Tastes

Specially selected by Chris Fletcher Master Distiller (2021) Barrel No. 22-01655 Barrel House 2-11 Bottled on 02-18-2022 65.8% abv; 131.6 proof Open 2 weeks Nose - Hot banana bread pudding, vanilla icing, cinnamon, allspice, sweet oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Cinnamon bun, soft gingerbread, banana bread, caramel vanilla cream, maple candy, and tobacco leaf. Finish is long with sweet and spicy oak, burnt maple, black pepper, cigar smoke, and medium ethanol. Back to regularly scheduled programming with this single barrel. I think the last one I bought was an outlier because this is delicious. It drinks sweeter and lighter than its proof. I've never thought Jack Daniel's SBBP were complex, but to me it doesn't matter because it hits the right dessert notes. As an added bonus, this 375 mL bottle was only $33 when they could've easily marked it up to $40. I'm very appreciative that 375 mL are available in my new home base, I get to try 2 single barrels for the same price as the full size.

Open 3 months Nose - Ginger, mint, pine needle, dill, peppercorn medley, lemon oil, cinnamon, spiced black tea, caramel, and strong ethanol. Palate - Spicy and savory herbs, lemon peel, black pepper, pine needle, gingersnap cookie, light tobacco, and clove. Finish is medium-long with bitter, astringent rye and oak spices, citrus cleaner, black pepper, dried herbs, and significant ethanol bite. I thought I'd give this a second chance a few years after its release. It was difficult to find that first year, and now it's readily available for $60 at most stores I've visited in 2023. I bought it when it first arrived in NC amidst a lot of hype, and was let down by the bottle. Given how amazing the Rare Breed bourbon continues to be, I thought the rye would be better. Since its release, countless YouTube reviews continue to heap praise on the Rare Breed Rye, and I don't get it. It's not bad by any stretch, but at this price point it's one of the worst ryes I've had. It has a savory, velvety quality but lacks the sweetness of a low rye mashbill or higher aged rye. And it also lacks the spice and herbal punch of an MGP rye. I'll take a Knob Creek or Smooth Ambler pick every time over this.

Liquor City Uncorked pick, "Gallenstein's Selection #1" Barrel No. DC-484 Latitude Beverage Company; Sourced from MGP Mash bill - 60% corn / 36% rye / 4% malted barley Barrel Filled - November 2016 Bottled - December 2022 Age - 6 years; unknown finishing age 56.6% abv; 113.2 proof Open 4 weeks Nose - Caramel bomb, roasted corn, vanilla, mint, cardamon, clove, cinnamon, medium oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Caramel, honey oats, creamy vanilla, black pepper, warm coffee cake, anise, and tobacco leaf. Finish is long with caramel for days, fresh burst of oak tannins, black pepper, clove, herbal mint, and medium ethanol. I'm normally skeptical of toasted or double oaked products from craft NDPs. I've had some really bad ones, it's easy to over oak a bourbon or rye and ruin it. Plus they're normally $20-30 more than the regular cask strength product. But I was talked into this by one of the store employees who picks the barrels. He also dislikes over oaked whiskey and assured me they got the toasted level right. Needless to say I love this pick, the toasted oak flavors are as good as the best Maker's Mark wood finishing series. This was pretty close to a 5/5, but there are some strong rye spice and oak flavors on the mid and back palate that detract from the creamy caramel dessert flavors. If it was slightly less tannic or maybe the lower rye MGP bourbon, I would buy multiple bottles as backup. As is, for $70 this is significantly better than a ton of sourced bourbons I've tried in the last few years. Whomever is sourcing and finishing at Latitude Beverage is doing it right.

