Tastes

I can barely find any information about this other than what’s printed on the bottle. I liked their 10 and 12 though, so this seemed like a fair gamble. Batch #6, Bottle #466, bottled 2022. Let’s see what it’s all about. Nose: Vanilla, honey, toffee, and toasted marshmallow. Brown sugar. Some mint and a subtle floral note. Caramelized apple. Raisin and dried apricot. Toasted almond and walnut. Black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak spice. Palate: Chewy caramel and milk chocolate. Brown sugar. Toffee, vanilla, and sugar cookie. Heavy ginger, black pepper, rye, and even pumpkin spice. Dried apricot, gala apple, and a hint of black cherry. Mocha. Candied yam. Orange citrus. Cocoa, black tea, and pipe smoke. Plenty of oak. Finish: Toffee, caramel, milk chocolate, vanilla, and brown sugar. Gala apple and dried apricot. Toasted almond and walnut. Pipe smoke, black tea, and cocoa. Black pepper, ginger, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Moderate-long, leaning toward the latter. Really glad I grabbed this. Definitely the best Widow Jane product I’ve had to date. 100 proof and a 10 year age statement? Very respectable. It’s just a classic chewy bourbon profile done to a tee. I’ve had a couple people in bars tell me that they knew for absolute certain that it isn’t bourbon if it isn’t made in Kentucky. Legally. Not only is that patently untrue, but this also proves that the spirit of bourbon can be captured anywhere, given the right circumstances. Like I said, 10 years, 100 proof. At $86, this was easily worth the price of entry. It’s so rare to get both respectable age and ABV in the same bottle. Widow Jane celebrated their 10th anniversary in style with this one. If you’re lucky enough to spot one of these on the shelf at this point in the game, I highly encourage the buy. 4.75/5.

This new Basil Hayden’s line seems to be a replacement for those experimental whiskies that were blended with wine and rum. Those were pretty awful, so I welcome a more traditional approach to experimentation. Even that has its limits in the world of whiskey, so let’s see if they’re getting it right with the toast-charred oak. Nose: Vanilla, brown sugar, toffee, and caramel. Sugar cookie. Apple and apricot. Big apricot. The smoke is present, but it’s more in the background. Cocoa. Foam hand soap. Ginger, rye spice, black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak spice. Palate: Cocoa, sawdust, black tea, and pipe smoke. More apple and apricot, though it’s more like apple pie and dried apricot on the tongue. Apple cider and cereal grain. Vanilla (frosting,) toffee, caramel, and brown sugar. Mocha. Orange citrus. Toasted almond and walnut. Black pepper, ginger, clove, nutmeg, and oak spice. Finish: Apple and dried apricot. Cocoa, black tea, and pipe smoke. Caramel, toffee, vanilla, and brown sugar. Cinnamon Apple Jacks. Toasted almond and pistachio. Black pepper, ginger, clove, nutmeg, rye spice, and oak. Short-moderate. Upon reading up on this one, I’ve learned that rye was subbed out for brown rice in the mash bill. Interestingly, I still get trace rye spice at times, but the heavy-handed rye notes I generally get from Basil Hayden’s are absent. As for how this scores, I’ll use some points of reference to put it in perspective. I think the Basil Hayden 10 edges this. And this is definitely better than the standard BH. And all of three that I just mentioned are substantially better than those funky experiments that Jim Beam was trying under the BH banner. That in mind, I’m optimistic about the direction Jim Beam is taking Basil Hayden. This is a 3.25, though I’m going to dock it slightly for VFM at $50. Wouldn’t go above $40 for a 40% ABV NAS bourbon that, let’s face it, isn’t boasting any truly unique attribute. Toasted barrels? They’re a dime a dozen. The mash bill is interesting, and I’ll give them credit for that. 40% ABV is unacceptable if you’re trying to get into the good graces of a bourbon-head. Depth is important, and this is could be fantastic if it had more than the bare minimum. 3/5 as it is.

