Balcones FR. OAK Texas Single Malt

N: sweet, hay, powerful P: nose continues into hay and honeysuckle, bit of alcohol punch F: med and sweet Burn factor: low

Dark as heck Nose - well hello sweet oaky goodness. Where have you been? The nose is like some really dark wooden table. Then a jammy note and some possible cherries and berry note. Tobacco, leather, all those older whisky notes. Taste - The flavor is much the same, only turned up to 11. This is shockingly drying, super oaky, and yet couldn't be a more enjoyable oak flavor. I get some of the transitional balcones single malt elements. Cinnamon, kinda funky and burned malt. A bit more sweetness with a drop of water. I get some almost maple like notes and oddly not a lot of bite from the french oak that I'd expect, just a more full and intense oak. Or is there so much french oak spice that I can't separate it from just drying alcohol? If you want a white oak element with the balcones malt, you really can't go wrong with this. once again thanks to matt for the sample. I hate reviewing off just a sample and this might be the one I most hate reviewing from a sample as I would really like to spend a week with this. It's got real potential to move into my higher scores but for now 2.50, firmly above average but I set the bar awfully high on a 3.0. That said I think this one has all the makings of a 3.0 and could be there if it were a bit less drying.

Nose: Deep and intense nose. Burned butter, cognac, plum pudding, baked fig and orange tart, dark almost-burnt Christmas cake. There's a note that isn't smoke but it's reminiscent of something scorched - it's vaguely like a wood-fired cooking stove. Lots of warm (but not hot) spices. With water the nose opens and shows some vanilla but most prominently it showcases the quality of the casks with an aroma of fresh, crisp well-managed barrel. Palate: A no-holds-barred arrival of strong alcohol, hefty baking spices, dark fruitcake, espresso, very dark chocolate and very strong oak tannins. Again there's that phantom almost-but-not-quite smoky presence and a hefty treacle flavour. The texture is medium. With water this whisky really shows its complexity and depth. It gains sweetness, more spice, considerably more fruitiness (of a less baked quality) and changes character in a very pleasant manner. Finish: Medium/long. Baking spices, dark chocolate and prickly baked fruit that slowly subside into a mildly oaky aftertaste. There's a little puff of aromatic smoky spice right at the end. Adding water intensifies the bitter chocolate note in the finish, considerably lengthens it, and a cereal sweetness appears. This is a big, bold and assertive whisky that is also quite stylish and certainly not a simple bludgeon to the senses. The relatively high proof is not overpowering and has surprisingly little burn. It's mellow but not soft or simple. This is more a cutlass than a club, more a cutting wit than a crude tirade. Being much more used to Scottish malt whisky the profile is a little unusual to my palate, but there are similarities. The nose in particular reminds me of very high proof sherried whisky but it has a distinctive nature. That elusive smoke thing is quite individual but at its heart the nose has the dryness of malt rather than the sweetness of corn. Like all really good noses, it keeps evolving and opening in the glass. The palate is demonstrative and has some of the characteristics of rye whisky but really it is its own thing - Texas malt. I think this is relatively young (2-3 years?) and you taste that youth, but you also sense a greater maturity than would be expected. This is a kid who grew up quick. Adding water uncovers malty notes in the palate and personally I preferred it diluted (but then I always taste high-proof whisky both neat and watered). I really enjoyed this whisky and slowly nosed and sipped it for about an hour while watching a film. I don't think there was any Australian allocation for this particular expression but other Balcones whiskies are available here for around AUS$110-140 which is quite reasonable. I must obtain more of their offerings. My thanks to @Soba45 who shared a tasting dram received from @PBMichiganWolverine. Much appreciated, good sirs. "Very Good" : 86/100 (4 stars)