Red Saw Bourbon Whiskey

This is a bourbon distilled by me. 48% abv, aged in smaller barrels, and depending on batch number could be 10G (early batches) or up to 30G (later batches). I used Barrel Mill char 3 barrels and a 51/34/15% corn/rye/barley mashbill. It was fully understood (by me) and conveyed, in detail, that both the Red Saw rye and bourbon were young small barrel aged whiskies. As such, you don't achieve much esterification and "aging" on oak. Instead its more of an "infusion" of oak flavors over a shorter period of time. Less refined, less mature, and disjunct between whiskey and barrel flavors. An unfortunate necessary choice for a young distillery. This bourbon was aged in 53G barrels along side the smaller ones, unfortunately it did not see commercial release prior to the distillery closing in 2020. Batch 1 Tasting Notes: -Nose: corn, spicy, hot ethanol -Mid Pallate: corn, black pepper, ethanol -Finish: subtle oak, sweet cherry, fleeting.

This bottle was part of a Bourbon Share even on a family campout. It was purchased from a backwoods liquor store in South Carolina and came with a great story! Unfortunately, the first sip was a stinging ethanol blast followed by a very char flavored finish. Subsequent sips seemed to be a little less astringent, or maybe my entire mouth had gone numb from the assault. I’ll report back if I have a chance to try this one again.

Nothing jumps out on the nose. Maybe a hint of fruit and vanilla. Flash burn on first sip was unexpected. Didn’t last long and was followed up by a bitterness with a sting char taste. Lingered a bit but heat died quickly. Splash of water did soften the burn and made it more palatable. Black pepper and char are prevalent throughout. Not bad but not a top 10 for me.