Tastes

I normally love Highland Park... but I don't know about this one. Seems slightly better than average, at best. The nose is pretty potent. Smells like this is going to be a hard hitter. The taste is dominated by a soft, rounded peat smoke. Its not intrusive. Sweetness is there, but its not as big a player as in Highland Park 12 year. Oddly enough, I taste some red fruit peeking its head through toward the middle of the taste, perhaps from the sherry cask? This one isn't too complex, unlike most of Highland Park's other offerings. Its fine, but its not great. My honest two cents? Buy a bottle of 12 year instead, its well worth it. But if you ever tasted Highland Park 12 year and thought to yourself: " Well, this is fine, but I really wish all I tasted was light peat with a background of sweetness," then this might be the whiskey for you.

Feeling nostalgic, I decided to pick up a bottle of Aberfeldy 12. When I actually wrote my review of the stuff, I was just starting to get into good whiskey and so I thought a revisit was in order. The nose is interestingly fruity on this maybe a little too much so. It seems to dominate the smell. That fruity sweetness mingles with a bit of tart for the initial taste. Towards the middle, some toffee blends in with the fruit and the finish ends up a little nutty and by end of the taste. That powerful red fruit flavor profile has all but vanished. The aftertaste is a bit interesting... almost like a powdery cocoa. Aberfeldy 12 really is quite good and runs the full gamut of flavors. Its a good value proposition and is always readily available.

I once tasted this as I was in my infancy of being a whiskey fan. Now, with matured taste buds, I've decided to once again delve into a bottle of Heaven's Door. This isn't a complex bourbon under initial impressions. Nose was a bit astringent fresh out of the bottle, but it mellows some when you let it sit. The taste is sweet, with some brown sugar type notes. Typical of a solid if not one dimensional bourbon. And then a kiss of rye spice at the end. Surprising, because the nose and initial taste do not indicate much rye in the mash bill at all. It's a bit of a dry finish and leaves you wanting for more. An interesting bourbon and I can see why people like it. This bourbon gives you a little of everything.

In an effort to right some wrongs from the infancy stages of my whiskey tasting adventures, I've decided to revisit some whiskies. Here's my taste of Woodford Reserve: Woodford Reserve is a classic. Many of the bourbons in this price point seem to fall into a similar taste category but Woodford plays outside of the norm. The taste is oaky and possesses the qualities that most bourbons do, but riding along the taste profile is a good bit of corn. It reminds me of a mix of the now-defunct Cedar Ridge bourbon ( that was dominant with corn ) and perhaps some Makers in there. This is an awesome change of pace from other daily bourbons at a reasonable price point.

Is Peated Whiskey an acquired taste? When a friend bought me a neat pour of Lagavulin 16 year in a Glencairn and I had that first taste, I suddenly realized that my perception of Peated Whiskey is pretty off. Take my review with a grain of salt: I'm a Bourbon and Oak Cask type of guy. ( Read: NOT into heavy peat ). That said, Christ almighty all I can taste and smell is smoke with this whiskey. But not acrid, burning smoke. More like a type of umami, savory smoke. Perhaps akin to a smoking a chuck roast, low and slow. But for those uninitiated, that heavy hit of peat is jarring and can be unpleasant. The finish it leaves is oily and smokey with a bit of spice. Judging from the reviews, this is probably a pretty prime example of a Peated whiskey. With that in mind, I think I will steer right the hell back into my own lane and stick to Bourbon and Oak Casks.

I can honestly taste almost nothing but red fruits. That sherry cask on this whiskey is extremely dominant and I taste almost zero bourbon influence. There was a time when I liked slightly fruity whiskies but my tastes lean towards Oak and Bourbons these days. Still, I guess it isn't BAD. It is quite sweet and such is the way with heavy wine cask influence; finishes a bit tart like a cherry. No alcohol burn and no bitterness to be had here. If fruity whiskies are your cup of tea, I'm sure you'll be in to this. Not my thing though.

It is hard to imagine bourbon getting much better than this. Be wary of the proof though: this is NOT the type of bourbon you want to take shots of or take long gulps from. Not that you would, if you went through the trouble of locating a bottle AND coughing up a pretty penny to purchase it. Slow sips, savor. The nose is deliciously sweet. It smells of thick, sugary sweet things like Caramel and Maple Syrup. You do catch a little hint of Vanilla too. The taste starts with a hint of salted caramel then bursts into dark chocolate and toffee. As it fades toward the finish, you'll catch a wisp of mint as the chocolate tapers off. The finish gives way to a little alcohol heat swirled with some bitter charred wood. Its long and lingering, likely from the proof. You also catch a faint hint of something familiar and musty, like a leather jacket.

My relationship with Irish Whiskies has been a turbulent one. Most of have been off putting for me, some have been completely devoid of taste and complexity yet others pleasantly surprise me. Redbreast 12 year Cask Strength is among the latter. It's hot. Of course it would be: bottled at a fiery 112(ish) proof, this ain't no weak sauce watered down swill. Its full bodied taste is interesting.... it begins ever so slightly sweet and tad salty? Its got a little butterscotch sweetness vibe cruising in the background. Then you get the spices. Lots of spice, but not of the herbaceous type like a Rye. No... this spice is more like a hot cinnamon spice, accompanied by some heat from the proof. The finish is long, lingering and a bit oily in the sense that it coats the tongue. Its good. It's not life changing, but its good. I wonder now: is this as good as an Irish Whiskey can get?

Batch 003 - Bottled at 60.4 ABV ( 120.8 Proof ) As other's have said - this one is potent. Let it breathe for a bit before indulging. This one would be a great candidate for a Decanter but I'm tasting off a freshly opened bottle, in a Glencairn with the whiskey having sat for about 10 minutes. What an interesting and lovely nose. The first thing I smell is sweet Maraschino cherries enveloped in thick honey. How rich and inviting. The taste is hot from the proof but its super creamy and coats the tongue. With the tongue tingling sensation from the proof its almost the same sensation as a root beer float. As the initial mouth feel blends into the full taste, you get the tiniest hit of cherry but then it explodes into sweet baking spices and dark chocolate. The finish begins almost salty but then melts into a slightly bitter chocolate and sweet caramel aftertaste. Like a dark chocolate sea salt caramel candy. This one isn't for the feint of heart. For the love of God, don't have your non whiskey drinking friends have some. But for those who genuinely enjoy whiskey and aren't afraid of a little proof, my God is this something special.

This might be a case of letting the bourbon sit and breathe a little. I will admit, I drank my pour out of a freshly opened bottle, but this one seems like it could benefit from sitting in the glass for a moment or two. I found the taste to be very cinnamon spice heavy. There is a very distinct lack of alcohol heat, perhaps from the low(er) proof? The bourbon does this thing where it coats your tongue and feels thick, almost syrup like although the actual bourbon isn't nearly that viscous. I taste some autumn-like herbaceous flavors with an underlying note of toffee and/or caramel sweetness. I don't know about this one though.... it's alright I suppose. Not one I would be clamoring back to the store to purchase once finished, but worth a try for the relatively affordable price.