and then 4 drops spring water. Nose: (4.75) It is luscious and seriously Booker's. Let's you know right away that this is going to be a monster pour. Caramel, corn, a bit of maple, oak, apple, and that peanuttiness that comes from quality Jim Beam hits you right in the nose. It isn't a Mike Tyson type I am a brawler and knock you down punch, but more of a Muhammad Ali in his prime type I can dance and then knock you out type of a nose. There is ethanol but once it clears.... hello! Taste: (5.0) peanuts turn to peanut butter with the nice buttery coating. The front palate reminds me of every thing good about a taffy apple. Midway it give up maple syrup, and then the backend is oak. The palate stages like a rocket trip. I say this because it is not necessarilly a flavor bomb, but better. It is all that is good about vanilla, caramel, apple, peanuts, and then musty, tannic oak. There is also a chewiness in this that really makes it interesting. Finish: (5.0) Hugs you, cuddles you and then kicks you in the ass as if to say, "get some." The finish is long, luxurious and like watching Ali finish off an opponent after he ropa-doped him. A barrel proof of this skill belongs on my shelf. Overall: This lives up to the praise. This is what I look for in bourbon! It is strong but not rough. It is polished but not afraid to take it to you. It floats like a butterfly but stings like a bee!. Glad a Minnesota friend got me 2 bottles at $59 because I will not give them up for double.

Taste: 2 oz neat in glen cairn, and then 3 drops water. Nose: (2.5) Ethanol, orange rinds and some burnt vanilla. There is a bitterness here that turns me off, but there is enough interest to make me want to keep on pushing to see where this goes. Palate: (2.25) Bitter orange rind here is what I strongly get. Water seems to make the bitterness worse. Tastes how an Old Fashioned would be if no sugar cubes or bar syrup were added, and it was overly dashed with orange bitters. There is no sweetness here whatsoever. Finsh: (2.25) The burn is raw with this one. I do get a bit of vanilla after the orange rind wears off but it tastes like immitation vanilla that you might use for baking. Also I get a bit of soapiness. Overall: Had so much excitement for this one that fell short. I was hoping for a sweet, rich, warming sipper that might be more of a dreamsicle. What I got was more like chewing on a bourbon soaked orange rind. The redeeming quality is that I think with a few sugar cubes (definately no bitters needed), some ice, and some luxardo cherries, this will be an out of the bottle, almost pre-made Old Fashioned...... but an expensive one at that. Walk away from this one.

Taste: 1.5 oz in glen cairn neat. Mine was Binny's pick, OESO 11yrs, 6 mos. Barrel 33-1f, warehouse PN., 105 proof Nose: (4.75) Sweeter side, peanuts, oak, grape jam, caramel. This is rich and luxurious Palate: (5.0) Flavor bomb of rich stewed fruit. Tastes like home made concord grape jam, dark plumbs, and bit o honey. Mouthfeel is rich and juicy as if you actually bit into those fruits. Finish (4.75): Long, grapey, may fool you that it had some type of a sherry cask finish but it didn't. No burn but a beautiful warming. Overall: May be my vote for best single barrel pick of the year. It is that good.

Overall: Nose is aweful. Medicinal and grassy. So bad I hesitated to try it. The palatte was better. Lots of rye and pepper and a few sweet notes. I dispute the "very old" nomenclature as this tastes very young. Finish is meh. There is some vanilla but very astrigent

Tasting: 2oz neat in glen cairn Nose: (4.75) Ripe berries, marzipan, oak, honey, and fresh churned butter. I also get nutmeg and all-spice. For 109 proof not much ethanol on the nose. Palate: (4.75): Reminds me of Christmas. Those tastes you get from sampling cookies right out of the oven. Think toffee squares, fresh bourbon balls, the ones with the thumb prints and jelly in the middle. Then comes the spices. More nutmeg, a bit of clove on the back end. This is really good. Buttery rye bread rounds it all out. Finish (5.0): For days! Oak, jam, a bit of mint, butterscotch with a puff of pepper on the back end. It brings you back to start. Overall: A fantastic rye. It is warm like an old friend. It is sweet like a candy tray, but it has sass. Definately a rye that tastes like a rye. Strange how this was done with only a 52% rye mashbill. I hate the price. I think a lot of the Master's Keep Releases are about the neat packaging. I could do without the box and focus on the juice if it were for a lesser price. BUT you have to pay to play I guess. I dont think much whiskey commands this price. That saying THIS one will make me either buy a second reserve bottle or pine away when this one is done. If not for price it is a 5/5 in my opinion.

