Jefferson's Tropics Aged in Humidity

Tastes hotter than the ABV

Interesting addition to the lineup. I like it more than the Ocean but maybe not as much as Presidential Reserve. @jdjmad @Kyle-Metes-Randolph @Zslug

I’ve always put Jeffersons on a pedestal, but in recent years I’ve been disappointed in the Jefferson Manhattan, oceans and the Marian McClain. Jefferson’s Tropics was sitting on the shelf, one bottle left. I had not seen it before. Did a Google and ended up, leaving it and walking out but before I pulled out of the parking lot, I convinced myself to go back in and take a chance. This bottle gave me faith in Jefferson’s and distillers trying unique methods. At 104 proof, I almost finished the bottle when I first opened it. A very tasty easy drinker, I wish there was more produced, and it was easier to find. Great bottle if you can get your hands on it. 

Not often do I get excited and impressed about having found something that I was passively looking for, but this hit that part of my brain earlier today. After this released, I wrote it off to never be found, let alone in Ohio, but there it was, on the "regular" shelf, and at MSRP! I don't care who you are, if you're shopping in the American whiskey asile and you see the word "Singapore," your interest will be piqued. Plus, knowing and having sampled many, if not all the Jefferson's line of products, I've always been interested in the different finishing processes they've used, especially the location-based ones from the Ocean line. The idea of playing with the environment on the aging process is such a unique, genius breakaway from the safe, almost milk-toast weather of Kentucky. With the Ocean barrels proving these environment changes are noticeable, the humid and much hotter finish in Singapore sounds like both a safe and delicious entry into the Tropics series. With the added finishing time in the much hotter environment, I would expect a much darker color from the accelerated barrel interaction, but instead it's somewhere between sherry and copper with a touch of light gold. The nose is nutty and full of dark caramel, with an approachable ethanol and a touch of cinnamon. There's also a strange sourness after repeated scents, but is also somehow raw and sweet, like drinking cooking sherry with a sugar-coated glass. The initial flavor digs well into the gums, and becomes spicy quite quickly. Actually, the spice is quite aggressive, like sucking on a cinnamon stick dipped in pure high wine while chewing through some Red Hots. This calms down after a short time, while light caramel and young corn begin taking over. This continues through the finish, which is dry, but fades very quickly. It really only occurs to me now that, although expectations for this were high, the simplicity behind it makes it easier to detect the differences from the finishing process. The intensity from the Singapore weather created a whiskey that's both hot and aggressive (fitting for cask strength drinkers), but would also benefit greatly from a couple ice cups to cool it down and unlock a few more layers. I still think this is a great first entry for the Tropics series, but the premium is too high for flavors that can be found in similarly priced products, some of which with much higher age statements, if you take the time to search.