Little Book Chapter 4: Lessons Honored

Rating: 19/23 N: Spicy, musty wood. A hint of tangerine with a faint faint hint of mineral. Some sweet, dusty corn and a hint of that Beam peanut start coming through. P: Spicy, slightly musty wood. Less full than Booker's Shiny Barrel, but perhaps a bit more complex with all of the mustiness. This is also less aggressive, harsh, and tart than Booker's Country Ham. Maybe I'm tasting the rice with the must and very slight nuttiness. Rather than tangerine, I'm tasting more of lemon and cherry. This is a faint tad oilier and certainly less harsh with more of a full mellowness. This kind of inhabits the rich, fairly sweet, substantially full, and decently spiced (though not hot-spicy) corner of the spectrum. F: The mineral and musty nuttiness carry through. I feel like I should be getting more here, but I'm not really. - Conclusion - I wouldn't say that this is better than the regular Booker's line, but it's kind of more complex and mature with an interesting character to it. I think I prefer this to the Country Ham, but Shiny Barrel is still my favorite so far. This kind of reminds me of Wild Turkey Rare Breed 116.8 - not in its exact flavor, but in how it's a high-proof dram with a funky combination of flavors that makes it taste both young and old. This also a bit reminiscent of Corsair Grainiac in how it adds odd, nuanced flavors. Overall, the lowest I can imagine for this is a 17. Realistically, I think it's in the 18 to 20 range. I think it beats Booker's Country Ham, but I wouldn't say that it's better than Booker's Shiny Barrel. It's some solid competition for Wild Turkey Rare Breed. I think that they're fairly different styles, but quality-wise, I'd say this is pretty close to Booker's Shiny Barrel, which is a 19 that I could imagine going to a 20. In the end, I'm going with a 19 for this one. Thank you @pkingmartin for the sample!

Nose is of ginger spice cookies! Light honey as well. Taste leads with dried cherries or cranberry. Lots of spice on the front of the tongue. Nice oak in the mid palate.

Honey is very noticeable. A little beam nut butter as well. Very good.

Too earthy

Complex. Drinks below its proof point. Soft and tantalizing.