Hugh Hamer Double Oaked Bourbon & Hugh Hamer Rum Finished Bourbon

I’d like to thank West Fork Whiskey in Indianapolis, IN for providing these review samples with no strings attached.

IMAGE: Two bottles of Hugh Hamer Straight Bourbon Whiskey. The bottle on the left is labeled as 'Finished in Rum Barrels.' The bottle on the right is labeled as 'Double Oaked.' Both are 103 proof, 51.5% alcohol by volume.

Indianapolis is an easy city to drive through. Four separate Interstate Highways converge here, and with a beltway loop as part of the Interstate system, navigating through the city is quite straightforward. I know this because I’ve driven through Indianapolis on the way to other destinations more times than I can count.

However, there has only been one time that I’ve actually spent any time in the city itself. As much as I might wish it was because my beloved Golden Gophers made it to a Big Ten title game, that’s sadly not the reason I visited (and, unfortunately, I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for that to happen anytime soon either). The one time I spent an afternoon in the city, we visited the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and took a tour before continuing on to our destination in another state. Once again, I was just passing through.

I’ve spent so little time in Indianapolis that I used to joke it wasn’t even real—that it was just a figment of our collective imagination. After all, other than being an oversized crossroad, what’s the draw if you’re not there for sports or a convention? Plus, it seems almost unnaturally situated at the exact geographical center of the state. Cities don’t usually pop up where there aren’t any navigable rivers, at least not when it was founded. It’s a bit unnerving.

Of course, I’m joking, but until now, I’ve only seen Indianapolis as a milestone on a road trip to somewhere else. It reminds me too much of my home here in Minnesota to make it a place worth visiting without a specific reason. But if I ever find that reason (maybe if my Gophers ever improve their football team to the point where I have an excuse to travel… sigh), I now know of someplace worth checking out.

Tonight, we’re looking at two bourbons from West Fork Whiskey Company, a craft distillery in the area. They produce two lines of whiskey. One, the West Fork Whiskey line, is grain-to-glass, distilled in-house. The other, which we’re focusing on tonight, is the Old Hamer line, sourced from MGP in southern Indiana. They use MGP’s 99% corn/1% rye mash bill to create this line. The two bottles we’re examining are from their barrel-finished Hugh Hamer line extension. Both are non-chill filtered, aged between four and six years, and bottled at 103° proof.

Let’s dig in.

Hugh Hamer Double Oaked

Purchase Info: This bottle was sent at no cost for review purposes. It is available on the brand website for $64.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $4.33

Details: 51.5% ABV. 4- 6 years old. Mash bill: 99% corn, 1% malted barley.

Nose: Caramel, cherry, leather, and wintergreen.

Mouth: Spicy cinnamon, wintergreen, caramel, oak, and a touch of cherry.

Finish: Warm and of medium length. Notes of cinnamon, cherry syrup, dusty oak, and wintergreen.

Thoughts: Pretty darn tasty. It's spicy and sweet with nice oak and cherry notes throughout. I wasn't sure what to expect with a 99% corn mash bill, but I am really enjoying it. Quite good.

Hugh Hamer Rum Finish

Purchase Info: This bottle was sent at no cost for review purposes. It is available on the brand website for $64.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $4.33

Details: 51.5% ABV. 4- 6 years old. Mash bill: 99% corn, 1% malted barley.

Nose: Sweet ginger and molasses. It's like a cookie.

Mouth: Funky rum and tropical notes are layered over traditional bourbon notes of caramel, baking spice and oak.

Finish: Warm and of medium length with notes of dusty oak and rum funk.

Thoughts: This is also really tasty. I really enjoy the addition of rum funk to bourbon and often will add a touch of Jamacan Rum to a glass if I want something a little different. This is even better as the rum influence is more subtle than my relatively heavy mix. I like this one too.

In fact, if you mix the two together, they are even better yet. Really enjoying these two.

BourbonGuy.com will be off next week as we are on a real vacation with just the two of us. I won’t be traveling through Indianapolis this time and, sadly, won’t have the opportunity to visit West Fork Whiskey. But you can be assured that the next time I pass through, I will be stopping.

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

Bernheim Original Barrel Proof Wheat Whiskey, B924

I’d like to thank Heaven Hill for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

Bernheim Original Kentucky Straight Wheat Whiskey Barrel Proof bottle, Batch B924, 122.6 proof, 61.3% alcohol by volume.

