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Michter's US-1 Kentucky Straight Rye

July 22, 2021 Eric Burke

As I get older, I occasionally find myself getting nostalgic for days gone by. Sometimes it is for when I was a kid in the early 80s, playing my friend’s Atari 2600. (I mean, Pitfall was awesome and I’d go visit him just to play it.) Sometimes it is for when I was newly married in the late 90s and my kid was young. This past weekend though the nostalgia hit a little closer to the current day. I was in the liquor store picking up a couple of bottles of cocktail whiskey when I noticed a bottle of Michter’s Rye sitting there.

Now when I was first getting into whiskey, Michter’s was one of my go-to Ryes. I was fascinated by the burgeoning craft distilling movement and found their story interesting. Of course, it was just a story. It was a complete fabrication. Instead of being the “oldest distillery in America” or whatever they were claiming back then, they didn’t even have a distillery and had instead appropriated the history of an abandoned trademark. And that left a bad taste in my mouth. Not literally, of course, I still liked their product but I just didn’t want to support it anymore. So yeah, I was nostalgic about when I was naive enough to believe the marketing. Whiskey felt romantic back then.

So I was standing in the store, feeling nostalgic, and decided to go ahead and grab that bottle of Michter’s Rye to use in cocktails for old time’s sake. I mean they have a functioning distillery now and have been distilling for themselves for a few years. And it is pretty silly to hold a grudge for a decade when all they did is tell a fanciful story. I mean Heaven Hill somehow gets away with telling people that Evan Williams was Kentucky’s first distiller and that Elijah Craig both somehow invented charring barrels in a fire that only burned the inside of the barrel and I never gave them too much grief about it.

Plus, maybe I’d been missing out on something all these years. I mean it was my go-to for a reason, right?

Michter's US-1 Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey

Purchase Info: $39.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Total Wine, Roseville, MN

Price per Drink (50mL): $2.67

Details: 42.4% ABV. Single Barrel #: 21A227

Nose: Wintergreen, cooked oatmeal, caramel.

Mouth: Thin mouthfeel. Spicy with cinnamon, wintergreen, and caramel.

Finish: Medium length and warmth. Lingering mint, cinnamon, caramel.

IMAGE: a neutral face because this is very meh.

Thoughts: This is... fine. It's ok neat, but nothing to write home about. It’s a good thing that I originally bought it as a cocktail rye because cocktails are where I will probably use most of it. As a cocktail rye, I like it. As a sipping rye, it gets a meh. It turns out, I wasn’t missing that much all these years. My palate has become more sophisticated along with my ability to sniff out crazy marketing stories, I guess.


Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, posters, and more.

In Rye, whiskey reviews, Small or Craft Distiller, I'm Neutral on this.
2 Comments

Two LAWS Whiskey House Bourbons: Four Grain Straight Bourbon and a Single Barrel Pick From Hazel's Beverage World

July 13, 2021 Eric Burke
IMAGE: A 750mL bottle of LAWS Four Grain Bourbon, selected by Hazels Beverage World and a 100mL bottle of the standard release LAWS Four Grain Bourbon.

When I was in Colorado last month, I made a point to try to find at least one local whiskey to bring home. I searched out and found a place in Boulder that I’d only need a small detour to stop at on my way to Estes Park. Hazel’s Beverage World was a very cool store. I got the impression from my short visit that if I lived close, it’d be a store that I would be visiting quite often. While I was there, I noticed a store pick of a local Craft Bourbon from LAWS Whiskey House.

I’d been aware of LAWS for quite a while, though I’d never tried it. I first saw them on the whiskey menu of the bar at the Stanley Hotel on a previous visit to Estes Park. But since the bar had an extensive whiskey list, I looked for whiskeys that I’d heard of previously and passed on the local Craft product. That was about 5 years ago, I think. Occasionally I’d run across a bottle of their product, during my travels, but never pulled the trigger. So when I saw a barrel pick on the shelf at Hazel’s I decided to give it a try. But since I had never tried the standard release, I figured I should probably grab that as well.

