COWS Bulleit Barrel Pick “Fruity and the Yeast” Review

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Sunday Evening Review

 

On this special Mother’s Day Edition of Sunday Evening Review I go over the latest barrel pick that the COWS are about to receive. The Bulleit Barrel Pick named “Fruity and the Yeast – A COWS Tale As Old As Time.” I will go over this latest pick to find out if it is a fairy tale bourbon or maybe it will just be a horror story.

 

Make sure you put in the comments any bottles that you would like me to review.

 

NAME – Bulleit Bourbon Single Barrel “Fruity and the Yeast”

 

PROOF – 104

 

AGE – 7 years

 

COLOR – light maple syrup (1.4 tawny on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)

 

NOSE – Fruit cocktail with notes of pears, cherries, peach, ripe strawberry, and white grape. Also, amber honey, toasted oak, and Nilla wafers.

 

TASTE – The fruit bomb continues from the nose. A lot of red fruits of strawberry, cherries, and red raspberry. Also, a canned pear win syrup shows up with the red fruit. There is also a yeast roll with honey butter and a little cinnamon.

 

FINISH – I would call this a medium finish. The cinnamon, toasted oak and the yeasty notes hang around until the end.

 

REVIEW – This is a very fruity whiskey and is uplifting and very easy to drink without be a 1 or 2 note wonder that you usually characterize with “easy to drink” bourbon. This has a lot of different fruits that burst at different times on the palate. Then the yeasty notes helps balance out the sweet fruit. If you are lucky enough to get this bottle my Memorial Day, my guess is most won’t make it to the 4th of July. An absolutely perfect summer bourbon to enjoy.

 

FINAL COMMENTS – This bourbon is using the “E” mash bill which is considered the low rye mash bill at 75% corn, 21% rye and 4% barley. This is versus the “B” mash bill which is 68% corn, 28% rye and 4% barley. With Bulleit just like with Four Roses there are 2 mash bills and 5 yeast strains. This pick uses the “3” yeast strain which is called appropriately their strawberry flavored yeast.

 

I will say for those that are consistent acquirers of COWS barrels picks this one is different from most of the barrels we have gotten that concentrates more on darker notes. This one is brighter and sweeter than most of the barrels we have done. Even the Woodford Reserve Double Oaked we did was sweet but still had a lot of darker notes. The timing of this coming out is unquestionably perfect as I predict many pours of this bourbon being enjoyed out on the deck this summer.

 

This pick will be made available for reservations this coming Saturday, May 14th, at 10 am.  The link will be posted on the Facebook group COWS page. As always, I don’t expect this to last very long so be ready right at 10am.

You can look at all the past Sunday Evenings Reviews and I would still love to hear what your personal reviews are from each of the whiskies reviewed.

Watershed Distillery Barrel Proof OHLQ Barrel Pick Review

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Sunday Evening Review

 

What’s better than a scavenger hunt? Well I could name a lot of things to be honest but a treasure hunt is something different. Watershed Distillery partnered with OHLQ to release 6 different barrel picks at barrel proof. The hunt will begin Monday, May 2nd at “select liquor stores throughout the state.” I was fortunate enough to taste all 6 and I will have comments on those later in my final comments section but I am doing a full review on what my guess will be the most sought after bottle of the bunch. The bottle that is named, “Ohio Dutch Apple” that comes in at a robust 140.6 proof. Let’s see if it is as good as grandma’s apple pie or will it be like drinking grandpa’s gasoline.

 

Make sure you put in the comments any bottles that you would like me to review.

 

 

NAME – Watershed Single Barrel Bourbon Whiskey Barrel Strength – OHLQ Ohio Dutch Apple

 

PROOF – 140.6

 

AGE – 4.3 years

 

COLOR – caramel drizzle (1.5 auburn, polished mahogany on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)

 

NOSE – Not going to tell you there isn’t ethanol on the nose, but I have had much more in other pours. I was quickly able to move paste the alcohol and get to caramelized bread. Reminds me of a dessert my mom made that was called monkey bread that had caramel, cinnamon, pecans and apples in a yeasty bread. I also get a slight chocolate chip note and vanilla also.