Here we are with the first post of the new schedule. I’m not going to lie; it felt really weird not writing for y'all last night. Instead, I did things like hang out with my wife and read a book. It was nice—strange, but nice.

If you’ve been around here for a while, you’ve probably heard me gush about my love of science fiction. Whether it’s TV, movies, or books, I’ve been a fan for a very long time. One of the early greats of the genre is Isaac Asimov. I just finished watching the second season of Foundation on Apple TV+, and it put me in the mood to read that series of books again. So I started last night—dug out my 40-year-old copy of The Complete Robot and read a few short stories.

It’s something I do every couple of decades or so. I think the first time I read them was in middle school in the mid-to-late '80s. I did a more complete read-through as a young adult in the early 2000s. And then? There they sat on my bookshelf, almost forgotten, until now. There are certain books that I will just never gt rid of, and the Robot/Empire/Foundation series is among them. Even though some of the parts of it were written almost 75 years ago. It’s fun to read stories about how “the FUTURE” would look from well before the future started—well, at least what I considered the future when I was young. Though I’m not going to lie, the story I read last night could have been written today. In today’s verbiage, it was basically about a group of Google Waymo cars gone, not so much bad, but certainly dealing out righteous justice.

Sometimes, I like going back to old favorites and revisiting them—kinda like I do a couple of times per year with tonight’s whiskey. I’ve never seen it in the wild, but they are kind enough to send me a taste when it comes out so I can tell you about it and hope that if you see it in the wild, you’ll be intrigued enough to buy it.

Bernheim Barrel Proof is a barrel-proof version of the Bernheim wheat whiskey put out by Heaven Hill. It is made from a mash bill of 51% wheat, 37% corn, and 12% malted barley. The whiskeys in this batch range from seven to nine years old. It has been bottled at 122.6° proof.

Let’s see how it tastes, shall we?

Bernheim Original Barrel Proof Wheat Whiskey, B924

Purchase Info: This sample was provided at no cost for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $67.

Price per Drink: $4.47

Nose: Caramel, wintergreen, and toasted grains.

Mouth: Bready, sweet, and spicy with notes of caramel, cinnamon, and oak.

Finish: Medium in length and warmth. Notes of toasted grains, cinnamon, and wintergreen.

Thoughts: This is very tasty. Sweet in the mouth but more dry on the finish. The toasted grain notes read as bready on the mouth, which I'm really enjoying. This is perfectly drinkable neat, even at over 120° proof. All in all, I really like it.

Comparison to last batch: The last batch is much sweeter on the nose and mouth. This batch shows more mint. Last batch is spicier, but the new batch has more layers of flavor. They are both very good, but if forced to choose, I'd go with this current batch because of the depth of flavor.

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

Yellowstone Bourbon Limited Edition, 2024 Edition

I’d like to thank ByrnePR and Limestone Branch Distillery for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

A bottle of 2024 Yellowstone Limited Edition Bourbon, finished in cognac and brandy casks, displayed outdoors with a rich amber color and gold-accented label.

I've been covering Yellowstone Bourbon since 2015, and it’s safe to say my relationship with this brand has evolved. My first experience with Yellowstone Bourbon was anything but positive—I found the initial product harsh and unpalatable, leading me to pour it out after I finished my tasting notes. Of course, this was pre-Limestone Branch involvement. However, over the years, Limestone Branch Distillery has made significant strides, turning Yellowstone into a bourbon I now enjoy and look forward to each year. What I especially appreciate is the brand’s commitment to giving back, particularly their partnerships with organizations like the National Parks Conservation Association, which help protect the beauty and integrity of Yellowstone National Park.

The 2024 release of Yellowstone Bourbon Limited Edition Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey marks the ninth Limited Edition release in Limestone Branch Distillery's care of the brand. This year’s edition features a blend of 7-year and 17-year aged bourbons that have been blended and then finished in both brandy and cognac casks from France. Bottled at 101 proof, the limited edition will hit shelves in September, with a suggested retail price of $99.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Before we get into the tasting notes, let’s see what the company has to say about this year’s release:

In the 2024 release, Beam sought out spirits to complement the natural flavors in the extra-aged bourbon. Finishing the blended bourbon in brandy and cognac casks from France introduces nuances from different spectrums of distilled grapes within the same style of spirit. The result is a soft and approachable bourbon, perfect for Yellowstone Bourbon loyalists.