And that is when I saw something that made me very happy. Right next to the barrel pick was a four-pack of 100mL bottles of their core whiskeys. That was great! For the price of one bottle, I could try four. And since I wasn’t sure if I’d even like what they were producing, I was very willing to pay the premium. l wish more producers would do this. I’ve wished for years for Four Roses to put out a 10 pack of all their recipes. They could be 100mL bottles like this or even 50mL. Sell it for a premium and I’d still have fun with the experience. I imagine you would too. It’s a (comparatively) inexpensive way to get your product in front of people. I’ve bought both a Cognac and an Armagnac multi-pack this way and I loved the experience of tasting the similarities and differences of a company’s lineup.

So of course I bought that one too. And since tasting 5 whiskeys for one post is a little ambitious for me these days (I like not having a blown-out palate for a week), I’m going to just focus on the two Bourbons tonight and leave the rest for another day.

LAWS Whiskey House Four Grain Bourbon

Purchase Info: $34.98 for a multi-pack of four 100mL bottles of their core whiskey line at Hazel’s Beverage World, Boulder, CO.

Price per Drink (50mL): $4.37

Details: 47.5% ABV. Two years old (note: it looks as if a full-sized bottle of this product is currently three years old so there will probably be differences in tasting notes between the two products)

Nose: Dried Grain and maple.

Mouth: Cinnamon spice, dried grain, mint, applesauce, and black tea.

Finish: Warm and on the longer side of medium. Notes of dried grain and wintergreen.

Thoughts: This doesn't really do it for me. I'm getting better with well-constructed grain-forward bourbons, but this takes grain-forward to an extreme. I've eaten dried cereal grains before, and while it isn't an unpleasant experience, it isn't something I am looking to do for fun. This tastes like that did. Nice, clean grain flavors, but not something I am looking to have more of. Now, from what I understand, they are trying to showcase their locally sourced heirloom grains with this product. They did that very well, it just isn’t for me. But it might be something to check out if that idea appeals to you.

LAWS Whiskey House Four Grain Bourbon, Single Barrel selected by Hazel's Beverage World

Purchase Info: $59.98 for a 750 mL bottle at Hazel’s Beverage World, Boulder, CO.

Price per Drink (50mL): $3.93

Details: 47.5% ABV. Three years old. BBL#: 1402

Nose: Buttered Popcorn, caramel, and mint.

Mouth: Cinnamon Spice, clove, butterscotch, popcorn "butter," and dried grains.

Finish: Medium in length and warmth. More caramel, buttered popcorn.

Thoughts: There’s a strange thing going on here. While this single barrel has more of the notes that I like in bourbon than the standard release did, I like it less than the standard release. That buttered popcorn note is just not my thing. I am, however, open to trying more of their products. Especially the older products where the dried grain and buttered popcorn notes have had time to age out. I see that they have a six-year-old Bonded bourbon. I’ll need to keep my eyes peeled the next time I travel through a state where they are distributed.


Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, posters, and more.

In Bourbon, whiskey reviews, Small or Craft Distiller, I'm Neutral on this.
2 Comments

Catoctin Creek Roundstone Rye Whisky: Distiller's Edition 92 Proof

June 14, 2021 Eric Burke

I am so excited. Tomorrow I get to pick up my 10-year-old niece so that Wednesday we can head off on her “Yay! You are 10!” trip. My wife and I did this for my brother’s oldest child when he turned 10 and have plans to do it for his youngest too. But this time around we are taking his middle child, and only girl. Our goal with this is to take the kids someplace where their parents can’t or won’t take them. To broaden their experiences and get them out of the small town they live in (because the small town I grew up in, and that my family still lives in, has quite a “small town attitude” if you know what I mean). And aside from giving them valuable life experiences as they are finally old enough to begin to comprehend it, the trip makes them feel special and grown-up. Plus we spoil them, of course, because that is what Aunts and Uncles are for.

