Leadslingers Minuteman Single Malt American Whiskey

This spirit is incredibly light in color and the flavor profile is unpleasant. It leads with a musty caramel note on the nose and pallet, with a chemically distinct taste following. It is almost like taking a taste of expired caramel from a dollar store. Hopefully this company will produce something terrific, but unfortunately, Minuteman is a swing and a miss.

Made in Moore, OK, veteran owned. Notes from the bottle: "Leadslingers Spirits proudly presents Leadslingers Minuteman. Distilled in the heartland of America, this 120 proof single malt American whiskey offers subtle hints of toffee and malt in a mellow presentation that is sure to impress. Just as the bold and heroic colonial Minutemen were cornerstones to the founding of this great nation, we hope Leadslingers Minuteman is a cornerstone to your whiskey choices."

Nose is strong butterscotch that jumps right out of the dram. After it sits for minute I get a musty note on top of the butterscotch. On the palate it is initially the same butterscotch and toffee but develops into an odd sweet mustiness that lasts into the finish. A little salted caramel too that also comes out on the nose after a few sips. The finish is the same sweet butterscotch with salted caramel and toffee, but an odd musty note lingers that I don't care for. A bit of water tames the alcohol and mustiness but just leaves it very sweet. Still reminds me of the sugar free butterscotch candies my grandfather always had. A bit more water (it's bottled at 60% so you have room to play) just ruins it and brings more moldy mustiness out. My least favorite part is that after the finish fades there is still a very long secondary finish that is a moldy mustiness I really hate. I wanted to like this more since it has an awesome name, is local (Made in Moore, OK; I'll post the label verbage in another note), and owned by a group of fellow vets. Supposedly the same guys that have a clothing line. It's ok, but that odd as hell finish just didn't do it for me. Still worth a try if you can get your hands on it.