Bushmills Black Bush

Ah, Bushmills. The proverbial forgotten middle brother of the major Irish whiskey trio. On par with Jameson and Tully, and at times, the best of the three. Yet it gets a fraction of the love and repute. Here, we have the Black Bush, which is basically Bushmill's answer to Jameson Black Barrel. Let's see how it stacks up. Nose: Big on the fruit. Pear, apple, strawberry, raspberry, and orange. Vanilla, honey, frosting, malt, and toffee. A sweet one for sure, with very pronounced sherry notes. More malty than grainy, but I'm still getting some of the cereal notes. Shortbread cookie; an Irish standard. Slightly metallic. Not a trace of alcohol. Palate: More fruit. Pear, apple, apricot, and orange. Still some of the red fruit. Cranberry, raspberry, strawberry. More of the vanilla, honey, and frosting. Some caramel and graham cracker. Shortbread cookie, malt and toffee. Walnut, cashew, and almond. Still slightly metallic, but it's even less prevalent here. Some cinnamon and baking spice. Finish: Fairly short. Red fruit lingers, until it is replaced by cinnamon, baking spices, and oak. Oak presence is at its strongest during the finish. And it's over in a flash. I've always liked this one. I think this one can go toe-to-toe with Jameson Black Barrel. At every level. And it's a few bucks cheaper to boot. Both are decent, youngish, sherry cask-aged Irish whiskies that are easy on the wallet. Like the Black Barrel, this gets a 3.5 for me. At $35, it's a solid value. Other than the low ABV, short finish, and slight metallic notes, there's a lot to like here. It's sweet, easy-drinking Irish blend that seems to me to have a respectable malt-to-grain ratio. Good offering from Bushmills. Keep these guys in mind as St. Paddy's Day draws near.

Quintessential Irish whiskey, prefer this to Jameson. Sweet, touch of vanilla, easy to drink neat.

Blind tasting

Nose: Lots of vanilla and honey. A little caramel and maple hiding in the background. Palate: Very smooth and nice creamy mouthfeel. Initially raisins and dried apricots. Then some nice grainy/cereal notes come through. Overall not super complex but very smooth and tasty. Finish: Typical long grainy Irish whisky finish. One of my favourite things about Irish whisky and this is no exception. This is also VERY delicious in an Old Fashioned and at its price point is a fantastic cocktail whisky.

노즈: 옅은 과실(씻어놓은 사과의 향) 가까이갈수록 바닐라향 팔레트: 과일꽃의 옅은 상큼함 옅은 단맛, 약간의 스파이시함과 몰트의 맛(견과류맛) 복합적, 매우 부드러움 피니쉬: 옅은 나무의 향, 꽃잎을 먹은듯한 옅은 향과 맛