A couple years ago, we asked her to pick where she wanted to go. At first she wanted to go to the ocean. Then the mountains. Finally she settled on the desert. Growing up in Northern Wisconsin, she has no idea why a trip to the desert in summer isn’t the greatest plan. But if the point is to go somewhere to broaden your experiences, going from an overabundance of water to a scarcity of it will be a good experience. So we are taking a trip to Utah to experience the National Parks, National Monuments, and National Recreation Areas.

It will be our first vacation since 2019 and we are super excited about it. But what does that have to do with the Catoctin Creek Whiskey up in the photo above? Absolutely nothing. I’m too excited about vacation to process much else. But that said, here is what the distillery has to say about the product:

Only one in every ten barrels gets selected to be in the Roundstone Rye "92 Proof" whisky. This whisky is the culmination of several years of planning. "For a few years now, we've been putting whisky away for storage," remarked Becky Harris, Chief Distiller and President of Catoctin Creek Distilling Company. "We pulled some of the more interesting barrels from the back of the barn and decided to release these at a higher proof: a whisky specially curated for flavor, while still being remarkably smooth, as is our existing 80 proof Roundstone."

A few notes on it. This is a 100% Rye Mash whiskey. Usually, that means I won’t care for it as I’m not really a fan of the flavor that malted rye brings to a drink. This is non-chill filtered which seems to be a trend lately. One I am enjoying seeing. Also, this is a single barrel product so my notes and yours may differ.

Catoctin Creek Roundstone Rye Whisky: Distiller's Edition 92 Proof

Purchase Info: $50.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Price per Drink (50 mL): $3.40

Details: 46% ABV. Non-chill filtered. 100% Rye Mash. Single Barrel # 1894

Nose: Cinnamon, mint, nutmeg, and red fruit.

Mouth: Spicy with strong notes of nutmeg and cinnamon. Herbal mint and red fruit.

Finish: Medium length and warmth. Strong notes of spearmint and nutmeg.

Thoughts: If you are a fan of nutmeg, you will really like this one. I happen to be a nutmeg fan and was very pleasantly surprised to find nutmeg as the dominant note throughout the tasting experience. This worked well in a rye cocktail. I tried it in a Sazerac and it performed very nicely. I'm a fan and will probably be giving some of their other products a try in the near future.

Did you notice that this came out a day early? That is because BourbonGuy.com will be on vacation until June 28th. Regular posts will resume at that time. I’ll be traveling with a 10-year-old girl, who I adore. But she is still a 10-year-old girl so wish me luck.


Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, posters, and more.

In Rye, whiskey reviews, Small or Craft Distiller, I Like This!
1 Comment

Leopold Bros. Bottled in Bond Bourbon

May 25, 2021 Eric Burke

I just cannot be trusted on my own. Not three hours after my wife left to care for her mother during cataract surgery, I was trying to bandage my own finger after needing to do a little minor surgery of my own. While trying to pick up something from the kitchen counter, I somehow got a fingerful of wood shoved under the nail on my right forefinger. Getting the wood out involved prying on my fingernail and cutting it way too far down until I could grab it with tweezers. Needless to say, it is hard to type with a bandaged and sore finger. Luckily for me, the company website has a lot of things to say about what makes their Bottled in Bond bourbon interesting. So I hope you’ll forgive me if I let them do the talking tonight.

  • 50% ABV / 100 Proof

  • 64% Corn

  • 21% Malted Barley

  • 15% Abruzzi Heritage Rye

  • Open fermentation in wooden tanks with both house-cultured and indigenous yeast strains. Pot distilled and unfiltered.

  • Aged five years in new American white oak charred barrels on earthen floors in the distillery's unheated dunnage-style bonded warehouse.