Liquor City Uncorked pick, "Gallenstein #3" Warehouse 1; Floor 4; Rick 17 Barreled on 10/06/2014 Bottled on 05/27/2020 Age - 5 years, 7 months, 21 days Open 5 weeks Nose - Boozy, strong baking spices, toasted grains, leather, bitter oak, cocoa, dried herbs, and light maple syrup. Palate - Dry spices, cinnamon, black pepper, oak, toffee, brown sugar, hay, and herbs. The palate is long with dry, bitter oak, heavy rye spice, heavy black pepper tobacco smoke, brown sugar, and medium ethanol bite. This is the worst single barrel I've had of Knob Creek Rye, which is saying a lot. The picks I've gotten through BCBC were fantastic, so my expectations were likely too high. This is the most classic barely legal rye profile I've had in a while, nothing exceptional or unique. If you told me this was high rye bourbon, I wouldn't blink. This and Pikesville are easily the best way to ease a bourbon drinker into the world of rye, and both continue to be great values when there are a ton of sourced 4 year ryes that cost more.

Liquor City Uncorked pick, "Gallenstein's #2" Barrel No. 20 Contract distilled at Wilderness Trail Mashbill? 75% corn / 21% rye / 4% malted barley Bottled on 02-10-2023 Age - 7 years, 9 months, 24 days 57.25% abv; 114.5 proof Open 7 weeks Nose - Fruit Loops, Corn Pops, bubble gum, bananas, chalk, butterscotch, lemon custard, milk chocolate, light oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Corn Pops with a menthol coating, fresh mineral water, old fashioned bubble gum, unripe bananas, sweet hay, cocoa powder, and saltwater taffy. Finish is long with a fresh minty pop, dry oak, the chalkiest Sweet Tarts imaginable, and medium ethanol. I went ahead and took the plunge at my new favorite local store with one of the many NDPs I've never seen or heard of until moving to Cincinnati. Liquor stores in KY are jam-packed with store picks from so many new NDPs that primarily source from MGP. Yet, I accidentally grabbed this bourbon because I loved the bottle design and the age statement. It's actually sourced from Kentucky. Initially, I presumed Barton based on the flavor profile. But apparently Luca Mariano has a longstanding contract to distill their own product within Wilderness Trail and are currently building their own distillery next door. This unmistakably has characteristics of Wilderness Trail with fresh cereal and chalky fruit notes. I like it better than the Wilderness Trail bourbons I've tried, but it's not as good as their cask strength rye. For me, these unique flavors work better with a higher rye mashbill. It's still good, easy to sip, but not a flavor profile I would drink for hours. At this price there are plenty of other bourbons I would buy. Apparently Liquor City will be getting a Luca Mariano Rye pick soon. That sounds more up my alley.

Liquor City Uncorked pick; "Gallenstein #4" Barrel No. 139 MGP sourced 75% corn / 21% rye / 4% malted barley Warehouse WG; Rick level 3-94-01 Char #3; Toast - Medium 57.05% abv; 114.1 proof Open 1 month Nose - Toasted marshmallow, caramel, maple candy, cinnamon, black cherry, buttercream, charred oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Burnt cinnamon bun, toast, sweet grain, caramel, dry oak, and milk chocolate. Finish is medium-long with sharp oak tannins, burnt brisket glaze, cinnamon dust, maple, and medium ethanol. First time trying Heaven's Door, and it's solid. I can't find anything wrong with this other than a slightly drier than desired oak bitterness. There is nothing exceptional about this barrel. But, it is such a solid sipper that it's basically been my go-to bourbon for the last month. For $60 I can't complain. I'm interested in how this compares to their more common George Dickel sourced bottles.

