Category Archives: Whiskey Reviews

Barrell Bourbon Single Barrel 14 Year

December 12, 2020 Matthew J. Brown Leave a comment

This is the first out of a set of secondhand bottles I’m calling Troy’s Treasure Trove. Thanks, Troy, for giving me a good deal on some good whiskey. According to the Total Wine website, this retails at present for $99.99.

As you can see from the label, this is a single barrel, cask strength, straight bourbon aged 14 years and bottled at cask strength, coming in at just shy of 110 proof. This bourbon is distilled in Tennessee and bottled in Louisville, Kentucky. Barrel number is E552, selected by Total Wine Texas.

This whiskey is a deep copper color. It has some sweet fruit on the nose, apple perhaps, but it is not very fragrant.

The pallet is very fruity, golden raisins, sweet cherries, oak, black pepper, a little bit of sugarcane and red grape skins, with just a tiny overtone of bitter and a slightly oily feel. The finish is red currant and hot cinnamon candy. Like any cask strength bourbon, it is a little “hot” taken neat. A splash of filtered water takes the heat off the back end, but it also brings out a bit of a bitter note & the wood influence becomes a little too prominent. I actually recommend you take this one neat.

Alternatively, I tried it with a tiny splash of a slightly saline mineral water (Topo Chico), and that gave a more balanced experience than the still water, and brought out some floral notes.

I like a fruity bourbon, but I prefer darker or stone fruits over the brighter/sweeter fruit and floral notes in this one. Still, this is a really interesting bourbon all around, even if it is not quite as balanced as I would like. I’d say A-.

Meta-Blogging, Whiskey Reviews

A Great Recommendation for an American Whiskey Sampler

May 15, 2014 Matthew J. Brown Leave a comment

Chuck Cowdery, a great America whiskey historian and the self-publisher of the Bourbon Country Reader (remarkable in its own right as a snail-mailed, paper newsletter in this day and age), has posted a great recommendation for those looking to give a whiskey gift (he posted it in the context of Mothers and Fathers days), to have as a good start at American whiskey starter collection, or those interested in learning more about the American whiskey industry—that is, bourbon, Tennessee, and rye whiskey, which focused on the political economy and material production process behind our whiskeys:

Micro-distilleries aside, every drop of American whiskey (bourbon, Tennessee and rye) is made by eight companies at 13 distilleries. The gift? A sampler of one bottle from each, either the eight or the 13.

I particularly like the distillery-based suggestion:

One from each of the 13 distilleries: Maker’s Mark (Maker’s Mark), Knob Creek (Jim Beam Clermont), Bookers (Beam Booker Noe), Woodford Reserve (Woodford Reserve), Old Forester Birthday Bourbon (Brown-Forman), Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel (Jack Daniel’s), George Dickel No. 12 (George Dickel), Bulleit Rye (MGP), Evan Williams Single Barrel (Heaven Hill), Four Roses Single Barrel (Four Roses), Buffalo Trace (Buffalo Trace), Ridgemont Reserve 1792 (Barton 1792), Rare Breed (Wild Turkey).

I suggest you head over and read the whole thing!

Whiskey Reviews

Bowman Brothers Pioneer Spirit

March 13, 2013 Matthew J. Brown Leave a comment

According to the label: Copper Still, Triple Distillation, Virginia Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Small Batch, 90°

Price: $30.

In honor of the recently deceased Truman Cox of the A. Smith Bowman distillery, I picked up a bottle of this today, the lowest level of their small batch bourbons. According to Chuck Cowdery, “The whiskey is distilled at Buffalo Trace in Frankfort. The new make is sent to Virginia where it is distilled a third time and entered into barrels. Aging and bottling is done in Virginia,” in the copper pot still mentioned on the label. No age statement, nor does it mention when it was bottled, though the number “12221” printed on the bottle suggest it may be have been bottled 2012-22-1. It does have a cute fake tax stamp on it.

Light tawny honey color. Beautiful sweet nose, fruity and floral, honey and apples. Tastes less sweet than the nose would lead you to believe, with crisp and fresh taste, maybe white grapes and honeydew melon, along with some dried apricot. If there is any problem with this one, it is a slight bitter, astringent note on the finish, which is accompanied by a nice, darker fruit flavor (raisins or dried plums or Beaujolais nouveau).

