Balcones True Blue Tequila cask finish

Nose - cheesecake, buttercream frosting, vanilla, orange zest, chocolate, apple, guava, pineapple skin, rich oak, grass, powdered sugar, pine, bell pepper, white pepper, creamed corn, floral and herbal notes, fresh agave, nutmeg, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - orange, chocolate, lemon, pineapple, dusty corn, brown sugar, caramel, rutabaga, apple, vanilla, grass, mint, anise, deep floral and herbal notes, white wine, cinnamon, rich oak, nutmeg, cooked agave, moderate alcohol bite, finishing long with an assortment of citrus, vegetal, and confectionery flavors. Wow, where to start with this one. This whiskey is a shapeshifter. To call it complex would be an understatement. The nose is rich with aromas of orange, chocolate, tropical fruit, vegetal succulent, and cheesecake, which is likely the first time I’ve identified that on any spirit. The palate is a bit like eating one of those chocolate oranges you get at Christmas followed by a big bite of stir fry. There’s a rich sour quality, a bit like white wine, and some telltale cooked agave squeaks in as well. What a treat! I’ve never tasted anything like this before, and I doubt that I will again. This is great whiskey, however the weirdness is going to prevent me from rating this extremely high. It’s really tasty, but definitely something you need to be in the right mood to experience. A massive shout-out to @PBMichiganWolverine for sourcing this bottle for me! It’s one I’m going to cherish for years to come.

This is a knockout, rich and creamy, deep chocolate, creme brulee or sticky buns, palate is Andes mint, butter cream frosting, and a little of the mezcal on the tail end, long lingering finish. Terrific

The nose starts with a rich decadent mix of candy corn, cotton candy, caramel apples, prickly pear cactus then the tequila influence comes in more to balance the sweets with cooked agave, bowling alley smokiness, eucalyptus followed by leather and polished oak with moderate ethanol burn. The taste starts with a thick mouthfeel with caramel apple before a mix of vegetal notes and sweets combine then candied orange peel followed by spices of black pepper, and light oak with medium ethanol burn finishing medium length with candy corn, cooked agave, clay, eucalyptus, prickly pear cactus, leather and light oak spice. Wow, what a difference the tequila cask made compared to the cask strength version. This is a wonderful rich dram that balances those smoky vegetal notes along with corn sweetness that keeps it from getting too bitter or sweet. Big thanks to @PBMichiganWolverine for the generous sample. This is something special and a shame it’s not something readily available.

I’m not a big fan of corn or tequila, but they combine into something amazing in this whiskey. The corn spirit presents itself with a silky texture and a delicate sweetness that is tempered by the herbaceous tequila barrel notes. The creamy aftertaste brings to mind melted vanilla ice-cream from Cornwall, a part of England whose name is 100% unrelated to the 100% corn mashbill. Guaranteed to cure the blues.

