Ironroot Harbinger (115 Proof)

After wading through the whiskeys at thd Crystal Ballroom, i spied her. The color was warm n dark giving me hopes of coffee and deep flavors but alas! I fould none of that here. It was sweet and girly. This whiskey is an ellusive and tricky witch who promised me salvation in her color but turned me into a newt with disappointment. Well, I got better.

cognac sweet, cherry, candied

Nose brings brown sugar, molasses, dried apricot, furniture varnish, barrel char, cashew nut, maple, an appealing smoked oak note, and a hint of pencil eraser. Ethanol present thooughout which was a bit of a bummer since the aroma was otherwise enjoyable. Palate offers the brown sugar and wood varnish from the nose along with apple, vanilla, cinnamon, candy corn, smoke, and flan. Almost no mid-palate at all; rushes to the finish. Flavors are not well integrated and clash with one another. Finish brings some slight improvement in the form of cotton candy, grape must, pink peppercorn, clove, molasses, sour apple, and oak which turns toward bitter astringency. A long slow peppery/spicy burn lingers after everything else fades. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, but pretty grainy which unfortunately I have found to be a trend with Texas whiskey. While this is held is decently high regard in whisky circles in my area, I found it to be kind of weird and disjointed with plenty of off notes. Not the best example of the Texas style, as Balcones has several expressions which blow this out of the water. Like your typical teenager, this is young, weird, and unruly. At 69.99, it’s extremely hard to justify a rebuy.

Potentially my favorite whiskey of all time

Man, the nose! This one has one of the best first sniffs I’ve ever had… Picked up at Total Wine on a recommendation. First sip was not a perfect match for the nosing but still outstanding. Really enjoyed this one.