Tastes

Hay colour looks promising, the smell is nothing surprising for bourbon, little alcohol kick on start and then sweet corn aroma. Bit of wood and caramel/butterscotch. The taste is bit letdown. Starting with rough burn slap, you need to bit shaking off to notice the classic JB/bourbony tones, nothing surprising and worth mentioning. Dilution brings out the flavour a bit, smooth the viscosity, make caramel to butterscotch taste and mouthfeel. Brings out some ripe apple, bit of spices. Still, the ABV only gives you extra burn, if you're into it. You need few drops of water to bring out the tastes. I believe there are more interesting bottles with similar price tag. With more outstanding flavours, because this is rather dull.

This is absolutely splendid commonly accessible whisky especially for people who like to wander between Highland and Isla whisky or people on adventure to the peaty stuff. Smell is delicious, sweet and sour like overriped fruit, some salt and drop of peat to it. The taste is great, that rich fruitiness mixes with little brine and wood. Hint of saltiness. Still that grain rich body of proper whisky holds the backbone of whole sip.

Well rounded, rich, little burn which pokes through the buttery feel in mouth. The wheat definetely show up here. The smell is pleasant, mild, butterscotch with hints of cinnamon. Very pleasant, but challenging taste for classic corn high bourbon drinkers.

I don't know where the 90 proof here came from. At least in EU the common bottle, this one, was always 40%. I don't trust 40% ABV bottles much for variety of reasons. But when you trying to perfect and balance your spirit, you probably wouldn't end on perfect 40%. Not with non-blended spirits. This bottle is an another proof. You're not enthusiast by far ending with this bottle as your sipper. It lacks the soul. Smell is unsurprisingly turpentine mixed with rotten apples and the taste is very straight forward. Bland, watery, classic sweet toffee, vanilla, corn, hints of nuts notes, but in very forward and mushed together way. Little tiny burn at the end. I'm not sure what to do with this bottle. The profile isn't something to go mix your drinks with, the taste is so easily drown in any other dilution or component. On the rocks it must be quickly unappealing with dilution and cold. Enjoying straight lacks the ebjoying part. But, for friendly game of poker, this might do. The taste of the bourbon, it comes down easily and you can focus on your friends and the game, not disturbing self for downing a bottle without enjoying it. That would do. But that's far from getting great score here.

The smell is nothing to enjoy, mostly turpentine little bit of that bourbony sour-sweet smell on background. Nothing to write back home to mom about. The taste is fine, when you give the dram little bit of rest. Sweet flat acidity, hint of winter spices, baked apple, the composition is bit weird for my enjoyment at sipping. But with 50 ABV it's nice mixer. It will not let you down in some Old Fashion or any short drink. In that field it could bring nice bang for buck ratio. Also my note - charcoal filtered is probably something I would rather avoid. I tested quite a few filtered whiskey and they all have in common they're little bit unappealing to my taste. They're all not complex and like missing a soul.

Smell - peaty, disinfectant, bit of ripe pear. Taste is smooth light, feels like 34-ish ABV. Little burn if you splash whole mouth. Little honey in water. Little apple, little acidity. Overall, nothing interesting. It goes down nicely but yes, this is nothing special, nothing to remember. And the cork is shit. It broked, the 2/3 in bottle was impossible to pull out by corkscrew, I ended doing cork surgery. Shame.

Well this was pleasant surprise. Full rich smell, honey, oak, pinch of pine forest. Just lovely with very small amount of alcohol, which is for 50 ABV surprising. The taste - first is velvety smoothness. Like caramel toned full fat milk, then it comes with very pleasant burn - like when fireplace starts to burn, not like spilled gasoline catching fire kind of some other liquors. And that brings more flavours (and smells). High cocoa milk chocolate, walnuts, peanut butter, hint of orange zest. It's very nice overal taste. The end is which I love about bourbon - the acidity. Very refined one. This is well balanced, super tasteful, beautiful bourbon. I dare to say, in my county one of the best price/performance ratios there. I don't really know why some folks here compare it to rubbing alcohol (they should really taste it, for the experience). And those who wants something sweeter and more mellow should turn they rudder towards rums instead. Yeah, there is plenty better ones for many reasons, but ten times more worse ones for much fewer reasons.

This is not bad, but the shelf price is way above the promise. It's blended to be somehow "complex", but that didn't create some interesting shape but boring sphere. I usually frown upon bottles of well aged alcohol diluted to bare legal minimum of 40 ABV. Sometimes even the 2-3 extra makes difference, at least a gesture that master blender stop before bottom. This "theory", by my taste, fit's most of the bottles and JW Black Label is no difference. This is entry level Scotch, or "I don't know but it says 12 so that must be good" level. For the first one, there is plenty different and better options, for the latter there is no hope. I just don't think this is bottle needed to be shelved by any user of this database.