  • First release: 2020

  • Availability: Year-round

  • Available bottle size: 750ml

Leopold Bros. Bottled in Bond Bourbon

Purchase Info: $62.99 for a 750 mL bottle, Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Price per Drink (50 mL): $4.20

Details: 5 years old. 50% ABV. DSP-CO-15014. Mash bill: 64% corn, 21% malted barley, 15% rye. Uses both cultured and indigenous wild yeasts in fermentation.

Nose: Grain forward with nutty Wheaties cereal notes along with dried grass and a faint note of wintergreen.

Mouth: Spicy with ginger and cinnamon. Wheaties cereal and wintergreen.

Finish: Medium length and heat. Very nutty finish. More of those Wheaties cereal notes with some cinnamon.

Thoughts: This is a very nutty bourbon. I'm guessing that is from the high quantity of malted barley. I like this. My wife is less enthusiastic but doesn't hate it. This is certainly not your stereotypical bourbon and that's probably the point.


Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, and more.

In Bourbon, whiskey reviews, Small or Craft Distiller, I Like This!
1 Comment

Obtainium Light Whiskey - Zipp's Liquor pick

May 20, 2021 Eric Burke

You have the recommendation of a very good friend to thank for tonight’s whiskey. Because, when he recommended it I knew nothing about the brand and i would have looked right past a bottle with Light Whiskey emblazoned crossed the label. Luckily for me, I trust this guy’s taste in whiskey and immediately ran out and bought a bottle.

Now why would I have walked past a light whiskey? What even is a light whiskey? Well, let’s consult the Code of Federal Regulations/Standards of Identity and see what they have to say.

(3) “Light whisky” is whisky produced in the United States at more than 160° proof, on or after January 26, 1968, and stored in used or uncharred new oak containers; and also includes mixtures of such whiskies. If “light whisky” is mixed with less than 20 percent of straight whisky on a proof gallon basis, the mixture shall be designated “blended light whisky” (light whisky—a blend).

So in essence, light whiskey distillate is made from a grain mash and is somewhere between straight whiskey (distilled lower than 160° proof) and neutral grain (distilled at 190° proof). There is some grain flavor left in it, but not as much as you’d have in a bourbon. Which is why I probably would have passed this by. I like flavor. It is one of the reasons I like bourbon and rye more than vodka.

So what do we know about this particular light whiskey?

Well the brand name is Obtainium, a new label here in Minnesota. Obtainium is a line of sourced whiskey from the Cat’s Eye Distillery in Bettendorf, Iowa, one of the five Quad Cities that span the Iowa/Illinois border (yes, there are 5 cities in the Quad Cities…I’d make an Iowa joke, but I’ll just leave it at that). In any case, these guys seem to be doing the sourced whiskey thing right. Printed right on the side of the bottle is “Distilled on 12/13/2006 by Lawrenceberg Distillers Indiana.” It isn’t very often that you see a sourced whiskey call out their supplier. And I, for one, really appreciate that. So since LDI was the former name of MGP, we know that this is a 14 year old MGP Light Whiskey. And because we know that, we know that the mash bill is 99% corn and 1% malted barley. We also know that this bottling doesn’t have the up to 19% straight whiskey blended into it as this particular bottling was a store single barrel pick by Zipps Liquors in Minneapolis.

So, a 14-year-old single barrel MGP whiskey at barrel strength? I’m very glad that i got this recommendation.

Obtainium Light Whiskey-Zipps Liquor Pick

Purchase Info: $54.99 for a 750 mL bottle, Zipps Liquor, Minneapolis, MN.

Price per Drink (50mL): $3.67

Details: 69.7% ABV. 14 years old. Barrel#: SC-00094. Distilled by Lawrenceburg Distillers Indiana (now MGP) on 12/13/2006. Bottled on 2/5/2021.

Nose: Beautifully sweet toffee and chocolate.

Mouth: Hot and sweet. Toffee, chocolate, nuts and nutmeg.