Taste: 2oz neat in glen cairn, then 3 drops of water. This is batch #2, 127 proof, barreled in 2009 (NAS, but estimated at 9-10 years) Nose (4.5): Very well balanced nose. For a rye of this strength is surprisingly not that spicy. Some initial ethanol that dissipates quickly leaving you with the Jim Beam roasted peanuts, caramel, and some green apple. If I hadn't poured this myself I would have guessed it as a high rye bourbon along the lines of ECBP. Very well put together, nice and fragrant. It is not complex, but I don't think complexity is the goal. Some may find fault with that. Palate (4.75): This is serious whiskey. It jumps right at you and gives you a big Kentucky hug like some of the most noteable Booker's does (Center Cut comes immediately to my mind). The first sip makes you go, "whoa," but in that good way that tells you your taste buds and whiskey senses are up to be challenged. This is not child's play stuff. It is buttery, thicker viscosity, and has wonderful backbone. You get a sweetness with a spicy background. Spiced apple cake comes to the front with some molasses. Also think warm apple strudel with raisins, nuts, and caramel over the top. This is seriously good. It is better in my opinion neat as the water only brings out some sweetness and hint of dill. Leave it alone and you get an unparalleled richness. Finish (4.75): One of the best parts of this offering is the finish. Reminds me of the current Michter's Barrel Proof Rye. Sweet brown sugar, nutmeg, chocolate,baking spices then ending in fresh rye bread and a puff of smoke. Surprisingly does not burn at 127 proof! It does warm you and beckons you to sip more. Overall: If I were to taste this blind I would immediately think older Booker's, GTS, or Thomas Handy. All of those flavors are there in this one in spades, and the backbone that hugs you at the first sip is like an old welcoming friend. You want to sit back and sip while in a rocking chair while chatting. That said, rye purists may think this one may be too sweet. One could mistake the richness for too much sweet brown sugar. As you know, if you follow my reviews, I am partial to excellent ryes and have a soft spot for them. This hits that spot for me! I place this right up with this year's Michter's which up to this point is on my top 5 list for best rye of the year and maybe best whiskey of the year completely (too early to tell, lots of serious contender's coming out soon-- Cornerstone Rye, BTAC, OF Birthday Bourbon to name a few) This is very close to last year's Thomas Handy in taste as far as rye goes. My bet is if you tasted it blind you likely would not be able to quickly differentiate the two. The pro review on this one is not similar to my own. But then again batch 1 was at 119.6 proof and this is 127! Perhaps the higher proof cask strength makes all the difference. If you were to consider price here......which I never try to do as price doesn't necessarily equate to quality of taste, I would give a solid 5. Definate buy a bottle at 69.99. This is a steal of a deal in todays market.

Taste: 2 oz neat in Norlan glass Nose (5.0) : Full on caramel bomb with sweet brown sugar, and a touch of vanilla. Warm, welcoming, and rich Palate: (5.0) Caramel, cinnamon, french vanilla and then the barrel spice kicks in. So well balanced with a warming heat that doesnt overwhelm. Finish: (4.75) Long finish carries through. Palate comes through to the finish. Overall: I like it better than A119... which was spectacular. The lower proof makes it more drinkable neat. Both of these are excellent offering way above their price tags. Definate bottle buy at retail, I would strethc to this being a $75.00 bottle

Taste: 2 oz., neat in glen cairn, then 3 drops water. Sample provided by Steve Bricker (thanks, Steve) Nose (4.75) Wonderful fruit punch on the nose. I get fruit cocktail flavors of cherry, peach, and pear. The pear is more dominant. It is not a sickly sweet canned smell, but more of a fruit cocktail that you might prepare in the summer after carving out a watermelon. It does though leave me asking if this is going to taste more like a cordial and less like a whiskey. Palate: (5.0) Those fruit flavors develop nicely with a good even warming. Even at 122.9 proof this does not have the slightest of burn. My fears of too sweet are gone. There is a good strawberry jam-like taste here, and a beautiful richness similar to what I enjoy about Master's Keep Revival. I am not a big fan of some of the wine finishes because sometimes neither can stay in its lane properly. Both the Masters Keep and this marry them exquisitely. Finish: (4.75) Decadent is the word that comes to mind. It is like the finish you get from a world class chocolate assortment buttery strawberry nougat. Might have given it 5 if it held on a bit longer. Might be even worth that in taste alone. Overall: I liked Barrell 19. I heard great things about Dovetail and none of those things are wrong! It has a delicious fruit and jam flavor to it without becoming a bourbon soaked in rum and wine. The name embodies this, as like in woodworking, the finished casked whiskeys "dovetailed" and joined beautifully to form one exquisite piece from a few. This will be my next bottle, even at the 99.99 sticker price. If there was a knock it might be the expense here. A hefty price to pay for a blended whiskey of different ages, but the juice speaks for itself.

Taste: Neat in glen cairn, then 2 drops water Nose: (3.25) Cinnamon candies, marshmallows, and some citrusy notes. I also got some creamed corn and ethanol. Overall the nose had some good flavors to pull but a bit disjointed. Palate (3.75): Traditional bourbon nose of vanilla and toffee initially. Pepper develops on the rear palate. Palate was interesting. Flavors were well developed and better focused then the nose. I was pleasantly surprised. Finish (3.5): Finished more like a scotch. I found a little bit of hay, some lighter citrusy notes, and smoke. Overall: This bottle was a one off bottle exclusively destined to go to Chicago's Palmer House as a barrel pick. mistakingly it ended up at my local Binny's, so I had to grab it. I was surprised and pleasantly so. I have heard this Wisconsin distillery has been hit or miss, especially with their young stuff. I would say this one for me wasn't necessarily a hit, but it didn't miss its mark. Pleasantly good flavors, but the orchestration kind of gets out of tune at times. If it were an orchestra of flavors each musician would be very good on his own, but at times, when they get together, one gets out of tune. With some fine tuning this could be some beautiful music.

Taste: 2oz in Glen Cairn glass first neat, then with on ice chip. Nose: (1.5) Medicinal, lacquer-like. reminds me of nail polish remover which is not a good thing. Some pepper and corn in the background. Overall not a good nose at all. Palate (1.25): That pepper is upfront and then a bit astringent. There is a bitterness that I can't escape. The taste is on par with its nose. Finish (1.0): Long finish, lots of pepperiness. Not alot to write home about other than the taste which I greatly disliked lingered forever. Overall: Not a fan. My tasting notes explain it all. You couple that with a 59.99 pricetag and I have to tank the rating on this.