Tastes

Open 2 months Nose - Molasses, caramel, dark fruits, raisins, rich baking spices, leather, tobacco, hint of dill, and mild ethanol. This nose has it all. Palate - Creamy dark fruit compote, sweet oak and leather, vanilla caramel swirl, gingerbread cookie, and little to no ethanol on the front of the tongue. Medium-long finish with rye baking spices, caramel, raisins, and dry tannins on the back end. Honestly I'm blown away by this rye. Pinhook rolled out in NC this year (?), but I avoided buying the base bourbon and rye at prices close to $40. However, their Vertical series and High Proof Bourbon are only priced $10 more, and the Verticals in particular get really good reviews. I held out for this one, and I'm so glad I did. It is one of the best things I've had in 2021. Oddly this reminds me of Maker's Mark FAE-01. It has a lot of those dark fruit and leather notes with a significant kick of rye spice. If you see this, buy it. It is much better than most ryes in this price range.

Open 7 weeks Nose - Grain, caramel, grass, cherries, orange peel, cinnamon, and medium ethanol. Palate - Caramel, unripe cherries, citrus cleaner, grain, and some rye or oak spice. Finish is medium with tannic and bitter oak showing up, strong ethanol, light caramel and vanilla, candied cherries, and raisins. Follow up review for the bottle kill (I split this 3 ways for trading with friends). My opinion hasn't changed but the flavor has. The wheat softness was prominent when first opened, now it's more rye forward and significantly spicier despite being open for almost 2 months. Considering the price I would opt for others on the shelf in NC. But, this is a batch release from a relatively new distillery, and I bet they will gradually introduce older bourbons than this 44 month old batch 07. A lot of people in NC whiskey community like Penelope. Clearly they know what they're doing blending these younger bourbons and my guess is they'll keep improving and continue making interesting products like the rose cask finish.

Open 2.5 months Nose - Caramel, brown sugar, browned butter, vanilla, cherry, orange peel, sharp oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Dry oak tannins, caramel, cornmeal, cherry, citrus, light peanut brittle, clove, allspice, and light licorice. Finish is medium with more dry oak, medium ethanol bite, and lighter notes of caramel and cherries. I picked this up for a camping trip as an inoffensive but enjoyable 100 proof bourbon that people who aren't into bourbon like me might enjoy. I had only had this at a bar previously, so I knew that it would work sipping out of mugs and HydroFlasks. Overall, this is a fine whiskey but there is absolutely nothing special about it. As an alternative to Buffalo Trace products? Sure, go for it. But there are plenty of better bourbons that are cheaper than this and also good sippers. I'm also disappointed they go the 1792 route and disclose zero information about the single barrel. The version I had a few years ago was less spicy and much sweeter, it'd be nice to know the age of this barrel and where it was located. That sweet version I could definitely see appealing those who think Buffalo Trace is amazing, this one may be too spicy for them.

Warehouse 1; Floor 5; Rick 015 Barreled 02-12-16; Bottled 03-02-21 Age 5 years and 18 days Pick by Bull City Bourbon Club; Named "Knobbin' Thicke" Open 3 days Nose - Hot cinnamon raisin oatmeal, chocolate covered cherries, cocoa nibs, mint, eucalyptus, citrus oil, overripe peaches, medium oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Viscous, oily, bready, lots of oatmeal and cereal grain, peach and cherry cobbler, black pepper, caramel, and lots of baking spices. Finish is medium-long with warming oak and rye spice, medium to hot ethanol, toasted grains and oatmeal, and more fruity cobbler notes. Another winner from my local BCBC group. This is one of the more standout mouthfeel whiskeys I've had this year, and a very nice changeup from the high rye mashbills I've had recently. Really good stuff. It's hard to beat Knob Creek Single Barrels for the price and proof. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother looking for rarer bottles in NC when I can grab high proof stuff from Beam, Maker's, Heaven Hill, Wild Turkey, Old Forester, and Jack Daniel's whenever I want. PSA - As a side note, you don't need to add your individual single barrels on Distiller. There are too many as is, and these searches get longer and longer with so many people adding store picks as options to add and review. It's annoying haha, please stop!!

Open 5 months Nose - Sweet corn, buttered toast, vanilla, toffee, limestone, cocoa powder, orange, sweet oak, and light ethanol. Palate - Very light and sweet up front, chocolate covered oranges and cherries, grilled corn, toffee, brown sugar, cinnamon powder, and sweet oak spice. Finish is medium-short with lingering oak tannins, corn, minerality, and dry sugars. Ethanol is barely noticeable, this is a very light and easy sipper. This is the first major miss from George Dickel that I've had. In the past this might have been a premium option, but in recent years they've greatly expanded their offerings nationally with BiB, Hand Selected Barrel, and 15Y SiB. At the time I purchased this, the BiB was still cheaper. Now, I can get the BiB and Hand Selected Barrel for $7 more. There's no change I would buy this in the future with those amazing options in the same price range. This isn't bad by any means, maybe they'll keep it around for Dickel lovers that want a nice lower proof whiskey.