Finish: Hot and long. The heat fades quickly though leaving behind notes of nutmeg, ginger, mint and toffee.

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Thoughts: I really, really like this. It reminds me of some of the really good Canadian whiskies that I've had. It is super sweet and dangerously drinkable when served neat. A little water brings out even more sweetness and lowered the heat levels a bit. I'm going to have to take a look at some of the other offerings from this brand. Stay tuned.


Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, and more.

In whiskey reviews, Small or Craft Distiller, Miscellaneous Whiskey, I Like This!, MGP-Ross and Squibb
Comment

Cedar Ridge Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon

May 18, 2021 Eric Burke

It has been two thousand, eight hundred and twenty-two days since I last reviewed anything from Cedar Ridge Distillery in Iowa. At the time it was a single barrel of their bourbon. This time around, I found a Bottled-in-Bond version of their bourbon. I disliked that first bourbon so much, that this is honestly the first whiskey of theirs to pass my lips since that bottle was emptied. Here are my thoughts from the 2013 review:

I'm not a fan of this bourbon. It misses almost all the notes I look for in a bourbon. It has almost no vanilla or caramel and very little spice. It does showcase the corn very well. And maybe being from the middle of corn country, that's the point.

I know that I didn’t care for the barrel of bourbon that my previous bottle came from, but I had readers comment that they had mixed results with theirs. Some they loved and others they really did not like. This being a batched product gives me hope that the product is better than it was almost 7 years ago (well, 8 if you go by the purchase date of my previous bottle). Well that and they’ve had 7-8 more years to build their craft. And since they’ve only been around 16 years, a decent portion of the time they’ve been open has happened since they sold me that first bottle. All that is to say that I had a good feeling that I would like the bottle I purchased.

I mean, why would I have purchased it otherwise?

Cedar Ridge Bottled-in-Bond

Purchase Info: $48.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Atomic Liquors, Eagan, MN

Price per Drink (50mL): $3.27

Details: 50% ABV. DSP-IA-15001. Release 2.

Nose: Dried corn, raisin, cinnamon, vanilla, and mint.

Mouth: Sweet custard on entry tranistioning to a spicy cinnamon, dried fruit, corn, mint and black tea.

Finish: Warm and of medium length. Lingering notes of cinnamon, black tea, and dried fruits.

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Thoughts: I like this, though it tastes kinda young, even at four years old. I will say it is a lot better than that bourbon I bought 8 years ago. I'm not a huge fan of the raisin/dried fruit notes in here. But luckily for me, that note is much more pronounced in a Glencairn than it is in my usual rocks glass. I’m not sure if I would buy this again. Not sure I like it at a $50 level, but it does make it more likely that I will be giving other whiskeys of theirs a look in the future. I’m raising the rating on Cedar Ridge Bourbon from a dislike to a like.


Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, and more.

In Bourbon, whiskey reviews, Small or Craft Distiller, I Like This!
1 Comment

Tattersall Distilling Pre-Made Cocktails

May 4, 2021 Eric Burke

It is May and I am officially “almost ready” to put the shovel away and bring out the deck furniture. It isn’t quite planting season here in Minnesota, at least not for things that can’t handle frost. But we are getting oh, so close. My wife has her greenhouse up and the plants are at least outside, albeit with a heater to keep them warm at night.

We are so close to travel season too. Well for me at least. I try to take two vacations per year. One is to Kentucky in September. The other varies. Sometimes I escape the winter cold in February. Sometimes I head to the beach. And other times I do something crazy like visit the desert in the summer. That’s what is planned for this summer. I take all of my nieces and nephews on a road trip of their choosing when they turn 7. My niece however has had to wait until she was 10 due to a combination of her family being busy, my finances and then Covid. But this year, now that we are both vaccinated, we head to Utah to show her something new. It should be a great time.

Once we get through Iowa and Nebraska.