This is my 6th consecutive Laphroaig Cairdeas. If that isn’t an indicator that I quite enjoy these, then I’ll just say it. Laphroaig does a fantastic job with the cask experimentation, and they keep the price down year after year. They put this out roughly around the time that they debuted the 10 year Sherry Oak cask, which I believe uses Olorosso. It will be interesting to see what PX and an extra 10 and changed % ABV delivers. Nose: Brine, seaweed, sea salt, iodine, bandaid, and tennis ball. Heavy campfire/pipe smoke and rubbery peat and ash. Black currant and rich plum. Menthol and wintergreen. Dark chocolate and toffee. Mint. Freshly-based apple pie. Toasted almond and hazelnut. Smoked meats/brisket. Red hot tamale. Black bean, red pepper chili. Cinnamon, black pepper, and oak. Palate: Rich dark and mint chocolate, malt, and toffee. Plum, dried red fruit, blackberry, and black currant. The peat smoke, seaweed, sea salt, brine, and iodine remain strong here. Toasted almond and pistachio. Strawberry. Black bean, red pepper chili and more of the smoked meat and brisket. Cinnamon, black pepper, and oak. Finish: Brine, sea salt, seaweed, peat/campfire smoke, bandaid, iodine. Black currant and plum. Dark chocolate and toffee. Red hot tamale. Nuts, bacon, charred meat, chili, and all kinds of baking spice and oak. Unbelievable finish on all accounts. 6/6 on these Cairdeas releases. This happens to be the most plush profile of them all. The PX yields a dark fruit profile, even more so than the Port and Wine Cask release from the year prior. It’s an absolute monster at cask strength, and it hits all the right notes. A coastal peat beast with a healthy balance of rich dark fruit and confectionary sweet, nutty, and meaty notes. Devoid of citrus which I tend to get in most Islays. 5/5. I got around to this one late, so it ran me $100 instead of the usual $90. Well worth the price of admission. I hope they something with PX sherry again in the future after this stellar performance. I believe they do some PX single cask releases. I’ll have to get around to those. As for this, magnificent stuff.

My favorite Blood Oath to date was the Sauternes Cask release. Like many people, when I think of wine cask-aging, Scotch and even Irish whiskey come to mind before bourbon. But it worked beautifully when Lux Row did it, and since I believe this was similarly-priced, I have high hopes for Jefferson’s take. The Groth Cabernet cask was fantastic, and the Pritchard Hill is good as well, so there’s precedent for it. Let’s see how they did. Nose: Gala apple, grape, cherry, and apple pie. Raisin and cranberry. Jam. Nougat, caramel, toffee, brown sugar, honey, and vanilla. Toasted almond, cashew, and macadamia. Cocoa butter. Rye, black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Palate: Mint, apple, cherry, and raisin. Honey, caramel, toffee, nougat, milk chocolate, brown sugar, and vanilla. Dried apricot. Orange citrus and light pipe smoke. More toasted almond and macadamia. Heavy black pepper. Clove, nutmeg, and oak. More spice than the nose suggested. Finish: Brown sugar, honey vanilla, caramel, nougat, and milk chocolate. Cocoa. Dried apricot. Ginger snaps. Orange citrus and pipe smoke. Loads of spice. Black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Moderate length. Nicely executed bourbon. It’s refined, balanced, and elegant. The cask selection brings out the sweet bourbon notes without it venturing remotely near the territory of sickly sweet. I have two gripes. First, the nose was exquisite. The palate was also very good, but didn’t quite measure up to the expectation established with the nose. And at 45% ABV, I’d call the finish “good.” The problem is the price. This cost be $150. The Groth cask, my favorite Jefferson’s release, was only $70. That was discontinued around a decade ago, so let’s ignore that for now and just attribute it to price creep. The Blood Oath Sauternes Finish was only $120, and it was considerably more vibrant and unique and was less watered down. That was a 5 star bourbon, while this was a 4, and I’m docking a quarter star for not quite hitting VFM. Still a very good whiskey in its own right and worth owning if you’re a collector like me. But if you’re judicious in selection-making process, it wouldn’t be a sin to pass on this. 1.5/1/1

These Lagavulin 12 year releases are a winner for me every year. I don’t know if I could say I had one single favorite; they’re all similar to a degree. 2016-2018, 2020-2021. This is my 6th go at this line, and I’m very much looking forward to this. Nose: Heavy peat, campfire smoke, brine, sea salt, ash, and iodine. Tire rubber—not off-putting. Bandaid. Lemon, lime, and grapefruit citrus. Golden Teddy Graham. Vanilla custard. Raisin, plum, and blueberry. Hazelnut. Black bean, red pepper chili. Sun-dried tomato. Cinnamon and oak. Paprika and black pepper. Toffee and caramel. Milk chocolate. Palate: Massive enticing heat. The peat and coastal notes and spice step to the forefront whereas the nose had more fruit and sweet up front with the peat. Sea salt and seaweed. Ash and iodine. The campfire smoke is accompanied by barrel char. and Red hot tamale. Cinnamon and oak. Dark and mint chocolate. Hazelnut. Raspberry chocolate. Blackberry, raisin, and plum. Toasted almond. Vanilla frosting/custard. Mint chocolate Finish: Sea salt and brine. Ballpark soft pretzel. Milk chocolate, toffee, caramel, and butterscotch. Hookah and campfire smoke. Ash and tire rubber. Iodine. Mint chocolate. Black bean red pepper chili. Red hot tamale. Heaps of cinnamon, black pepper, and oak spice. A powerful combination of peat heat and spice, coastal notes, some citrus fruit, and confectionery sweets. Some of those are natural, while others are purely artificial. All in all, this whisky covers almost base in terms of profile. And it does a damn good job in representing each attribute. 5/5. Though the price has slightly raised, the 12-year continues to be something I look forward to each year. Uncut goodness like this is hard to come by—and it’s even more rare to find it with an age statement. At $145, this was worth the cost of entry. Looking forward to the 2023 next.