“The 2024 expression of Yellowstone Limited Edition represents my natural progression of experimenting with special finishes over the years,” said Beam. “Now, finished bourbons have become sought after by fans who want to push the flavor profile. I love experimenting and exploring new opportunities, and using a double finish with brandy and cognac casks created a more complex and nuanced bourbon, opening a whole new experience for consumers to enjoy.”

Well, let’s see how it tastes.

Yellowstone Bourbon Limited Edition, 2024 Edition

Purchase Info: This sample bottle was provided to me at no charge for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $99.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $6.67

Nose: Ginger, molasses, cinnamon, and oak with just a hint of mint underneath.

Mouth: Spicy and warm with notes of oak, cinnamon, and caramel.

Finish: Medium-long and warm, with notes of cinnamon, ginger, caramel, oak, and a hint of molasses.

Thoughts: This is delicious. It's probably the tastiest sample I've received in the last month (yes, even better than the post before this one, and this is less than half the price…). It feels like it was created with my particular palate in mind. I love all the spice and sweetness. It's very, very good. I really like it.

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

Four Roses 2024 Limited Edition Small Batch

I’d like to thank Four Roses for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

Well, the Autumn Release season is finally here. When Four Roses says there's just over a month left until their annual release, you know that summer is almost over. It doesn’t matter what the calendar says or what society says. The official start of autumn is the day I get my hands on a bottle of Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch.

Or at least it used to be. They got too expensive for me to even consider buying them quite a while ago. Unfortunately, I have bad news on that front. This year’s release is the most expensive yet, with a suggested retail price of $220. So, even though I’ve been tasting and covering these releases since the 2009 edition, not all of you may have my level of experience and knowledge of the product. Let’s go over that a little first.

What is the Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch bourbon?

Every fall, Four Roses releases a bourbon that showcases their ten bourbon “recipes.” They have two mash bills and five yeast strains, which gives them a huge advantage when it comes to blending bourbons (don’t let them hear you call it blending, though; they’re still smarting over being forced to be a Blended Whiskey brand by corporate overlords for decades). They use all ten recipes for their main bourbon, one recipe (OBSV) for the Single Barrel, four (OBSK, OBSO, OESK, and OESO) for the Small Batch, and six (OBSV, OBSK, OBSF, OESV, OESK, OESF) for the Small Batch Select. The yearly Limited Edition Small Batch allows them to experiment with recipes and combinations not used in the main product line. In the past, releases have even used the Q yeast, one of my favorites, though not one that many people prefer. They also tend to use much older products than their mainline bourbons.

Ok, you listed a lot of codes in that last explanation. What do they mean?

The codes are a legacy of being part of the Seagram’s family before it disintegrated at the turn of the millennium. Each code corresponds to a specific combination of mash bill and yeast. Every code starts with "O," the old Seagram’s designation for the current Four Roses Distillery (they had a lot of distilleries). The second letter designates which mash bill is being used: "B" for the 35% rye mash bill or "E" for the 20% rye mash bill, the only two that Four Roses still uses. The third letter will always be "S" because it stands for “Straight Whiskey,” another legacy of Seagram’s diverse product portfolio. The final letter indicates the yeast strain: "V" for delicate fruit notes, "K" for slight spice, "O" for rich fruit notes, "Q" for floral notes (which I love), and "F" for herbal notes. Now, F and Q yeasts tend to make my favorite Four Roses bourbons. I love the herbal and fruity ones. If it tastes like JuicyFruit gum, I’m on board.

Great. So, which recipes are used in the Limited Edition Small Batch this year?

Great question. Brent Elliott used four batches of three different recipes this year: 39% of the product is a 16-year-old OESF, 31% is a 12-year-old OBSV, 23% is a 15-year-old OESK, and the final 7% is a 20-year-old OBSV. All barrels used in this batch were from the bottom three levels of Four Roses’ single-story warehouses.

This year’s release uses a 16-year-old batch of OESF, which I should love, but at that age, there’s a chance that the distillate influence has diminished. Barrels tend to take over in the double-digit ages. Master Distiller Brent Elliott backed this up during his media availability, noting that the OESF batch used "isn’t as typical of some of the ‘F’ strains." He continued that the barrel had taken over, with only echoes of the initial distillate left, and that it was included mainly for mouthfeel.

