Tastes

NOSE Caramel corn, ground corn, dried fruit, some vanilla candy and a light bit of waxy candy corn and herbal. Not very complex or unique, it has a very standard, everyday profile for a younger bourbon. PALATE Caramel, ground corn, vanilla candy, dried fruit and touches of oak, candy corn and peanuts. Like the aroma, it’s not bad, just very standard, middle-of-the-road, in the profile and delivery FINISH Med-short -> Caramel, vanilla and a light herbal fade.

NOSE Oak, caramel, citrus peel, vanilla cake, hazelnuts, some biscuity notes and a touch of bubblegum. Decent, nothing off, kinda warm and rather light. PALATE Oaky, ashy, cocoa, leather, dried fruit, caramel, vanilla cake, hazelnuts, biscuity and a slight tannic bite. This is HEAVY, where the nose was light and airy, this brings an oily heaviness. FINISH Med-long -> Oak, dried fruit, caramel and some ashy nutty notes.

NOSE Oak, vanilla, caramel, dried cherries, complex spice, cocoa, toffee and a slight herbal note. The best nose on a WW I’ve ever had, or any other bourbon recently come to think of it. It’s a stunner! PALATE Oak, dried cherries, vanilla, caramel, citrus peels, complex spice, cocoa, toffee and a slight herbal note and copper and anise. Deep, heavy and rich, this is a bold profile that comes through with power and elegance. FINISH Long -> Oak, vanilla, dried cherries, cola spice and cocoa.

NOSE Peat, malt, dried dark fruit, smoked meat, brown sugar, vanilla candy and char. Has a heaviness and sweetness to the peaty essence that reminds me of a very specific Islay distillery. PALATE Peat, cocoa, char, smoked meat, charred plastic, orange peels, baking spice and ash with a light chemical note. The palate starts nice and reminds me of the same distillery as the aroma, but crashes into an ashy chemical mess before the finish. FINISH Long -> Smoke, solventy/chemically, ash, and char.

NOSE Dried dark fruit, biscuity, oaky, vanilla taffy, and caramel with bits of herbal and roasted peanut notes. Not bad, it’s not quite the heavy oak bomb we’ve gotten used to in the 2022 run, but still quite nice. PALATE Caramel, dried cocoa, oak, vanilla frosting, baking spice, biscuity, black licorice, and some candied peanuts. Like the aroma, it’s pretty nice, but no oak monster. FINISH Long -> Peanuts, dried dark fruit, brown sugar, and some oaky vanilla.

NOSE Currant-heavy juicy dark fruit, toffee, oak, vanilla cake, spice, and touches of leather and nutmeg. Rather soft with everything laying under a blanket of jammy dark fruit PALATE OAK, currant-heavy juicy dark fruit, burnt caramel, vanilla frosting, complex baking spice, and hints of leather, cocoa, herbal notes, and ash with a tannic hit. This is a HEAVILY oaked batch and adding a bit of water doesn’t break it up much. FINISH Long -> Oak, herbally spiced, cocoa fade to ashy dark fruit.

NOSE Raspberry-heavy dried dark fruit, oak, brown sugar, vanilla taffy, sour cherry candy, touch of cinnamon and menthol. O, Booker’s how I’ve missed you. Such a classic aroma. PALATE Roasted peanut, dried dark fruit, oak, butterscotch, cinnamon, menthol, vanilla taffy and some coppery lemon peel. This is a classic Booker’s palate, love it! FINISH Long -> Vanilla cupcake, oak, baking spice, and roasted nuts.

NOSE Oak, brown sugar, vanilla, roasted nuts, Bananas Foster, some coppery dried dark fruit, and a tad yeasty. This is closer to Booker’s batches from a few years back, heavy on the oak. PALATE Oak, complex dried dark fruit, brown sugar, fresh biscuits, roasted nuts, and some baking spice and copper. Warm and rich, this is what I’ve been missing from Booker’s. FINISH Long -> Oak, dried dark fruit, brown sugar, fruit.

NOSE Complex dark sweets (caramel, butterscotch, toffee, etc.) dried fruit, roasted corn, vanilla, a touch biscuity, and some light nutmeg notes. A surprisingly sweet and un-oaky aroma for Barrell. PALATE Caramel, dried fruit, toffee, roasted nuts, cinnamon, dried cherries, some clove, Twizzlers, and citrus. Again, surprisingly sweet and un-oaky for Barrell, it’s a profile I wasn’t expecting from them. FINISH Med-long -> Toffee, cinnamon, nutmeg, and fruity sweetness.

NOSE Cherry candy, rye spice, oak, copper, dried blueberries, touches of leather and vanilla. The sweetness in this aroma is very pronounced, more so than the last release. PALATE Baking spice, caramel, oak, dilly rye spice, copper, citrus, leather, and some vanilla. Lots of sweetness on the palate too, but here it’s the spice that reigns. FINISH Med-long -> Baking spice, rye spice, oak, copper, toffee.