 

TASTE – No doubt that you must pull up your big boy or girl pants on when you drink this. Especially the first sip the ethanol is powerful. Once your palate acclimates to the high proof then you get the charred oak, chocolate hot cocoa, red delicious apple, roasted pecan, dark caramel, roasted coffee and cinnamon.

 

FINISH – I would call this a long finish. Chocolate, pecan, oak stick around and some black pepper shows up.

 

REVIEW – This bottle did give me a lot more than what you anticipate with a Haz Mat bottle. The proof is obviously evident, but I have had hotter tasting Bookers that are 14 proof points lower. This gives a very desserty feel with the chocolate and caramel mixing with the apples and pecan. This is a good pour that may be better with a few drops of water or over ice to beat back some of the ethanol and open up the other notes.

 

FINAL COMMENTS – Really appreciate Watershed Distillery to be invited to evaluate all these bottles. Of the 6 bottles, 5 are using the new mash bill of 3 grains with 22% rye with one bottle using the original 5 grain mash bill. They sampled through 15 barrels to end up deciding on these 6. Here is the list of bottles with short tasting notes and information on the other bottles:

 

  • Confectioner’s Cask – 126.3 proof – 4.3 years – I got a very quick but interesting powdered sugar note at the very beginning. Then a very balanced pour with caramel and rye spice playing ying and yang. This was probably my favorite or the next one Bourbon Buckeye.
  • Bourbon Buckeye – 126.2 proof – 4.3 years – Peanut Butter and chocolate like the name suggest. This rivaled Confectioner’s Cask as my favorite
  • Malt Shop – 130.7 proof – 4.5 years – I think for most this will be your absolute favorite or you will hate it. Very malty with rye spice. Reminded me of some Balcones Single Malt that I have had.
  • Rich Lemon Pie – 128.3 proof – 4.5 years – This name didn’t fit for me as I didn’t get any citrus until maybe at the very very end and it was barely noticeable. I even asked others I was there with to just make sure I hadn’t lost it and they agreed. Had some rye spice and vanilla and little chocolate. Least favorite of the 3 grain mash bill bottles.
  • Crème de la Crème Brulée – 121.49 proof – 5 years – This is from the only remaining barrel created from its original five-grain mash bill. This to me is a nostalgic pick as this reaffirmed why they changed mash bills. Again, this is a personal opinion as there were others in the group that loved it. If you were a fan of the 5 grain bottles that Watershed produced in the past, then jump on it because it is a last of a kind.

 

Couple dates and things to keep for your calendar.

 

May 2nd these bottles hit the OHLQ Agency shelves. If you want to try all six you can attend a special dinner at Watershed Kitchen + Bar on Wednesday, May 11th. Tickets to the dinner include a sampling of all single barrel bourbon offerings and the option to buy up to four of the six expressions in the bottle shop.

 

To purchase tickets to the dinner, please visit Watershed’s OpenTable Experience page

To find out more check it out here – Watershed Distillery

You can look at all the past Sunday Evenings Reviews and I would still love to hear what your personal reviews are from each of the whiskies reviewed

The Mattie Gladden Bourbon Review

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Sunday Evening Review

 

This week we venture to French Lick, Indiana to take a taste of The Mattie Gladden from The Spirits of French Lick Distillery. There are some really interesting aspects to this bourbon but let’s find out if those aspects make it a good tasting bourbon.

 

Make sure you put in the comments any bottles that you would like me to review.

 

NAME – The Mattie Gladden Straight Bourbon Whiskey

 

PROOF – 103

 

AGE – 4 years

 

COLOR – toasted corn bread (1.3 russet muscat on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)

 

NOSE – The nose is of a well-crafted fruit salad with whiffs of peach, cherry, blackberry, and apple. It is difficult to nose anything of fruit but a little of cinnamon and toasted oak but this is a fruit bomb on the nose.

 

TASTE – Unlike the nose the rye spice comes front and center along with anise, and herbal notes. The fruit doesn’t disappear with notes of dried apricot and Red Delicious apple.

