Nose - rich floral notes, butterscotch, grilled corn, vanilla cream, sweet dough, baked apple, fig, apricot, orange zest, lemon, polished oak, powdered sugar, coffee, grass, chocolate, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, mint, macadamia nut, sweet tobacco, clay, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - apricot, apple, butterscotch, vanilla, chili pepper, rich floral notes, fig, leather, tobacco, cinnamon, grass, allspice, nutmeg, clove, dark chocolate, orange, lemon, pecan, walnut, spearmint, rich oak, moderate alcohol bite, finishing long with ripe fruit, dark chocolate, grassy floral, and baking spice flavors. The nose greets you with a deep floral quality, followed up with grassy citrus and stone fruit aromas. There’s also a combination that reminds me of white chocolate macadamia nut cookies hot from the oven. The palate is extremely rich. More of those floral and citrus notes arrive with chocolate, baking spices, and nuts presenting through the development. The mouthfeel is thick and oily, leading to a satisfyingly long finish that doesn’t veer off in any unpleasant directions. Lost Lantern has delivered another stunner of an Ironroot Republic single cask with this one. I’m not sure whether it’s quite as good as the previous, but it’s pretty close. Like Texas whiskey in general, the Ironroot profile may not be for everyone. It’s rich, fruity, and floral, improving upon the Harbinger release in every way. At around three years old and 120.6 proof (@Distiller’s quoted ABV is incorrect), it’s surprisingly gentle and doesn’t taste particularly young, although I’m thinking the youth is masked by that fruity citrus and chili pepper zing. A bit more age would have probably improved it, but this is outstanding in its current form. Ironroot Republic is a distillery to keep your eyes on. And Lost Lantern continues to release truly exceptional independent bottlings from these lesser known producers. Starting tomorrow, I’ll be reviewing two more Lost Lantern single cask releases.