Balcones Lineage Texas Single Malt

Sourdough and banana nose with honey and wine on the palate. Notes of Texas craft whiskey throughout

Not for me. Too much like soil

You’ve gone too far this time Balcones. It’s one thing to challenge the old guard by making excellent Texan whiskey, but to produce something that could pass for a young Balvenie is tantamount to cultural appropriation. And to price it at $40 a bottle risks sparking an anti-dumping complaint to the WTO for unfair warm-weather subsidies. So by all means tempt us with aromas of honey and orange tea on the nose. Seduce us with fruity orange flavors in the mouth and a delicate oak spice. Keep us on the hook with a sweet syrupy aftertaste. But don’t think this “appreciation” of Scottish traditions will go unanswered. Perhaps you’re unfamiliar with the movie Local Hero, where the inhabitants of a small Scottish village engage in a battle of wills with a Houston oilman. Spoiler alert: they mess with Texas and win. This round goes to you Texas, but keep an eye on your brisket market. I can already hear them firing up the barbecues of revenge in Scotland.

Nose – ok I’m getting a bit of a scotch note here. Refill casks with citrus and some pineapple and a good bit of oak. The oak here however is a second fill or so bourbon cask like element. Taste – Very fruity, light, tropical fruits, a touch of salt, light wood, dry but not offensively so on the tongue. This is very much reminding me of a 10-15-year-old speyside or highland fruity light malted whisky from refilled bourbon casks (though could have first fill in the mix). There’s some bite from the oak casks and it’s a bit more drying as I sip. The finish had herbal spices and some lemon grass elements. Oh, a touch of menthol just showed up on the finish. I also might change the herbal idea to tea, green tea. Overall, I get ZERO Texas notes here. I frankly was confused as I started this blind and quickly started to wonder how in the heck it was a Texas whisky. I like it and I think this could pass as a 100-150-dollar scotch. Not one I’d be happy about, but I could see it. 60-80 bucks is about where I’d guess that value is here, but I’d rather it be less. The more I go back to this pour the less I am impressed. I guess as that shock value fades. Anyway, another thanks to Matt and another Texas whisky I’m impressed with. We’re going 2.0 here. It’s honestly an average whisky but let’s be real the average whisky these days is pretty tasty and that’s exactly what this is. There is something to be said about the cool factor of this really being like a scotch, but I can't bump the score over just that.

On the nose I get vanilla frosting, red wine or a little red wine vinegar. Very nice. ....on the pallet, caramel maybe, with a hint of red wine and sweet.

Hard hit with dried fruit and mild alcohol burn neat- diffused with water down to 45% and smokiness really comes out

Caramel, peaches, amazing neat and also in a highball!

Obviously a very similar taste profile to the classic Balcones single malt: raisin and a bit of caramel on the nose; plum and a huge cinnamon/spice kick in the palate; a medium finish with oak and bonfire. The flavor dies away easier when you add ice or water compared to the classic single malt, but that’s what you expect with a lower ABV.