 

FINISH – I would call this a long finish. In a twist of the norm, the sweetness of caramel comes at the finish along with the rye spice hanging on. I also get some cinnamon and roasted coffee.

 

REVIEW – Really interesting pour with that fruit basket bomb on the nose that screams summer. The palate gives you something else where the rye comes forward and adds interest and leaving just enough fruit. The real twist is the caramel sweetness coming at the finish which is almost always a first taste on any bourbon. Really complex and interesting bourbon especially for 4 years in the barrel.

 

FINAL COMMENTS – I really think Spirits of French Lick is an under the radar powerhouse distillery. Really doing some interesting stuff with different grains. I don’t know how they are going to continue to be a secret for very much longer as they continue to put very quality spirits.

 

A little confession as this is a store pick from Papa Joe’s in Richmond, Indiana. The normal Mattie Gladden is a bottled-in-bond 100 proofer that was I have seen gets just as good of reviews. Hate doing a store pick but wanted to get this out for everyone to know about.

 

Mashbill on this is interesting with 55% corn, 35% rye and 10% Victory malt. The also use 2 separate yeast strains. One is their “house yeast” and then a brandy yeast which no doubt explains the fruity notes on the nose. They go into the barrel at 105 proof and use a lighter the normal char of a number 2 char.

 

The naming of Mattie Gladden is to pay homage to a famous 19th century madam of a house of ill repute. Her popular bordello on Salem, Indiana’s  Main Street, catered to lots of travelling businessmen, men of the town and even included the showman P. T. Barnum which is rumored that Mattie Gladden was Barnum’s mistress.

 

To find out more check it out here – Spirits of French Lick

You can look at all the past Sunday Evenings Reviews and I would still love to hear what your personal reviews are from each of the whiskies reviewed

Old Forester 1920 Prohibition Style Review

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Sunday Evening Review

 

Since starting to do the Sunday Evening Review in 2020 I have reviewed all different kinds of bourbons and to my surprise when looking through my review history I have never reviewed Old Forester 1920. That gets solved today as this is consistently a bottle that whiskey lovers rank as one of their favorites. Let’s find out if we should follow the crowd or go down a less traveled path.

 

Don’t forget to post in the comments any whiskey you would like me to review in the future.

 

NAME – Old Forester 1920 (Prohibition Style)

 

PROOF – 115 Proof

 

AGE – non-age stated

 

COLOR – worn football (1.7, burnt umber on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)

 

NOSE – The traditional Old Forester chocolate is up front and center. Also, dark fruits like stewed plums, raisins, Bing cherries, and fig newton. Also, dark roast coffee and charred oak.

 

TASTE – Chocolate follows from the nose along with a stronger presence of barrel char. Dark roasted coffee, black cherry, dark brown sugar, and sweet tobacco.

 

FINISH – I would call this a medium to long finish. Chocolate and barrel char just continues to hang around for a good bit of time.

 

REVIEW – When this bourbon hit the shelves, I thought it was a game changer. At 115 proof, this quality, at $60 and highly available at the time it was in a class by itself. I still think this is very hard to beat for a widely available bottle that I feels is better than even some of the Birthday Bourbons that have come out. If you are someone that only wants a small collection of 10 bottles, this should be one of them. No one you share this with should be disappointed and when you finish it you know it is an easy trip to any liquor store to replace it.

 

FINAL COMMENTS – Old Forester 1920 Prohibition Style was the third release in the Whiskey Row series and paid tribute to a moment in time in whiskey. The Volstead Act of 1920 initiated the thirteen years of Prohibition. During that time only 6 distilleries were allowed to produce whiskey under a medicinal license. The Old Forester held Kentucky permit KY-3. At this time, the barrel entry proof for Old Forester was 100 proof. During the maturation process the Angel’s Share increased the aging whiskey’s barrel proof, which ended up around 115 proof.

