Tastes

7 Year/Batch #153 / Bottled 2016/11/24 Nose - Initially you get a bit of a hot whiff, but with a bit of time you get classic notes of vanilla and brown sugar. This transitions to dark juicy cherries and what seems like strawberry shortcake or those individualy wrapped strawberry hard candies. I get an almost oily/buttery-like nose too. Taste - Nose transitions into an oily sweet vanilla, cherries, and strawberries. There's this odd slightly raw ethanol note I get in this one though. It's like if you took dark cherries, strawberries, and sauteed it in butter and brown sugar with a vanilla pod, and then instead of using a quality rum or brandy to flambe, you used a bit of everclear. Finish - Sweetness slowly fades to a young oakiness, vanilla and cherries linger and then again I get a bitterness like that of crushed cherry pits. Leaves a lightly drying, yet oily mouthfeel. 81/100

Nose - A bit surprised that this didn't hit me a bit more due to the proof, but it was more of a mellow, sweet honey with hints of vanilla. There's also this sort of artificial cherry/pear fruit snack waxy sweetness? Taste - Hits the palate with the vanilla and honey, the fruit you get in the nose seems to disappear due to the initial sweetness and light oak. The higher proof then shows up in the form of a cinnamon spice, while the entire thing is suprisingly thin. Finish - The sweet honey-vanilla fades to a slightly oaky bitterness that's slightly vanilla sweet and the proof lingers with the cinnamon spice. 77/100

Nose - Initially you get hit with a bit of heat from the higher proof, but once you get over that, you get a slightly musty oak, almost like if you walked into a vintage bookstore. Faint hint of over toasted peanut shells, faint vanilla which is sadly tainted by a bit of ethanol. Taste - Hits your tongue with a mildly sweet brown sugar and vanilla, with a hint of the slightly over roasted peanuts in there as well in that it's slightly bitter. The heat from the proof rounds it out with a bit of cinnamon spice. Finish - The sweet taste fades fairly quickly for the proof that leaves behind a wisp of vanilla and cinnamon, but there's still a tiny lingering hint of peanut too. 77/100

Nose - Initial nose is a bit harsh, rough ethanol. Transitions to hints of pineapple and a what seems like a very mellow honey that's been left out on the counter a bit too long. Hints of green apple skin, mint, and like a young sapling that's just been cut. Taste - Faint hints of pear and apples that aren't quite ripe. So slightly dry and mildly sweet. Mellow hints of unripe bananas which transitions a bit into an unpleasant varnish like that used for finger nails. Finish - Has a slight burn for the proof but feels a bit thin. Leaves you with a very dry mouthfeel that transitions to what I think is like if you took a bite into a dry, powdery apple that happened to taste like an unripe plantain. Has an oddly long finish that just sort of lingers and leaves an odd sour dill taste in your mouth. 71/100

Nose - Nose is like if you sauteed a vanilla bean in some quality butter and then added fresh juicy strawberries, plump bing cherries, and a small slice of banana that was poured over some vanilla ice cream and garnished with some lavender. Taste - Like the nose, you are immediately hit with a sweet buttery fruit, strawberries, juicy cherries, and a light cinnamon burn. There's a hint of oak in there as well, but is subdued considering the age of some of the bourbons in this small batch. It honestly tastes like a high rye bourbon (which these are) that has been mellowed out in some ex berry-wine casks for a short amount of time. Finish - The light, floral and berry fruit transitions into a slightly dry, oaky, pleasant cinnamon spice where the classic bourbon notes of vanilla, caramel, and toffee finally show up. 88/100

Nose - Nose is very fruity and floral and you get hit with vanilla, pineapple, a light cinnamon, peach, and what is like a faint hint of bananas foster if you were smelling it across the room at a restaurant. Taste - Hits the tongue and you immediately feel that it's a bit thin, very light, mild, almost floral and fruity quality to it. You get classic bourbon notes of vanilla but also present are some fresh peach, banana, light pineapple, light cinnamon and allspice, as well as a "rose water" type of sweetness. Finish - A bit after you swallow, there's a faint lingering sweetness of peach and pineapple that seem to fade into this slight bitterness like if you were too eagerly eating a peach & bit into the pit a bit. 76/100

Nose - (w/o water) - very hot due to the proof, but light oak, vanilla, sweet cherries, milk caramel. Very hot and sweet. (w/ water) - very similar nose, but with the heat toned down quite a bit. In addition I get a sweet honey and something almost like a sweet chocolate covered pineapple piece. Taste - (w/o water) - Hit with sweet cherries, vanilla, light oak, sweet milk caramels, slight bitterness like you'd get from overly toasted almond skins in an English toffee. (w/ water) - the water tones it down and I get an extra taste of delicious milk chocolate that has dried cherries in it, wonderful. Finish - (w/o water) - You get a lingering cinnamon burn that transitions into a slightly bitter taste, like if you bit into a cherry pit or apple seed. There's still hints of sweet vanilla and faint dried cherries. (w/ water) - The water tones down the cinnamon burn as well as the bitterness and I get more of a sweeter vanilla, but the milk chocolate I got in the taste transitions into a darker chocolate with dried cherries. 91/100

Nose - Like it's sibling, you get a nose of dark pitted fruits, primarly plums/cherries. Cinnamon and vanilla also play a part but you also get a smell like if you took cherry coke and tried to reduce it down to a syrup, but you kinda forgot about it and it almost burned so there's this heavy caramelized sugar, slightly burnt sugar, smell mixed into a sweet cherry coke. Taste - You get dried cherries/plums like the nose from the start. Cinnamon spice from the higher proof. Dark chocolate nibs in that it's slightly bitter from the oak. Faint vanilla cream that's kind of hidden by a mouthfeel and spiciness like that of very fizzy cherry coke. Finish - The dark chocolate bitterness lingers and transitions into a chocolate covered cherry coke with a hint of cinnamon and oak. 81/100

Nose - Has a very sweet nose of sweet fruity honey, cherries, vanilla, dark corn syrup, almost a cherry cream soda. Taste - Hits the tongue with vanilla and dried cherries with a faint hint of cinnamon and allspice. Very smooth almost buttery mouthfeel that transitions to a faintly oaky cherry cream soda. Hints of darker liquid brown sugar and dark corn syrup are present too, but faint. Finish - The smooth buttery feeling lingers transitioning to a more spicy cinnamon, red hot which fades to a slightly bitter oak and cherry/plum pits. 80/100

Nose - Very sweet nose, vanilla, cherries, cinnamon, pineapple?, and a faint hint of cherry flavored cough syrup, almost like Robitussin. Taste - Oddly get this mildly sweet caramelized bananas flavor along with vanilla, cherries, a dry oak, cinnamon spice, and what appears to be a slight bitterness like biting into a peach pit. Finish - You're hit with a cinnamon spice, the remaining bitterness from the peach pit, a drying feeling from the oak, and any sweetness that you got while tasting seems to fade almost immediately. 80/100