So, is it any good?

Let’s find out.

Four Roses 2024 Limited Edition Small Batch

Purchase Info: This sample was supplied to me at no cost for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $220 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $14.67

Nose: Caramel apple, milk chocolate, oak, and vanilla. Reminds me of a cross between a Milky Way candy bar and apple cider.

Mouth: Cinnamon, cocoa, oak, caramel, vanilla and hints of fruit.

Finish: Medium to long in length and warm. Notes of Cinnamon, herbal anise, and cola.

Thoughts: Let me just state off the bat that this is a good bourbon (and if you thought there was a "but" coming, here it is), but I’m relatively disappointed—not in the liquid itself, but in the liquid compared to its predecessors. For me, the great thing about Four Roses is that they have the opportunity to make bourbon that’s well outside the stereotypical bourbon flavor profile, even if their flagship product, Four Roses Single Barrel, sticks fairly close to the vanilla/caramel/spice stereotype. To me, this tastes like the barrel took over too much. Some people love that; I don’t. If you’d given me this without a label, I couldn’t have told you who made it. It could have been an extra-aged bourbon from Four Roses, Heaven Hill, Diageo, or many others. Don’t get me wrong, I like it, but these used to “Wow!” me. This one doesn’t, and for almost $15 per pour, it should “Wow” everyone who tastes it. So even if I see this (I won’t; I live in a state that gets little and has even less that isn’t in a lottery), I’ll probably pass. $220 for a single bottle of whiskey is a bit too rich for my blood, even if I am a fanboy.

I need to get my hands on some of those F or Q Four Roses batches again. Preferably around ten years old. That’s my happy place. Brent, if you’re reading…hook a guy up, will ya? 😉

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

Penelope Toasted Rye Whiskey

I’d like to thank ByrnePR and Penelope Bourbon for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

It's a good day today. I think I have the anniversary trip for my wife and me planned out. Just need to run the last bit past her. Yesterday, I reached out to Delta about why I was bumped off our direct flight to one with a layover, and they responded by changing me to a flight on a different day where I wasn’t sitting by my wife. Not at all what I was asking for, and after speaking to a manager, I decided to cancel the flight and move on from Delta for a while. So now: road trip. Not as rough of a timeline as last time, nor as long of a drive, so it should be okay.

But like I said, it's a good day. Not only did I get that pesky anniversary trip planned, but the sun is out! I swear, after a drought the last two years, Mother Nature is making it up to us by giving us all the rain we missed and then some. And though I’m glad I do not need to water the garden, I am very glad that I can see the sun today. Minnesota gets gloomy enough with our nine months of gray winter skies.

The final reason it’s a good day is I get to write about a delicious rye whiskey today. And as you can see from the photo above, I’ve been enjoying the heck out of this one. But before we get into the tasting notes, let’s take a look at what the company has to tell us about this one. They went through all the trouble of giving us all the geeky data, we might as well read it. But first, the marketing speak:

Our Toasted Series is a testament to the power of serendipity. When we began to explore toasted finishes, we weren’t expecting each barrel to be so different — so we decided to embrace this variety of chars and toasts that make every bottle in our Toasted Series truly one-of-a-kind.

After full maturation in charred new American oak barrels, we finished 100% straight rye whiskey in a new, freshly toasted barrel.  While it can be hard to predict the flavor profile of each bottle in our Toasted Series, the deep notes of vanilla imbued by the toasting process add another dimension to our signature flavor profile.  Whether you’re into a Heavy Toast or Lighter Char, our Toasted Series truly offers something for everyone. 

That’s the serendipity of Penelope.

Now onto the good stuff. This rye whiskey is made from MGP’s 95% rye mashbill (it took me a couple of minutes to understand that the “100% straight rye whiskey” in the marketing speak above was just saying “no additives” and not referring to the mashbill). The whiskey was aged for six years before being put into a second barrel that was charred to a level two and toasted to a heavy toast level. This is the second release of Toasted Rye and has a suggested retail price of $74.99.

Penelope Toasted Rye

Purchase Info: This bottle was provided at no cost for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $74.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $5.00

Details: 6 years old. 50% ABV. Mashbill: 95% rye, 5% malted barley.

Nose: Cinnamon, spearmint, cedar, and honey.

Mouth: Strong, but not overpowering, oak hits first with notes of cinnamon, dark chocolate, caramel, mint, and cedar following after.

