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Reisetbauer Carrot Eau-de-Vie
Distiller Score 96
Raw carrots, roasted carrots, steamed carrots--all of these aromas and tastes come to mind upon encountering this spirit. You'll find this "carrot-ness" rounded out by fennel greens, hops, and burnt walnuts. The palate is a bit more decadent with flavors of caramel, clotted cream, vanilla, and deep-roasted carrot drizzled with honey and hazelnuts (though, of course, the spirit is not sweet). This is a truly fascinating product that is worth your attention.
Reviewed by Omari Wheat
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Charbay Brandy No. 83
Distiller Score 97
Quite aromatic on the nose with fruit, especially golden raisins, melon, and red fruit. You can smell lightly toasted French oak as well enticing you to take a sip. The flavor of the brandy is fruit-filled with the age of the brandy revealing itself in more of a dried fruit (dates, raisins, cherry) profile and warming gentle baking spices peppered throughout. The brandy is decidedly soft and easy to drink with a long lasting finish of more dried fruit. A real treat to taste so purchase if you see it.
Reviewed by Stephanie Moreno
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St Agnes XO Imperial 20 Year Old Brandy
Distiller Score 86
Full-bodied with fruits rising off the spirit, the brandy wastes no time in calming the nerves. Thick and somewhat sweetly wooded, the wood becomes roasted and turns dark. Fruit and Christmas cakes fill the nose, with nuts and fruits softly wafting by. The palate reveals the brandy to be less thick than expected, still heavy, but not cloying. Sweet sugar boxes, stone fruits and oranges rise with as the roasted wood turns to reveal treacle and warm nuts, raisin toast with a light spiced honey spread. The finish is long, sweet and tarting, spices and vanilla tingling the back end.
Reviewed by Marcus Parmenter
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Charbay Brandy No. 89
Distiller Score 93
For a brandy that's spent 24 years in oak, Charbay No. 89 retains retains remarkable fruit character. With hints of bruleed sugar on the nose, it unfolds on the palate with notes of pear, jasmine, and vanilla. A gentle woodsiness comes out on the finish. This is a finely balanced brandy that leaves one eager for another sip.
Reviewed by Jacob Grier
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Bass and Flinders Ochre Aged Grape Spirit
Distiller Score 77
The nose begins with a hint of dry pepper, followed by resinous woods and some early stage rancio. The wood becomes roasted, and soon gives way to small nut and fruit sweetness with apricots and nectarines being the most predominant. On the palate, we see the beginnings of fruits cakes, with the apricots and nectarines returning in addition to oils beginning to seep in as the resinous wood returns. The brandy turns grappa-like, then hits the ground with earthen notes that are out of place by well received. The finish is long, the oils leaving midway and the spirit finishes dry and tannic.
Reviewed by Marcus Parmenter