Rating: 19/23 What an interesting concept! Tequila and mezcal finishes are exceedingly rare for reasons that I don't really understand. This ups the ante on the tequila finish though by starting with a corn whiskey rather than a malt or bourbon. Oh, make that BLUE corn! So, it's a very bold concept and I'm deathly curious about how it's worked out. N: It's quite a sweet nose with the agave front and center. I get a somewhat musty and lightly dusty vegetation at the front with a big ol' dose of vanilla, lightly wrapped in a maple sweetness. The vegetation doesn't smell rancid or obtrusive in any way and brings in a nice bit of bitterness to balance the whole thing out. There is also, of course, a moderately amount of corn from the base distillate coming out of the dustiness and a definite ethanol presence - though less ethanol than one would expect for a cask strength offering that had barely been aged over a year. The nose as a whole makes me think of a combination of 4 spirits: Balcones Single Malt, Balcones Baby Blue, Clase Azul Reposado, and Don Julio 1942. Considering that, I'd say that Balcones absolutely nailed the marriage of blue corn, tequila, and the Balcones signature taste. The vegetal flavor combined with the general rich sweetness and moderate youth makes me think of the Clase Azul. The dust and big vanilla says Dun Julio. The light, yet slightly funky, dusty corn and mild ethanol represent the blue corn. The sweet maple that pervades Balcones Single Malt really ties it together as an aged Balcones offering. The balance is excellent and the profile is quite interesting. I wouldn't say it's an amazingly complex nose, but it's quite solid. I hope that the palate and finish hold up to the high expectations the nose has set. P: Wow, this is quite something! The tequila flavors hit first with the sweet vanilla and vegetal agave front and center. For a moment, it just tastes like a less sweet Clase Azul Reposado. Then, the musty, dusty wood and grain come in. There's a brief segment where it mostly just burns and is light, but then the dustiness comes back and transitions rapidly from grain to a big cinnamon woodiness and the dram briefly tastes like nothing but a loud, cinnamony bourbon. As I move on to the second sip, the various parts harmonize together more and the journey is less of a roller coaster. There's a bit more bitterness to the vegetation and I'm detecting a really nice tangerine (more on the orange side than the apricot side) note. It took me a minute to identify what it made me think of, but I'm now pretty sure that it's a flavor that I most often get from Irish whiskey. It reminds me a little of the high proof and citric tartness of Redbreast 12 Cask Strength mixed with the sweet, juicy apricot that's in Yellow Spot or maybe even one of the older (16 or 21) Bushmill's. The high proof makes the tangerine quite assertive. It's mouth watering, but also a bit immature tasting as a result because the proof seems to make up a large component of the flavor. Oddly, it reminds me of when I tried Aberlour 12 side by side with Scallywag. The Aberlour had a smoother, but more subdued fruitiness, whereas the Scallywag was more lively, but its fruit was less fully flavored on its own (before including the alcohol bite). It took me a while to decide that I slightly preferred the Aberlour because both were quite tasty profiles. That's a long way of saying that this is the Scallywag and that isn't a bad thing. F: The finish is surprisingly dry. The main flavors here are that rich Clase Azul vegetation (without the sweetness) and a substantial bitter vanilla presence, a lot like if you licked the measuring spoon after pouring vanilla extract into your chocolate chip cookie dough. It's hard to stress enough just how much vanilla is in here, at least for a brief period. There's a big waft of ethanol that melds just a bit with the vanilla in a delightful way that kind of makes me think of a really nice vodka. Late in the finish, the vegetation and vanilla calm down enough for a mellow musty, dusty wood to emerge. This is an easy 17, but I think that a 20 is pushing it. It's tough to rate this because there isn't really anything else I can reasonably compare it with. The complexity here is very good and the balance works in a weird way that feels like a little push one way or the other could send it tumbling. In this expression at least though, the balance certainly works. It kind of takes some of the best elements of Clase Azul Reposado and Don Julio 1942 and stitches them onto a Balcones foundation. And somehow, this is mostly a great success. For that reason, I'm landing on a 19. In terms of pricing, this would be well worth grabbing at $100 or maybe $120, considering the proof. An intriguing and delightful dram!

Balcones is one that has escaped me but has intrigued me. This distillery has been craft-fully creating quality products and pushing traditional whiskey barriers, in my opinion. This sample came from longtime distiller friend and most gracious with his shares and collection @PBMichiganWolverine First few inhalations reveal sweet corn, vanilla and a pinch of tequila. Sweet and earthy. Dried grass clippings, caramel, apples, marshmallows, melon. It only gets sweeter and richer with time. An arrival that is almost undetectable in feel and body. Extremely velvety, round and smooth. The sweetness from the nose carries through onto the palate with vanilla, brown sugar, corn, mandarin oranges. A nice bit of spice keeps the sweetness in checked with black pepper, oak spice, spearmint, rye and dill. As the the palate starts to segue to the finish, almost seamless, the spice fades to a medium length finish leaving a prickly tongue, a mouth of caramel, toasted marshmallows, Luxardo cherries with a bit of drying oak tannins. Of the bourbons and American whiskies that I have tasted, this ranks as one of the best. The balance and depth of nose and flavors is near perfect. Not sickly sweet, overly dry or edgy spiced. The combination of the three sensations perfectly play and pull. I am glad I was able to taste this as this a few and far between (extinct) bottling. Thank you again Pranay for the wonderful sample. [95/100][Tasted: 9/12/20]

I tried a fair few Balcones after the original founder departed and most were poop. Over pooped to be precise.. it's like they just turbo charged a couple of flavour elements and left the dram raw unbalanced and over cooked. Things started to get better with the French Oak release and this one has also matured nicely. Now I'm not a fan of tequila flavour so couldn't drink to much of it but it is a well crafted whiskey. It's like a tequila and a virgin oak casked whiskey merged together. Thanks @PBMichiganWolverine!

Tried a sample of this back in April. Very good. Nose: Vanilla, Caramel, Dried Fruit, Marshmallow, Cooked Agave, Corn, Flowers, Anise, Mint, Pepper, Grass, Apple Palate: Vanilla, Cooked Agave, Cherry, Flowers, Mint, Peach, Pepper, Vegetal Finish: Grass, Vanilla, Cooked Agave, Pepper, Citrus

This is a NYC Drammers Club bottle, which seemed really unique—-Balcones True Blue matured fully in tequila cask and bottled cask strength. At first whiff, you get the classic tequila grassy aroma. The palette is where this really comes alive . It’s deeply complex with a sweetness upfront, followed by a grassy herbal flavor. I feel as if a really robust whiskey was needed to stand up to the tequila without losing its DNA. And this Texan delivers. Unfortunately, I don’t think this is available anywhere ( but maybe the distillery ), but if you do see it—it’s a worthwhile experience.