Old Elk Single Barrel Straight Bourbon

A&B store pick. Old Elk has gotten some press for its wheated profile being a poor man's Pappy. I would say that is probably some over praise, but was interested to give this one a try in any case. Nose is definitely a sweet wheat presence. It may sound odd, but it's almost sweet Sunday morning bakery stuff here. First sip has a really nice full presence. Corn mash, vanilla, and maybe a touch of honey on the edges. Parts of this dram almost conjure up sweet honey glazed corn muffins. The finish brings a little heat that catches you a bit off guard given the general smooth profile on the front end. Overall I find this to be a really nice pour. Not sure it is banging down the next great pappy door, but still very nice.

Big Red Liquors selection, 107.2 proof. Like most custom additions on this app, I had to choose between a bunch of duplicates, but this was the closest to true. Remember, you're not special. I've avoided the standard blended offering because blended bourbons are a waste of time. I didn't think that the same distillery would do single batches, let alone single barrels and barrel picks. A lot of stuff on paper makes this sound like a good pick, at a good price, and from my birth state, too. Let's see. The nose has great rye spice, closer to the mint and grass, with good classic amounts of barrel vanilla and caramel as well. It's not very unique so far, but that's usually par for the course for a good bourbon; sticking to tradition usually pays off. There is a decent harsh nose burn, but the proof is high enough for this to be expected without being alarming. The initial taste is that of raw distillate, which I usually taste and associate with brandy or grape. This doesn't last, though, as the rye spice starts to build high, peak through the finish along with a moderate burn, before sugary, candy notes fade along with air in the mouth. The oak is nice, but tastes too raw for my preference. In reality, it's likely only as low as a level 3 char, but it tastes like it could be a 2, maybe even a 1 (I have almost no experience with chars of those levels). It seems like a longer age would solve most of the dislikes I have, but this hits a good minimum level that I still enjoy. Honestly, this has the makings of a good, no-nonsense bourbon, but it does taste like it came out of CO. What I mean by that is, if all the same process for this particular batch and bottle were done in KY, using ingredients and nuances local to that area, it would be probable that I would enjoy it more. Sure, it may just be a placebo knowing that, but given that myself and very many others have probably not had or even seen other whiskey offerings from CO, means that we have to guess and judge based on no empirical evidence of any kind. Worth it, yes, but not enough to explore a different barrel, nor does not stand enough on it's own for the blended version to be explorable.