Bought at the distillery Barrel No. 10106 Barreled on 04-09-2018 Bottled on 05-20-2022 Age 4 years, 1 month, 11 days 54.05% abv; 108.1 proof Open 7 weeks Nose - Sweet rye spice, citrus oil, caramel, eucalyptus, cereal grain, spruce tips, and medium ethanol. Palate - Black pepper, pine sap, caramel, clove, dill, cherry cinnamon, dry gain, anise, and orange rind. Finish is medium-long with chewy rye spices, black pepper, oak tannins, medley of conifer and herbal leaves, and medium ethanol bite. New Riff's ryes are much better than their bourbons. I've purchased a single barrel of both, and visited the distillery bar multiple times since I moved 10 min away. The obvious reason for this difference is the distillery is still pretty new and ryes age to their sweet spot faster than bourbons. The other reason is the 95% rye / 5% malted rye mashbill shares a lot in common with MGP rye, but that malted rye substitute for malted barley gives this whiskey a little extra kick and uniqueness. In this price range is easily competes with other high rye offerings. I really appreciate that New Riff produces their own whiskey, is transparent on what they make, experiment with different mashbills, and price their stuff very competitively. That's pretty rare these days for newer distilleries. If you visit the distillery bar you can taste a flight of single barrels for $20. Since my first visit, I just skip the bourbons and taste the ryes and whatever limited releases are available.

Master Distiller March 2021 pick Stave Profile: Baked American Pure: 5 Seared French Cuvee: 0 Maker's Mark 46: 1 Roasted French Mocha: 0 Toasted French Spice: 4 55.0% abv; 110 proof Open 4 weeks Nose - Barrel char, spicy cinnamon, toasted sourdough, black cherry, orange spiced tea, burnt marshmallow, and medium ethanol. Palate - Red hot cinnamon and charred wood, dry baking spices, medicinal cherry, nutmeg, and black pepper. Finish is medium with dry and bitter oak, charcoal, cherry cinnamon candy, and a significant ethanol kick. These combo packs are normally $60. When I saw them at retail for $45 in Kentucky I had to buy it considering Maker's 46 CS is normally $60 and Private Selection is normally $70-75. This is probably my least favorite Maker's stave finish I've had. The nose is very good, but the palate is too hot and lacks complexity. If the palate matched the nose it would be closer to 4.5 stars. Still a good value at the price I found, but would not buy this particular bottle at MSRP.

55.15% abv; 110.3 proof Open 3 weeks Nose - Cinnamon, toasted oak, burnt marshmallow, nutmeg, pie crust, vanilla bean, and medium ethanol. Palate - Apple pie with heavy cinnamon, glazed doughnuts, sweet cereal grain, and dry baking spices. Finish is medium with spicy and drying oak, fresh nutmeg, cinnamon powder, grainy caramel, and sharp ethanol. These combo packs are normally $60. When I saw them at retail for $45 in Kentucky I had to buy it considering Maker's 46 CS is normally $60 and Private Selection is normally $70-75. This is not as good as I remember, but I did try Maker's 46 CS before ever trying a Private Selection or Wood Finishing Series. It's still an excellent product that is eminently drinkable, but the Wood Finishing Series is simply better.

The Party Source pick, "Shady's Pick" Barrel No. 21-0117 Warehouse K; Floor 4 Distilled on 12-26-2012 Dumped on 09-20-2022 Bottled on 10-12-2022 Age - 9 years, 8 months, 25 days Open 7 weeks Nose - Hot cinnamon buns, caramel, hint of nutmeg, cherry bubble gum, light minerality, medium oak spice, and medium ethanol. Palate - Honey Nut Cheerios, sweet grain, ginger snaps, brown sugar, medicinal cherry, white pepper, baking spices, and sweet oak. The finish is medium-long with drier and tannic oak, black pepper, dried stone fruits, grainy caramel, toast, and medium ethanol. This is where I dock it 0.25-0.5 points, and it was a cleaner finish earlier in the bottle. Apparently RR picks are really hard to find now, at least in the Ohio/Kentucky area. The prices reflect that in Kentucky, where RR is >$20 more than state controlled liquor. But I walked into the store and saw only 2 of these left, and the manager said they were just released and sold like crazy. I wish I bought both of them despite the price. It's the best RR pick I've had. A good Russell's pick is hard to beat. Maybe because it's the oldest one I've had? Generally they are 8-9 years old, while this is closer to the 10-year age statement of the entry Russell's 10.