Four Roses Small Batch Select Bourbon

Nose- The higher proof is certainly noticeable here with a bit of astringency. Then there is brown sugar and dark pit fruit. Plum? Body- Cherry and plum with the brown sugar, sweet tea and classic spiciness of FR small batch. However, there is a richer, thicker mouthfeel and a bit of olive brine. Finish- Surprisingly light but the olive brine lingers a bit. Overall an exciting addition to the line. This is very nice straight and I look forward to trying it in an Old Fashioned. I’m not sure how I feel about the olive brine yet.

caramel, maple syrup, warm, pleasant burn. this is nice.

Perhaps my new favorite Four Roses offering (it’s a battle with the single Barrel which is cheaper). The bourbon offers spice without drinking hot. I’m newer to whiskey, but of the bottles I’ve tried, this bottle provides a great balance of spice and a milk chocolate sweetness. Good levels of viscosity.

Everyone who's a fan of bourbon recognizes their iconic logo. This bottle, the first new bourbon from the distillery in a long time, is their "fourth rose" (alongside the standard yellow label, Small Batch, and Single Barrel releases). My wife and I shared most of a bottle during the course of a 10-day road trip through Kentucky, Indiana, and Illinois, and found it to be a chameleon in character, changing from day to day and glass to glass. My first experience came when nosing it directly from the bottle, and that may showcase this bourbon's tremendous potential the best. These early scents included dense maple syrup, molasses, stewed fruit, a hint of oak, and craisins. However, I found that it was hard to replicate this depth of sensation when poured out into a glass, where I had to fight through considerably more ethanol only to run headlong into a whorl of rye spice, heady, musky florals, honey, and more citrus fruit. On one night, I could even swear I got a sweetened soy sauce impression from it. I preferred drinking this in a rocks glass rather than a glencairn, which is a rarity among whiskies, almost all of which benefit from the latter. On some sips, it feels like a classic, high-quality, albeit slightly youthful bourbon, with honey and caramel coating the mouth with a full, creamy texture. Occasionally, that darker syrup lingers, while other tastes reveal high doses of rye spice. A few of the more evanescent notes glimpsed from time to time include craisins and unsweetened chocolate. There's an unusually low amount of vanilla flavors for a bourbon. The rye is the star of the show on this finish. In fact, it's so pronounced that it almost becomes hoppy or bitter. At one point, it reminded me of the bitterness of biting into a cherry pit or grape seed by mistake while eating the fruit. The F yeast mint is here in spades as well, for better or worse. At this price point, I'd recommend going for Russell's Reserve Single Barrel or Bulleit Barrel Strength.