Chattanooga Whiskey 91

Honey, caramel, woody, slight smokey on the note sweet and hint of spice on the taste. Its a decent whiskey!

Oak all the way with nice finish. Didn’t get a ton of notes but was tasty

I've had the 111 and really like it - it's killer for the price. Let's see how the little brother stacks up. Purchased to do a finish in my Ten30 barrel, but this taste is neat before any fiddling. Just an FYI, I'm finishing 600ml of 91 and 200ml of 111 in a barrel that previously aged an Ardbeg Islay, which should make for an interesting dram when it's aged. The nose is caramel, nougat and slight ethanol. The alcohol notes aren't too close to the surface, so the nose is actually quite pleasant. There is a youth to this whiskey's aroma that says it hasn't spent an eternity in wood, but it doesn't have the same effect as an under aged bourbon. Sweet, slightly spicy and a bit hot are what I gather from sticking my nose in the NEAT tasting glass. On the palate this isn't sweet, but neither is it overly spicy or bitter. There's a good level of barrel char, a sweet brown sugar foundation, some sour cherries and a dry, oaky finish. The malted barley gives this a different personality than a young bourbon, but it's not scotch-like either. It's something else. Something halfway. Mostly this is notable for its lack of corn influence. The sweet corn sugars found in bourbon take a back seat here to dry oak, wood charcoal, sour cherries, and rye spices that manifest as dark baker's chocolate, almonds and roasted walnuts. There's clearly some corn in the flavor profile but to my taste buds its more like an under-roasted corn cooked in the husk. Its tasty and good, but not a sweet dram. This loves sweet vermouth. It's a great base for a Manhattan, especially with a solid cocoa base like Cocchi Vermouth di Torino supplies. Really nice in a mixed cocktail. Very good in an Old Fashioned as well. Great affinity to smoke too, if you're in the camp that likes to pull out all the stops. This isn't going to displace the deep cherry flavor and solid presence of its Chattanooga 111 bigger brother, but its very approachable and respectable on its own. This is a good dram and a solid choice under $40.