In any case, when you are traveling to places off of the beaten path, getting a good cocktail can be challenging. I’ll often just pick up a bottle of bourbon somewhere and call it good. But if I wanted something a little more complex, my options would be limited to what I wanted to bring with. Do I want to bring three bottles along to make a Manhattan? Probably not. But I could be convinced to grab a few small bottles of a pre-made cocktail to throw in the suitcase?

Well that just depends on how good the cocktail is.

Tattersall Distilling Pre-Made Old Fashioned

Purchase Price: $4.99 for a 100 mL bottle at Viking Liquor Barrel, Prior Lake, MN.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $2.50

Nose: Malted rye, dried fruits and spices.

Mouth: Sweet with a nice thick mouthfeel. Dried fruit notes are the star of the show here and are supported by the baking spice notes of the bitters.

Finish: Sweet with notes of cherry and baking spices.

Tattersall Distilling Pre-Made Manhattan

Purchase Price: $4.99 for a 100 mL bottle at Viking Liquor Barrel, Prior Lake, MN.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $2.50

Nose: Delicate with notes of brown sugar and baking spice.

Mouth: Baking spices, dried fruit and brown sugar.

Finish: Notes of cherry, baking spices, and vermouth. After a bit, a menthol note appears.

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Thoughts: Both of these are very good. I think half the fun of drinking cocktails at home is making the cocktails, but if I was traveling I'd happily grab a few of these to toss in the suitcase. They would make a wonderful nightcap after a day of driving, exploring, or hiking. This is something I may have to consider for that upcoming summer trip.


Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, and more.

In Misc Reviews, Small or Craft Distiller, I Like This!
3 Comments

New Riff Private Selections

April 8, 2021 Eric Burke

So…I’m an asshole.

A few months ago, a reader reached out to me and asked if he could send me a sample of a private selection he was a part of. Just to see what I thought of it. I am almost always happy to accept free whiskey. I mean, “free” and “whiskey” are two of my favorite words. So I told him to send it over. That very nice email conversation inspired this post and I would love to thank him for both the sample and the idea. But, and here is where the asshole part of it comes in, apparently I deleted the entire email chain and then emptied my trash. So not only can I not give him a shout-out, but I also can’t let him know that the post he inspired is going live.

If you know the folks who made that little bottle above, let them know the post is finally live.

I’ve discussed how much I love to pick up whiskey store picks, I wrote an entire post on it last time around. So I’m not going to go into all that again. But as a reminder, one of the reasons I like store picks is that there is the possibility of variability. So, here is the gist of the post in a nutshell: I gathered a bunch of store picks from a couple of different stores and combined it with the sample the reader sent. I’m going to see how different they are.

Notes are in the order I tasted them in. Let’s get to it.

"Gangsta Riff" Barrel #16-10167

Purchase Info: This was generously sent in by a reader and inspired this post. I have no information on the price.

Nose: Wintergreen, nutmeg, caramel, and oak

Mouth: Nice mouthfeel with notes of nutmeg, wintergreen, and caramel.

Finish: Long and warm. Notes of nutmeg, cinnamon, honey, and mint.

Thoughts: This is delicious. Consistent notes of nutmeg and wintergreen throughout. Nice job Spa City Bourbon.

Justins' House of Bourbon Barrel #17-0068

Purchase Info: Purchased as part of a 2-bottle set from BourbonOutfitter.com. Two 750 mL bottles for $89.99.

Price Per Drink (50 mL): $3.00

Details: 52.2% ABV. Distilled: 1/4/17. Bottled: 1/28/21.

Nose: Strong toffee note along with orange zest, baking spice, and black pepper.

Mouth: Spicy with notes of nutmeg, clove, orange zest, black pepper, and caramel.

Finish: Medium length and heat. Lingering notes of cinnamon, caramel, and oak.

Thoughts: This is a very "bourbony" bourbon. Nice spice and caramel notes accented by orange zest.