To find out more check it out here – Old Forester 1920

You can look at all the past Sunday Evenings Reviews and I would still love to hear what your personal reviews are from each of the whiskies reviewed

Evan Williams 12 Year Review

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Sunday Evening Review

 

Not many times do you get a bourbon that’s roots are from outside of the United States. Most bourbon producers will gladly tell you how their start comes from wherever their distillery is located. This bourbon product though was intended from the beginning to be in foreign lands. More on that later but let’s see if this Evan Williams 12 Year bourbon was a gesture of kindness or was it considered an insult to our foreign friends.

 

Make sure you put in the comments any bottles that you would like me to review.

 

NAME – Evan Williams 12 Year

 

PROOF – 101

 

AGE – 12 years old

 

COLOR – smoked paprika (1.6 mahogany, henna notes on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)

 

NOSE – Caramel, brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla frosting, apple pie filling, charred oak, tanned leather and cocoa powder.

 

TASTE – The nose doesn’t lie on this one. You get all that caramel, brown sugar, vanilla frosting, cinnamon and charred oak along with the apple pie filling. The chocolate note may slightly go more to a dark chocolate and the leather is more aged than on the nose.

 

FINISH – I would call this a medium to long finish. The brown sugar, charred oak and the aged leather stays along with some roasted peanut.

 

REVIEW – This bourbon gives you everything that made you fall in love with bourbon. There is nothing highly unique about this pour, but it does everything very well and gives you the experience you wish every bourbon you drink would measure up to. Now just because it isn’t unique doesn’t mean it doesn’t stand out. I compare this to a Rolex. There is lots of ways to tell time and many watches made but there is a reason that Rolex is the standard by which timepieces are measures. I would consider this bottle the same.

 

FINAL COMMENTS – Time to payoff the tease from above. The Evan Williams 12 Year was produced for the purpose of the Japanese market and up to 2013 that was the only place you could find it. The rumor is that it was a product they made exclusive to Japan almost as a thank you for continuing to drink bourbon in the 80’s when the U.S. market almost completely abandoned it. Today the only place in the U.S. to find it is at the Evan Williams Experience in Louisville for $130 at last check. I have heard that in Japan it is a sub-$40 bottle and everywhere. I know there are several here that have connections that make trips to Japan. You do the rest of the math.

 

One thing with this that throws you right from the beginning on a bottle you paid $130 for is all this gold wax is covering a screw top. Nothing wrong with it and probably preferred for a “special occasion” whiskey. It’s also plastic versus a metal top like Weller, which again I prefer.

 

Another thing that can clear up a myth that I hear repeated is that it can’t be bourbon if it is charcoaled filtered. Only Tennessee whiskey does that. That is not true as several bourbons charcoal filter (this one included) and is every bit a bourbon. The rule is you can’t ADD anything but water. Charcoal filter just would take away and actually recreates what happens inside the barrel with the charred oak.

To find out more check it out here – Evan Williams

You can look at all the past Sunday Evenings Reviews and I would still love to hear what your personal reviews are from each of the whiskies reviewed.

Chattanooga Whiskey Experimental Barrel 166 Review

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Sunday Evening Review

 

My day job is in innovation and there is a concept in innovation called fail fast. The idea is not to wait to build the perfect mouse trap but build one, fail quickly, learn, make better and then repeat. Chattanooga Whiskey has an Experimental Single Barrel program that lets their distillery do the same. The nice part is they let the public see if they failed, they are on to something or hit a home run. This week I review one of these experiments. Let’s see where they are at in the process.

 

Make sure you put in the comments any bottles that you would like me to review.

 

NAME – Chattanooga Whiskey Experimental Single Barrel #166

 

PROOF – 121.2

 

AGE – 4 years, 3 months and 14 days

 

COLOR – chestnut hair (1.4 tawny on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)

 

NOSE – CHOCOLATE BOMB right when you put your nose to it. Then you start to get butterscotch, vanilla, malted cereal, almond butter, little campfire smoke, cherry cobbler, tobacco leaf.

 

TASTE – The campfire note comes more to the front but not overwhelming. Chocolate malt, warn leather, cigar tobacco, black tea, and dark roasted coffee grounds.

 

FINISH – I would call this a long finish. The malted chocolate, charred oak and tobacco hang around for a long time.

