This is the red wine finished division of my barrel finished bourbon bracket. This was a blind taste test between Slaughterhouse Straight Edge and Hooker’s House 7/21. Golf claps will be accepted but are not required. Both are good, and value/dollar, this one definitely wins (less than one third the price of a good Hooker’s). But if you have more dollars than sense, the Hooker’s House is where you want to go. Nose for this guy won, but I greatly prefer the body of my Hooker’s. And the finish on my Hooker’s was truly spectacular. In the category of overall enjoyment, I enjoy Hooker’s more. This ends the double entendre section of the review. Next blind taste test will be Hooker’s House v Bardstown. The tasting of Straight Edge: The bottle doesn’t tell you what type of finish this has, and it’s borderline deceptive on the fact that it’s finished at all. You want to assume the best about the distilleries who produce the products you like, but when the front of this bottle has “Straight Edge Bourbon Whiskey” boldly on the front and “finished and bottled by Splinter Group” on the back in tiny letters, it makes you wonder if there was any intent. No, it’s not “straight bourbon whiskey,” and it is finished in Cabernet casks, though you’d have to look it up to know that. If there was intent, I’d discourage against it in the future. It’s a solid product, and a barrel finish done well is something to be proud of, not something to hide on the back of the label. If there was no intent, and y’all just go for the minimalist look, cool. You do you. Nose is intriguing. Much like Boondocks did for port, this nose seems to have been completely dominated by the red wine influence. I like Cabernet so I don’t mind, but it’s strange to sniff this and know you’re in for a bourbon. Body definitely tastes like red wine, but a new flavor creeps in. I raided my wife’s spice cabinet to make sure I was right about this: it’s almond extract. It’s too intense to be a natural almond flavor, and IMHO it’s too intense to be enjoyable. There’s also caramel, yeast, and vanilla, but that almond flavor takes the reigns from about halfway through the body to the end of the finish. That finish makes me want less. There’s cinnamon and sugar, but the almond extract is the main player for sure. I’m finding that the longer I try to hold on the Cabernet flavors onto the body, the shorter I can make the almond on the finish. When done this way, the overall impression of the finish is raw dough for a cinnamon roll. It’s a very gentle drink, with next to no heat throughout. I guarantee you there are people out there who will love this. I can’t say it’s poorly made, but it’s not where I want to be when drinking a bourbon. It’s unique enough that I’d recommend anyone who is into barrel finishes to give it a shot. I’d also say anyone really into Cabernet could use this as a gateway bourbon if needed. If you’re super into almonds for some reason, this has the potential to be your favorite whiskey. I won’t shy away from making this a “man down” in the near future, and I won’t avoid Slaughterhouse‘s other products because I really can taste the talent here. Still, when it comes to Straight Edge, I won’t buy again.