Four Roses 135th Anniversary Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon (2023)

What a great blend! Perfect!

Incredibly good. Palate is dark dark dark, molasses, chocolatey, but still having a characteristic four roses flavor. More oaky than fruity. But no bitter oak at all, just a beautifully balanced pour.

Really delicious. Big caramel and vanilla nose and palate with many great bourbon flavors. This one lives up to the hype.

Nose-The nose is a tad more delicate. It leads with vanilla, creme brulee. I also found red apple skins and a very pleasing musty leather book note the more it sat. You have to work a bit harder to find the nose, but it is a nice one. Palate- wonderful red fruit, apple, ripe red berries (perhaps red raspberries?), more of that creme brulee, but this time not the pudding part, but the burnt sugar crust. This is all covered in chewy caramel. It drifts to a wonderful cigar box, or hanging tobacco note. Palate- medium to long finish. Definately an upward warming. You can taste those red berries and apple notes. The apple turns to apple pie crust. Nicely done! Overall- Well what do you know, Brent Eliot has done it again! After missing the mark for sime in 2022, this is a master's class in blending incredibly good whiskies. The layers of flavor a reminescent of all the things I loved about 2019 LE. The only minor critique is the nose, which was a bit muted and at times hard to find. The palate and finish though erase what the nose lacked. This is a sipping bottle. Go get your best cigar, find a comfy chair, and enjoy for a good long time. One of my favs this year. Definately worth the hunt at its srp and beyond that.

Harsh, tannic spice upfront followed by honey sweetness in the mid-palate. Initial taste detracts from an otherwise great pour.

Thick, dessert-like nose with vanilla, some cherry, burnt sugar. Palate doesn't deliver at quite the same level, but it's still rich, with some caramel, wintergreen, dark fruits, and noticeable oak on the finish. Nice full-bodied mouthfeel. Really nice pour, and improved as it aired. There's a reason I seek this out every year.