Open 4 months Nose - Rich, smoked pork and beef, hickory-fueled campfire smoke, meaty peat, salted cured meats, tobacco leaf, citrus cleaning agent, toasted bread, menthol, and medium ethanol. Palate - Viscous, meaty peat smoke, sea salt and brine for days, buttered toast, caramel, sweet malted grains, apple pie, and surprisingly low ethanol. Finish is long with the strongest notes of ethanol and peat so far, campfire ashes, burnt toast, toasted malt, vanilla, and honey. I consider myself both lucky and unlucky that I live in NC because our ABC discontinued carrying Laphroaig 10Y Cask Strength. But they did this before the dramatic price increases of many Scotches due to tariffs, including other Laphroaig expressions, so this sat on shelves unchanged at $74.95. Because everyone is hunting bourbon and rye, some of these still remain on shelves over a year after they were discontinued. I'm glad I managed to pick one up before they disappear (also got batch 012). These are really fantastic Islay whiskeys, and are no question the best value peated malts under $100 along with the Ardbeg cask strengths. I have a lower opinion of the standard 10Y compared to the typical reviewer, but these cask strength offerings more than make up for that. Only $8 more than the 86 proof 10Y, why would you ever pass this up?

Batch 011 - March 2019 58.6% abv; 117.2 proof Open 4 months Nose - Rich, smoked pork and beef, hickory-fueled campfire smoke, meaty peat, salted cured meats, tobacco leaf, citrus cleaning agent, toasted bread, menthol, and medium ethanol. Palate - Viscous, meaty peat smoke, sea salt and brine for days, buttered toast, caramel, sweet malted grains, apple pie, and surprisingly low ethanol. Finish is long with the strongest notes of ethanol and peat so far, campfire ashes, burnt toast, toasted malt, vanilla, and honey. I consider myself both lucky and unlucky that I live in NC because our ABC discontinued carrying Laphroaig 10Y Cask Strength. But they did this before the dramatic price increases of many Scotches due to tariffs, including other Laphroaig expressions, so this sat on shelves unchanged at $74.95. Because everyone is hunting bourbon and rye, some of these still remain on shelves over a year after they were discontinued. I'm glad I managed to pick one up before they disappear (also got batch 012). These are really fantastic Islay whiskeys, and are no question the best value peated malts under $100 along with the Ardbeg cask strengths. I have a lower opinion of the standard 10Y compared to the typical reviewer, but these cask strength offerings more than make up for that. Only $8 more than the 86 proof 10Y, why would you ever pass this up?

Open 6.5 months Nose - Light peat, black pepper, lemony vanilla, sea salt and brine, honeycrisp apples, honeysuckle, and medium ethanol. Palate - Surprisingly light and smooth, honey, honeysuckle, apples, butterscotch, sweet cereal grain, light smoke, salted caramel, and almost no hint of ethanol or oak. Finish is medium, longer than expected, with some campfire ash, brine, honey, and cereal grain. Picked this up in Virginia since it is not readily available in NC. I was most surprised how light and delicate this Islay was, despite being higher proof than almost all flagship 10Y and 12Y peated whiskeys. To me, this has elements of Talisker 10 and Laphroaig 10, but lighter and softer across the board. If peat and medicinal spice are overwhelming for you, try this one out.

Barrel No. 2-E3-0388 Pick by Bull City Bourbon Club; Named "Double Shortcake" Open 7 weeks Nose - Strawberries, berries and cream, crème brulee, maple syrup, orange compote, cinnamon frosting, sweet oak, and light ethanol. Palate - Creamy strawberry cheesecake, berry jam, butterscotch and caramel, cinnamon bun, and a nice complement of rye baking spices. Finish is medium-long with an exceptionally creamy and fruity mouthfeel with oak tannins and building ethanol and spices at the end. This may be the best pick I've had from BCBC, and is notches better than the Bulleit Single Barrel I really liked in 2020. It is one of the best bourbons I've had in 2021 so far, and easily contends with much pricier or higher proof bourbons. The creamy mouthfeel of berries and syrup is delightful. I wish the barrel yield wasn't so low or else I would've bought 2-3 bottles of this. If you can manage to get a good Bulleit pick, I highly recommend it.

Barrel No. 21-00900; Rick L-23; Bottled 01-22-21 Pick by Bull City Bourbon Club; Named "Nanner Puddin" Open 2 months Nose - Banana pudding topped with vanilla wafers, brown sugar, cinnamon, Big League Chew, jammy fruits, and notable ethanol (or is that just rye and oak spice?). Palate - Liquified vanilla wafer, banana Runt candy, medicinal cherry, baking spices, browned butter with added brown sugar and caramel, Honey Nut Cheerios, and a decent amount of oak tannins. Finish is medium-short with lingering artificial banana and vanilla, hints of sweet baking spices, and a back end of dry oak. This is a pick from my local bourbon group. The nose is straight vanilla wafer, not sure I've had another whiskey with this strong of an artificial banana/vanilla flavor. It's the type of profile I love, but it's not nuanced or layered enough, likely due to proof. The palate is simpler, there isn't much depth of flavor outside of that banana/vanilla combination. It's really nice for what it is, but it disappoints when compared to the Jack Daniel's Single Barrel Barrel Proof whiskey and rye. Because Jack Daniel's already charges a premium ($50-60) for their 94 proof single barrels, I wish they would change that to bottled-in-bond single barrels to justify the expense. I think it would be a better product, and still be markedly different from their extremely high proof single barrel barrel proofs. As it stands, I won't buy a 94 proof single barrel again that's only $15 less than the barrel proof, unless it's a club pick of course.