This is the second night in a row that I’m reviewing a 16-year single malt from a line from which I’d only previously had the 12-year. The Mortlach 12 definitely made more of an impression than the Aberfeldy 12, so hopefully this one here can even out the score. Nose: Honey, butterscotch, vanilla, toffee, and caramel. Floral notes. Apple, apricot, and pear. Orange, tangerine, and golden raisin. Almond. Sugar cookie. Light clove, nutmeg, and oak spice. Cinnamon and white pepper as well. It’s on the lighter side; which comes as no surprise at 40% ABV. Palate: Caramel, toffee, vanilla, butterscotch, and honey. Gala apple, golden raisin, and grape. Apricot. Sherry notes and almond. Almond butter. Oak and baking spice. Finish: Almond/almond butter and macadamia. Honey, butterscotch, vanilla, toffee, and caramel. Cinnamon, black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Short, maybe short-moderate finish. I’ve said it many times, and I really don’t like saying it because it makes me feel like I’m discriminating against the 40% ABV bottlings. But it is always true. They are always relatively simple. And while this is a perfectly good whisky, it is extremely evident that it would be far superior at a higher proof. Why take the time and care to age this in quality barrels for more than a decade and a half, only to water this down to the absolute bare minimum? This is a fine whisky. Perfectly pleasant, nice balance, solid profile. But at 40%, there isn’t enough complexity here give it the score I’d like to when I’m really being critical. And that’s a shame, because it’s an objectively good whisky at a great price when you consider the age statement. At $90, I just need more complexity. This is a 3.25 or a 3.5 whisky on its face. But I need more punch, and VFM drags this down despite the incredible age statement at the cost. 3/5 even.

Elijah Craig 18 was one of those bottles I saw in the case that I was attracted to at the very beginning of my whiskey journey. It was only a matter of time until I got my hands on it. Trying the standard EC bourbon and rye and various batches of the ECBP only solidified my interest in this bottle. And here we are. Bottled: 9-27-22. Barrel 6133. Nose: Caramel, nougat, vanilla, and toffee. Almond and pecan. Some apple, dried apricot, golden raisin, and a blueberry/blue raspberry candy note. Parfait. Peach tea. Clementine, tangerine, and even a bit of lemon citrus. Honey and bubblegum. Espresso. Cocoa. Black tea, a touch of pipe smoke, newspaper, and a trace of sawdust. Loads of oak. Palate: Caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, toffee, and maple. Peach tea. Dried apricot and golden raisin. Apple cider. Cherry and even plum. Orange rind and tangerine/clementine. Bubblegum. More berry parfait. Almond, hazelnut, and pecan. White and black pepper combined with cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice, and oak. Finish: Almond, hazelnut, and pecan. Gala apple, clementine/tangerine citrus. Caramel, vanilla, and brown sugar. Gala apple and cherry. Parfait. Black tea. Rye spice. Black pepper, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice, and oak. Moderate length. This delivers to my expectations established all those years ago. It’s vibrant, delicious, and avoids the stigma of being “over-oaked,” which gives some older whiskies aged in hot climates a bad rap. Instead, the quality grain and the careful aging process shine. In fact, the profile is on the lighter side for bourbon—especially for Elijah Craig. It’s much more fruit forward and generally sweeter than the other EC offerings. At $200, I’ve got to say this was worth the price of entry. It’s a lot—for anything—but in the context of bourbons that are in this general age ballpark, this is a steal. This could’ve been a 5-star bourbon if the ABV were a bit higher, but this lands comfortably at a 4.5.