 

REVIEW – I really like this but I could see where a lot of people might not like it due to the absence of a lot of the traditional sweet notes of caramel, brown sugar and vanilla. Even the chocolate is chocolate malt, so it isn’t sweet. This is very dark and earthy whiskey. If you are a cigar smoker, this is similar to drinking a whiskey that is like a good cigar with very similar characteristics. So if you were wanted to smoke a cigar somewhere that wouldn’t let you, this whiskey just might scratch the itch for you. Would also never guess it is 121 proof. Seems closer to 100. Dangerous the lack of ethanol burn.

 

FINAL COMMENTS – If you have read previous reviews of Chattanooga Whiskey that I’ve done you know I like their rebellious nature and the willingness to push the boundaries. This Experimental Series does just that and allows them to explore and go places you wouldn’t if you want to make any money as a distillery. What it can produce is things very different and interesting. It also allows them to learn. I have no doubt that there will be a day when all things will align with one of these experiments that they will add it to the line of 111, 91 and the Rye but until then you get to explore along with them without all the hard work.

To find out more check it out here – Chattanooga Whiskey Experimental Single Barrels

You can look at all the past Sunday Evenings Reviews and I would still love to hear what your personal reviews are from each of the whiskies reviewed.

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof COWS Pick Review

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SUNDAY EVENING REVIEW

 

The first COWS barrel pick of 2022 is finally close to coming in. This was picked back in November but (fingers crossed) it should be in within a month. We are starting off strong with an Elijah Craig Barrel Proof pick that was named “Needs More COWS Bell.” Let’s see if it will make you say, “Need another pour of that!”

 

Make sure you put in the comments any bottles that you would like me to review.

 

NAME – Elijah Craig Barrel Proof “Needs More COWS Bell”

 

PROOF – 124.3

 

AGE – 8 years

 

COLOR – worn copper kettle (1.5 auburn, polished mahogany on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)

 

NOSE – Amber honey, caramel, buttered biscuits, vanilla frosting, canned plums, Bing cherry, cinnamon, roasted almonds, and cigar tobacco. Would never guess this is 124 proof on the nose. Almost no ethanol.

 

TASTE – Cinnamon and peanut brittle on the first taste. As you continue to explore you get warn leather, cigar tobacco, vanilla, charred oak, toasted pecan, Bing cherry and rye spice.

 

FINISH – I would call this a long finish. This sits on the side and back of your tongue and refuses to leave. Oak spice, leather, tobacco, and cinnamon stay until the end.

 

REVIEW – You could nose this whiskey for 3 days and never get tired of it. Just an absolute insane nose on this. The nose fools you that this really isn’t 124 proof but when it hits your palate it lets you know the label doesn’t lie. Very bold whiskey that for 8 years is something really special. Have had other Elijah Craig Barrel Proofs at 12 years that isn’t this complex or bold. This is complex and the finish on this is one of the longest I have ever experienced. Take your time with this one as you want to allow the whiskey to give the full experience.

 

FINAL COMMENTS – 2021 was the first year for Heaven Hill to finally do barrel proof Elijah Craig picks. All picks are 11 years or less as they save the 12 year barrels for the 3 releases that Heaven Hill does with the “shelfer” Elijah Craig Barrel Proof.

 

The 3 barrels we sampled were all from Heaven Hill’s main campus rickhouses. Our pick was from rickhouse T on the 5th floor. The others were 11 years old, 112.8 proof, rickhouse M and on the 1st floor. The last barrel was 10 years old, 122.6 proof, rickhouse Q, and on the 3rd floor. As you can see we picked the youngest. Its why we do the picks blind so that we pick the best one and not on proof or age or what rickhouse. Taste is all that matters.

 

The picture shown is the bottle hanger that will be on the bottle. The name came from  the members with “Need More COWS Bell” being the one chosen. This bottle is sure to be one of the absolute favorites of all the COWS picks for many reasons.

