Willett Pot Still Reserve Bourbon

Rating: 15/23 The nose is fruity with cardboard. It has that young sweet moonshine smell. There's a bit of something interestingly herbal in here, though the less appealing flavors beat it out. The palate has some interesting toasty richness going on that comes with some nice sweetness and questionably nice oily nuttiness, but it also has those young and mineral notes. It isn't terribly harsh, but it is persistently moderately harsh - for a time well beyond when most other bourbons stop being harsh. The flavors gradually come out more, revealing more complexity and making me appreciate this more. There are some floral hints that are odd for a bourbon but that I find surprisingly nice. This is better than Buffalo Trace and is drinkable enough, but some alcohol flavor does come through more than I'd like and the flavor is generally on the more mineral side. The floral flavor does help to counter that though with some more notion of scotch coming through. It's interesting and is actually pretty drinkable, but you have to be looking for a less traditional bourbon. It's interesting and easy drinking, though it does have some bit of cardboard to it along with the mineral. I enjoy it pretty well, though it isn't my usual style of bourbon. Still, how can I say no to more scotch notes in my bourbon. The moonshine fruitiness reminds me of a less aggressive Old Forester Signature, but that is just one component of this bourbon. I appreciate this after warming up to it. It's kind of like a Japanese whiskey. I keep coming back to St. George B&E American in terms of odd character of the flavor profile. It's sort of good, but odd in ways that keeps it interesting yet also keep it from being terrific.

It smells like cinnamon, a bit like fruit, and a surprising amount like cheese. I'm Willet fashion, there is a lot of mineral in here. The flavor is kind of bland and is certainly mild. There's some toffee mixed with cinnamon and, a little meat, and some wood. This isn't a great whiskey though. The flavors don't mix nicely and richness is lacking. It tastes too floral for my liking. There is some odd tartness in here but it doesn't taste overly like rye. There's some mint that I'm not a fan of, but it isn't a disaster. I wouldn't sip this but I could use it for mixing. There isn't an obnoxiously pervasive alcohol flavor, but here definitely is a little bit. It tastes young and inexperienced. There's a little bit of something nice going on in here, but it's mixed in with a mess and doesn't really stand out. It certainly isn't worth the price. The caramel is a bit light with some toasty nuttiness and smoke working with it in a somewhat discordant but possibly elegant manner. It's in this weird combination of hedonism, complexity, youth, and discordance. You know, it's pretty good. Not excellent, but worth drinking. There's a bit of a nice apple note with the cherry, but it's not one of the first flavors to appear. For the price, this is a pretty good buy.

Sweet and smooth not as good as the bottle looks

Floral, Spicy, and Rich

Nose: vanilla, caramel, light oak Palette: sweet, caramel, hint of grass, vanilla and light rye spice Finish: sweet and pepper bite. Moderately in length Opens nicely with a splash of water