Tamdhu’s Batch Strength line has put them squarely on my radar. I really enjoyed the 3rd Batch, and the 4th was an all-timer. Let’s see if Tamdhu was able to generate a three-peat with this one. Nose: Gala apple, pear, ripe banana, white grape, and apricot. Raisin, fig, date, plum, cranberry, blackberry, and cola. A honeydew/cantaloupe note(s.) Peach. A nice blend of light and dark fruit. Shortbread cookie and vanilla custard. Caramel and toffee. Almond. Cinnamon. Hot tamales. Clove, nutmeg, white pepper, and oak spice. Palate: Vanilla custard. Plum, date fig, raisin, blackberry, and cola. Clementine and orange citrus. Caramel, honey, butterscotch, toffee, and malt. Gala apple, pear, apricot, and white grape were up front on the nose, but they are ever so slightly relegated to the background on the palate. Mango. Irish baking soda bread. More hot tamale. Cinnamon, white pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Finish: Cocoa. Date, fig, plum, cranberry and raisin. Blackberry. Gala apple. Pineapple, clementine, and orange citrus. Caramel, toffee, vanilla, and Irish baking soda bread. Black pepper, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Long a finish as they make ‘em. Another solid installment in the Tamdhu Batch Strength line. Interesting notes. Nice balance despite the incredible. Uncut quality for a reasonable price. 4.25/5. This ties Batch 003, with 004 taking the lead as the best of the bunch. That’s no knock against this one though. 004 was one of my absolute favorites. This is great in its right. At $80, the VFM is on point. Hopefully 006 is still available. It’s worth combing hole-in-the-wall stores to find based on my experiences with its three predecessors. Well done, Tamdhu.

2-5 were all winners for me. Can’t remember which was my favorite, but maybe I’ll go back and check when I get done tasting this to see how installment 6 stacks up. I won’t bore you with the details of the barrel staves used, but the short story is that the theme here is stave experimentation that combines 4 4-year old malt whiskies and a 5-year old bourbon. Nose: Sawdust, pipe smoke, rye spice (interesting, because rye should be extremely low in this blend.) Kettle corn. Baked apple. Dried apricot. Almond. Green apple Jolly Rancher and Cinnamon Apple Jacks. Nail polish. Pumpkin spice. Malt, toffee, vanilla, and honey. Black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. A ton of notes, but some of them don’t mesh quite well. It’s a bit too sweet, but maybe this just needs time to open up. Palate: Cherry. Cola. Caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, and fudge. Maple bacon. Tangy BBQ sauce. Green Apple Jolly Rancher. Peach and sweet tea. Spearmint and wintergreen. Dried apricot. Some plum, date, fig, and raisin. Cinnamon, black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Finish: Cocoa, black tea, pipe smoke. Caramel, toffee, malt, fudge, vanilla. Cinnamon Apple Jacks. Cinnamon, black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Long a finish as they make ‘em. I can say without reservation that this was the least impressive installment of Little Book line besides 1 and 7 which I’ve yet to try. It feels young. Disjointed. Too sweet at times. This is also the first malt-dominant expression I’ve had from Beam, and it hasn’t yet become their forte. I know it sounds like I’m tagging on this one. It’s actually a pretty solid whiskey. The diversity of notes kept me on my toes and made for an interesting experience. The heat was respectable but not a turn off either. There were plenty of good qualities to report on with this one. I said earlier that I’d go back and check to see how this stacks up against 2-5. No need. I know those all were 4 stars or above. I’m going to keep this at 3.5.

I was a big fan of the two Davies County wine barrel releases, so I figured I couldn’t go with this. Lux Row almost always impresses me, so let’s hope this continues that trend. Nose: Caramel, fudge, vanilla, toffee, and brown sugar. Gala apple and dried fruit. Black cherry. Black tea, peppercorn, and tobacco smoke. Black pepper, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, and oak. Pumpkin spice. Rye spice. I really like this. It’s a standard flavor profile, but it’s rich and powerful. Palate: Caramel and fudge once again, maybe even some dark chocolate. Some mint chocolate. Pistachio. Rye notes. A little pipe smoke, cocoa, and black tea. Brown sugar. Cola. Cocoa. Gala apple, dried apricot, golden raisin. The faintest cherry note. Black pepper, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Finish: Caramel, toffee, vanilla. Brown sugar. Fudge. Cocoa. Dried apricot and raisin. Mint/mint chocolate. Black pepper, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Moderate-long finish. Another winner from Lux Row. Like I said with the nose, the entire experience does not deviate much from the standard bourbon profile. But it really doesn’t need to do anything different, this is a masterful expression. The barrel char from the white oak cask finish adds an amazing touch. At $55, this is a bargain and then some. Lux Row is doing some fantastic things with this Daviess County line, and they’re making it easily accessible to the average person. I have to appreciate that. It’s a 4.5/5. VFM gives it that extra push. Well done.