 

***NOTE – These bottles will go out to the general member of COWS for reservation on Saturday, April 2nd at 10am. There will be a link posted in the groups Facebook page. The number of bottles is very limited. Cost for the reservation is $92 with a limit of 1 reservation.

 

To find out more about Elijah Craig Barrel Proof – check it out HERE

You can look at all the past Sunday Evenings Reviews and I would still love to hear what your personal reviews are from each of the whiskies reviewed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Echo Spirits Bavarian Rhapsody Review

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Sunday Evening Review

 

One of the reasons that craft distilleries have become so popular is their willingness to experiment. Echo Spirits is no different as they have jumped outside of the box for the upcoming limited release Bavarian Rhapsody Whiskey. Now like with any experiment it can change the world or set your house on fire. Let’s see where this one lands.

 

Make sure you put in the comments any bottles that you would like me to review.

 

NAME – Echo Spirits Bavarian Rhapsody Whiskey – Copper Label Series

 

PROOF – 110

 

AGE – no age statement (found out that it was 18 months in a 30 gallon barrel)

 

COLOR – Chardonnay gold (1.1, Burnished on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)

 

NOSE – Whoppers malted milk balls, banana chips, pale ale, cream of wheat, whisper of lemon peel

 

TASTE – Cooked mash, white raisins, Whoppers malted milk balls, herbal, hefeweizen and a little banana pudding

 

FINISH – I would call this a long finish. A white wine note just keeps hanging around for a really long time.

 

REVIEW – I will tell you this is a whiskey that is not anywhere close to anything traditional. You can’t make a judgement of this off the first sip (you shouldn’t do that ever by the way). I think it has some scotch type characteristics that makes it a good grab for scotch lovers. This takes some time to appreciate due to the uniqueness of this bottle. I will also say that it doesn’t drink anywhere close to 110 proof. I would have guessed closer to 90 other than the extremely long finish is from a higher proof.

 

FINAL COMMENTS – Want to thank Echo Spirits for giving me this to review. This is a very limited and once only bottle as this can’t ever be recreated in any fashion. First, there is only 70 bottles. The other part is they don’t have the recipe to recreate it. Echo Spirits  know that it contained Bavarian wheat malt, chocolate malt, and pale malt from North High Brewing, but they don’t know what else it had or in what proportions. When North High Brewing closed down their brew-on-premise setup, they offered Echo Spirits the leftovers to turn into hand sanitizer, but it wound up tasting great coming off the still, so they put it in a barrel instead. The barrel had already aged rye whiskey for 2 years before they reused it for this expression. That is why they call it a whiskey distilled from malt mash instead of malt whiskey because the name malt whiskey requires a new barrel but everything else is the same.

 

Joe Bidinger, founder and distiller at Echo Spirits stated, “We desperately wish we had more. Personally, this might be my favorite thing we’ve made, both because it’s unique and because I like it quite a bit.”

 

This comes out this Friday, March 25th at 4pm. This shouldn’t last long as you won’t ever find a more unique and limited bottle for $35. Yes, I said $35 for a one-of-a-kind craft distilled bottle. You will need to go to Echo Spirits to get your bottle so go ahead and put this in your calendar for a Friday appointment.

 

To find out more check it out here – Echo Spirits

You can look at all the past Sunday Evenings Reviews and I would still love to hear what your personal reviews are from each of the whiskies reviewed.

Old Charter 10 Year Review

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It is always a nice surprise when you get your hands on something that not many people ever talk about, never seen and then is gifted to you by a member of COWS. By a show of hands how many of you have even heard of Old Charter 10 Year? Now how many has even seen it? I wouldn’t have raised my hand until this wonderful gift. Now let’s see if this was a gift or maybe they were trying to poison me. Only one way to find out.

 

Make sure you put in the comments any bottles that you would like me to review.

 

NAME – Old Charter 10 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

 

PROOF – 86

 

AGE – 10 years

 

COLOR – dirty blonde (1.3 russet mascat on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)

 

NOSE – Undeniable mash bill #1 from Buffalo Trace. Honey, honeysuckle, vanilla, sweet oak, new tanned leather, cherry taffy.