The Party Source- Barrel #16-12144

Purchase Info: $49.99 for a 750 mL bottle from the Party Source, Bellevue, KY.

Price Per Drink (50 mL): $3.00

Details: 51.6% ABV. Distilled: 8/30/16. Bottled 10/6/20.

Nose: Creamy with brown sugar, black tea, cinnamon and nutmeg, and just a hint of wood smoke.

Mouth: Spicy and hot with cinnamon, black tea, caramel, and oak.

Finish: Warm and on the longer side of medium. Strong oak notes that fade to show cinnamon, creamy caramel, and milk chocolate.

Thoughts: Another very nice bourbon pick. This is much hotter and spice forward than the others have been. I'm really enjoying the tannic black tea undercurrents.

Justins' House of Bourbon-Barrel #16-3370

Purchase Info: Purchased as part of a 2-bottle set from BourbonOutfitter.com. Two 750 mL bottles for $89.99.

Price Per Drink (50 mL): $3.00

Details: 52.65% ABV. Distilled: 12/2/16. Bottled: 1/28/21.

Nose: Sweet caramel and vanilla, cherry, and a hint of baking spice.

Mouth: Almost gentle on entry, but then it blossoms with flavor. Notes of cinnamon, caramel, Earl Grey tea, and black pepper.

Finish: Sweet, warm, and long. Almost syrupy. Caramel, maple, and cinnamon notes linger.

Thoughts: A very sweet bourbon. I was intrigued by the cherry on the nose and could wish that had carried through. But that is just me musing and not a knock on what is there. I enjoy it very much. I've never found Earl Grey tea before so that's fun. And the syrupy finish with the sweet caramel and maple was divine.

The Party Source - Barrel #16-9641

Purchase Info: $49.99 for a 750 mL bottle from the Party Source, Bellevue, KY.

Price Per Drink (50 mL): $3.00

Details: 52.9% ABV. Distilled: 5/3/16. Bottled: 7/16/20.

Nose: Delicate nose on this one. We are teasing out caramel, vanilla, baking spice, and mint.

Mouth: Nice spice with citrus, ginger, cinnamon, caramel, and oak.

Finish: Warm and medium length. Lingering ginger spice and almond.

Thoughts: This is a fairly muted bourbon. The ginger and citrus notes are nice, but it feels a bit muddy overall.

The Party Source-Barrel #16-9523

Purchase Info: $49.99 for a 750 mL bottle from the Party Source, Bellevue, KY.

Price Per Drink (50 mL): $3.00

Details: 52% ABV. Distilled on 4/27/16. Bottled on 6/16/20.

Nose: Brown sugar, mint, vanilla, and cardamom.

Mouth: Orange Creamsicle, cinnamon, mint, and nutmeg.

Finish: Sweet and spicy. Medium length. Notes of orange, nutmeg, and tobacco.

Thoughts: Nice and citrusy. Bright and vibrant on the mouth and finish. Big fan of this one.

Conclusions:

So, did I learn anything in this experiment? Well, yes. New Riff makes damn fine bourbon and as I had hoped, there is a fair bit of diversity in the flavor profiles between bottles. There isn’t a bad bourbon in this bunch. Hell, there isn’t a mediocre bourbon in the bunch. Every single one is top-notch. As we tasted them head to head to decide our “favorite,” I found it funny that the one that came out on top was the one where my notes say it was muted and muddy (16-9641). It just goes to show that tasting notes are very subjective and what a difference a couple of days will make. I really enjoyed the reader-provided “Gangsta Riff” (it came in second in the unofficial rankings). The wintergreen notes were completely different than any of the others. I’d never gotten Earl Grey Tea on a bourbon before so that made 16-3370 from Justins’ House of Bourbon pretty interesting as well. Overall, this was a fun tasting.

In Bourbon, whiskey reviews, Small or Craft Distiller, I Like This!
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