Finish: Bright and vibrant with medium length. Notes of cinnamon, mint, and cedar.

Thoughts: I like this one. It's hitting all my favorite rye notes like mint, cedar, and cinnamon. There is just enough oak to support the delicious rye notes without taking over. There is some sweetness to it, especially when consumed out of a rocks glass rather than tasted in a Glencairn. Overall, I really like it.

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

McMann & Tate Cocktail Bitters

I’d like to thank McMann & Tate Cocktail Co. for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

IMAGE: Three bottles of McMann & Tate Cocktail Co. bitters: Bing Cherry, Wildly Aromatic, and Moroccan Orange, with dropper tops and colorful geometric labels, set against a green outdoor background.

A few weeks ago, a very nice person wrote to me offering a sample of their company’s cocktail bitters. As I am always in the mood to add to my bitters collection (seriously, I think I need to pare it down—three shelves full is a bit overkill), I happily accepted, as I’d never heard of the brand.

When the bitters arrived, well, let’s just say that I was smitten. I love, love, love the late 1950s-1960s “space age” style design language. Give me a kidney-shaped design element, and I’m going to perk right up. It’s the same design language that inspired my “retro” styled bourbon t-shirt and die-cut sticker (for sale now at BourbonGuyGifts.com). Though honestly, I didn’t lean into it as much as the designers of the McMann & Tate Cocktail Company brand did. So, without even tasting the bitters, I was on board with this. I just hoped that they tasted as good as they looked.

But before we get into that, who is McMann & Tate? And no, I don’t mean the fictional ad agency that employed the husband in the old Bewitched TV show (though the company might want to work on the ol’ SEO since the fictional agency was what filled the first page of Google). They are a cocktail ingredient company out of New Jersey. They sell nine types of bitters, four types of freeze-dried citrus wheel garnishes, and three types of flavored rim salts. And yes, they all look amazing.

I received three bottles from them: the Wildly Aromatic, the Moroccan Orange, and the Bing Cherry. These are the exact three flavors that we use most often in our house, having developed our own recipes for them over the years. I was most excited to try the aromatic. In my experience, one aromatic bitters can differ from another much more than one orange bitters from another orange bitters. Same with cherry.

When I test bitters, I tend to do it in the most reproducible way possible. Namely, I make my favorite non-alcoholic, non-mind-altering drink (bitters and soda water) and then an Old Fashioned. Both are very simple drinks, and the differences from drink to drink are solely from the bitters. For the Old Fashioned, I used Maker’s Mark 101 proof as it is a pretty plain palette to paint the bitters across, and it tastes delicious. The impressions below encapsulate both testing methods.

McMann & Tate Cocktail Co. Bitters

Purchase info: These were sent to me at no charge for review purposes. Each bottle is $14.99 for a two-ounce bottle on the brand website.

Details: 40% ABV.

Bing Cherry Bitters

In soda water: Cherry and spice notes finishing with a nice bitterness.
In an Old Fashioned: Pairs well with Maker's 101. Brings out the inherent cherry notes in Maker's with a strong cherry finish.

Wildly Aromatic Bitters

In soda water: Baking spice on the nose. Mouth has a lot of Coca-Cola, vanilla, and backing spice notes.
In an Old Fashioned: Coca-Cola on the nose. Baking spice notes led by clove and anise on the mouth. Finish is Coca-Cola again.

Moroccan Orange Bitters

In soda water: Citrus zest on the nose. Bitter orange notes with very little spice.
In an Old Fashioned: Orange on the nose. Hints of orange on the mouth. This really shines on the finish with a strong orange flavor.

Thoughts:

The Cherry is great on its own. I’m a big fan. It didn’t show much on the nose, but the mouth and finish are very flavorful. For the Orange, I'd probably add a touch of aromatic if I was using it in an Old Fashioned. There isn’t quite the level of spice that I like in my Old Fashioned, but that is something I find in most brands of orange bitters. The Aromatic is delicious on its own. I was always on the Coke side of the Coke and Pepsi Cola Wars, and this reminds me of that tasty beverage. Made a damn fine old-fashioned. What I like about having multiple bitters, though, is using a couple of different ones together. The orange and cherry work nicely together. We’ve already discussed orange and aromatic. And cherry cola is always tasty. I’d recommend giving them a shot. I know I’ll be doing a little shopping after I’m done here.

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.