 

TASTE – Cherry, honey, vanilla combo right up front. There is that sweet oak and tanned leather in the mid-palate with a very slight almond note coming late.

 

FINISH – I would call this a short finish. This is where the 86 proof shows up. Not a long finish at all with some honey, leather and some tobacco but pay attention or you will miss it.

 

REVIEW – This rivals Evan Williams Single Barrel as my absolute favorite bourbon under 90 proof. This is a fantastic pour that gives you all the traditional flavor profiles you look for in bourbon. No it doesn’t give you anything outside the traditional flavors but what it gives you is really well done. The only draw back is the short finish but can be forgiven for all of the rest it gives you.

 

FINAL COMMENTS – The Old Charter uses the famous mash bill 1 from Buffalo Trace which is their low rye mash bill. Rumored to be at 10% rye. Other brands that use the same mash bill is their namesake Buffalo Trace, Eagle Rare, E.H. Taylor, George T Stagg, Stagg Jr. and Benchmark. This absolutely can hold its own with Buffalo Trace and Eagle Rare. The low proof hurts it against the others.

 

How I wish this was something easily found. This is a great couch pour watching a game or having with dinner. Maybe Buffalo Trace will do something similar as they have with Benchmark and create several different varieties. They could have The 10 year Old Charter be the “premium” offering in the lineup.

 

Thanks again to Greg Skinner for the gift and not for trying to poison me.

Frey Ranch Straight Bourbon Review

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There is a Nevada distillery that is starting to make some real noise in the whiskey community. No, this time I’m not talking about Smoke Wagon. I’m talking about Frey Ranch that has come onto the seen with a interesting mash bill and a true attention to the craft of whiskey making. Let’s find out if the juice is worth the squeeze.

 

Make sure you put in the comments any bottles that you would like me to review.

 

NAME – Frey Ranch Straight Bourbon Whiskey Batch 4

 

PROOF – 90

 

AGE – non-age stated (thought to be 4 years)

 

COLOR – Caramelized peaches (1.4, tawny on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)

 

NOSE – Malted cereal with clover honey, fruit cocktail, vanilla bean, hay, butterscotch, and toasted oak

 

TASTE – Caramel comes at you at the beginning along with vanilla, cinnamon, and again the fruit cocktail but more cooked down to increase the flavor and sweetness. There is also some hay and leather woven in.

 

FINISH – I would call this a medium to long finish. For a 90 proofer this has some really decent length to the finish. The cinnamon stays along with some peppery notes, leather and cooked caramel.

 

REVIEW – What stuck out for me right away was the creamy mouth feel that you get from this especially for a 90 proof bourbon. This is a pretty well rounded bourbon but the surprising part is that there isn’t more cherry coming out for me. This has wheat in the mash bill and thought it would pop out more cherry. Not good or bad just a slight surprise. This does have that fruit cocktail note though along with spice and caramel sweetness. It’s a very nice pour that gives a very interesting and balanced experience. I do think at 6 to 8 years this bourbon could be out of this world.

 

FINAL COMMENTS – As many of you know there are whiskey brands, especially bourbon brands, popping up everywhere that are just trying to take advantage of the hype. Frey Ranch is one of the ones that seems to be doing it right. For one is that the farm raised grain for other distilleries for years and have taken the time to increase quality of the grains at the sacrifice of yield. They also malt their own barley on site for quality control. Also, they don’t follow the “traditional” recipe and throw it out there. 66.6% corn, 10% winter wheat, 11.4% winter rye and 12% two-row barley is the mash bill that is printed right on the bottle. That is anything but traditional.

 

I would also be remised if I didn’t mention the packaging. The bottle and the stopper are really nice. Heavy bottle, heavy topper and also this aged metal medallion that had to have been CNC machined out that is attached to the front of the bottle. Also, for the $50 price tag, I think this a really good price for the quality of the juice and the bottle.

 

By the way, they ship to Ohio and the shipping cost is more than reasonable.

To find out more check it out here – Frey Ranch

You can look at all the past Sunday Evenings Reviews and I would still love to hear what your personal reviews are from each of the whiskies reviewed.