Rough Rider Straight Bourbon

Nose - sweet with mild floral notes, high proof on the nose Taste - Sweet and rich, medium bite Aftertaste - Smooth, little bit of heat going down that can be fixed with a small cube

Smells hot, youthful and sweet. Opens with a punch of spice and oak, lingers and the oak rolls around the tongue. A tin like aftertaste develops from the oak. Clove and vanilla are in there, but nothing complex about this one. Needs more time to develop, much better bourbons out there for the price.

Very smooth all the way through, with a smoky peanut finish!

Overcast Sunday. Have the smoker working it’s magic on ribs and corn. Mac ‘n cheese in the oven. Beatles playing on the stereo. Countdown to “Sharknado 6” begins. Now I sit and wait and realize it’s a perfect time for a bourbon. This is a local Long Island whiskey that is sourced and aged in oak barrels (of course) and finished in French oak casks that previously held Long Island Chardonnay which was “rinsed in high proof brandy.” [Batch 19] Distinctive bourbon notes of corn and vanilla start the nose. Red grape notes start working its way though as it opens. Toffee with some rye spice follow, seeping through the opening aromas. As these aromas blend and weave, carnival treats of buttered popcorn and peanuts manifests themselves along with stone fruits (cherry and peach). A surprisingly busy nose. The mouthfeel is medium-light which arrives sweet and spicy. Brown sugar, vanilla, butterscotch with a rye graininess. Towards the finish, grape and peanut butter and corn oil as it fades towards the finish. The finish is slightly drying with some char, oak, rye and dill. Some black pepper and grape notes encase the char and pepper. I didn’t expect much from this bourbon and was caught off guard that it was an enjoyable sipper. The wine finishing definitely rounds the sharpness that would reveal itself otherwise. A good middle of the road whisky that is inoffensive and easy (for a Sunday afternoon) while smoking meats. [85/100][$29][Tasted: 8/19/18]

The first of many bonus samples from this last round of the SDT comes by way of tour member @Scott_E in the form of Rough Rider Straight Bourbon Whisky out of Long Island, NY. Bottled at 45% ABV and is natural color of amber gold and is most likely chill filtered. The nose has distinct notes of red and Concord grapes, peanut brittle and charred oak. Very sweet with the corn notes coming into focus after a few minutes. The wine notes are very much in the foreground at all times. A bit of a cotton candy flavor and faint rye notes, but without any of the dill notes typically associated with rye. Some musty cardboard but not too bad and a quick hit of cherry wood. Grape candy, banana, and at the bottom of the glass there is some potpourri. The palate is straight up peanut butter and jelly on rye. Wow is that weird. It’s a good weird though, quite unique from anything I’ve ever had in the past. A little charred oak and toffee with vanilla. The corn notes are punched way back and the spice from the rye is more dominant with some banana rounding things out. A medium light bodied mouthfeel that’s a bit thin but decent. The finish is medium length with peanuts, oak, rye that turns slightly metallic and a bit floral. With a name like Rough Rider I was expecting some a little, well, rougher. Quite amazing how strong the PB&J notes were. Not great as far as bourbons go, but it’s unique profile continued to hold my attention. This is a 3 star dram, but the sheer oddity of the PB&J profile bumps it up to a 3.25 Cheers