Overall, an interesting, nice change of pace from what I’m used to in the ryes and bourbons I’ve been drinking lately. I tend to like a lot of rye spice and wood influence, and there’s very little of that here. It is less often I go for the sweeter stuff, though I do occasionally like a really nice wheater (I love Old Weller Antique 107°), and I do like Angel’s Envy, which is definitely on the sweet side. This isn’t really like any of those. Not sure I’ve had a bourbon I would describe as crispy before. Let’s call it a B+.

What this really does is make me want to try the John J. or the Abraham Bowman.

Whiskey Reviews

Russell’s Reserve: Then and Now

August 7, 2012 Matthew J. Brown Leave a comment

My first successful dusty hunt was almost a complete accident. Recently, we stayed in Lawrence, Kansas for a few weeks, and up the street from the house we rented was a seemingly unassuming liquor store called Jensen Liquor. Honestly, I wouldn’t have even been there if my friend Dale (a local) hadn’t been looking for lime cordial to mix with the rum we happened to find at the house. The nearby (and much larger) Cork & Barrel somehow didn’t have it in stock, so we trucked across the street to this other place. Jensen turned out to be a goldmine of rare liqueurs (including the Allspice Dram that Dale had been seeking for his upcoming Tiki party) and a good number of semi-dusty whiskeys. I picked myself up a bottle of Wild Turkey Russell’s Reserve 101°, which has since been discontinued and replaced by Russell’s Reserve 90° (no mention of Wild Turkey anywhere on the bottle). The bottom of the glass bottle has a faint raised “04” which leads me to believe it was bottled around 2004 (a trick I learned from sku). This about matches the date it was discontinued, according to the chatter about it I’ve found on the web. (For reference, I’m guessing that the 90° Russell’s is a 2010 or 2011, given the “10”.)

With this review, I’m going to do something a little bit different and compare the older Wild Turkey Russell’s Reserve (WTRR) head to head with the new stuff, Russell’s Reserve 90° (RR90).
Continue reading Russell’s Reserve: Then and Now →

Whiskey Reviews

Angel’s Envy Bourbon Review

July 31, 2012 Matthew J. Brown 2 Comments

Angel’s Envy is Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey that has been finished in port pipes, which is unusual for bourbon but common for scotch. It is the brainchild of Lincoln Henderson. Angel’s Envy apparently skirts a line with respect to the arcane legalities of American whiskey labeling, as the Federal Standards of Identity for Bourbon are pretty strict as to what you can call “Bourbon.” This is why the bottle clearly indicates how it has been finished, to avoid any miscommunication that would defy those standards.

Age: At least 4 years (probably more like 5-7)
Proof: 86.6°
Price: $46.00
Volume:750mL

Color: Light golden honey. In lightness, almost closer to the color of many scotches than a normal bourbon. I would think that the port pipes would give it a darker color, but no.

Nose: Light and very sweet, with a clear whiff of vanilla, and also a bit of a light floral scent.

Palate: Nice and creamy, with vanilla and dried fruits prominent, especially dried apricot, and a little bit of fig drizzled with honey.

Finish: Glowing, with a bit of pepper and warming spices, medium length.

Overall: I love this whiskey. I’ve been holding on to this bottle for some time, taking a dram every now and again, and revising the tasting notes in my spreadsheet several times. It’s not perfect for every occasion, as it is definitely very sweet and also a bit low proof—you’re not going to want to drink this any way but neat. It is a fantastically crafted bourbon, and the peppery finish really clears the sweetness for the palate and gets you ready for the second dram. Hopefully we’ll see more innovation tempered by careful craftsmanship of this type in the future. Thank you, Mr. Henderson!

Rating: A

Whiskey Reviews

Baker’s Bourbon Review

July 29, 2012 Matthew J. Brown 4 Comments

Age: 7 years
Proof: 107°
Price: $43.00
Volume:750mL

Color: Medium-dark amber

Nose: Dry sawdust and hay. A splash of water brings out some nice sweet and floral notes.

Palate: Starts with candied fruit that evolves quickly into heat and spice, burns in the nose. The 107° really shows on this one. A splash of water helps, brings out lot of caramel, but it’s almost too sweet.

Finish: Nice and long, a lot of black pepper and oak.

Overall: Baker’s is a good bourbon, less rye than a lot of the Jim Beam small batch bourbons. It turns out to be a tricky bourbon to drink, though, since the heat really comes through when you take it neat, while water makes it almost too sweet. The big problem with Baker’s is the price: you can get better bourbon’s for less. Compare this to Old Weller Antique, which is the same proof without as much heat, definitely sweeter but easier drinking and more interesting overall, and usually only runs $25 or less.

Rating: B+