WhistlePig Single Barrel 10 yr

/ / Review, Rye Whiskey /

Whistlepig 10 Year Single Barrel Straight Rye Whiskey
Selection by World Beverage, Duluth GA
Barrel 15-52

57.45% ABV
$80
Website
Whistlepig 10 year Single Barrel Rye

What the Producer Says

WhistlePig produces a 100-proof, straight rye whiskey, aged for at least ten years through a unique double-barrel process. WhistlePig was released in the summer of 2010 to great critical acclaim, earning 96 points from Wine Enthusiast, their highest rating ever for a rye whiskey, a “highest recommendation” from Spirits Journal, as well as accolades from The Wall Street Journal, GQ, Forbes, Maxim, Imbibe Magazine, and many others. As Master Distiller Dave Pickerell notes, these extraordinary honors both “humble and set a high bar” for the company.
WhistlePig embodies the perfect combination of proof, purity, and age — hitting “the sweet spot” in all three categories. In short: more rye, all the proof, and the perfect age. All in. Full stop.

What Gary Says

Nose: Musty sour oak, herbal, apricots, subdued dried orange zest.
Palate: Warm, bright citrus spice balanced nicely with the oak, peppery into the finish
Finish: Medium, wet with the pepper kicking up
Comments: This was a private selection of Whistlepig 10yr, bottled at cask strength. I’ve thought Whistlepig 10yr at 100 proof was always a bit pricey for my taste, and even at a great price – was a bit apprehensive on pulling the trigger on this one. I am SO glad I got over that! This is a lovely rye, that takes a bit of water really well (but doesn’t require it). A few drops knocked some of the oak off the nose and palate, while not dampening the fruitiness.

Rating: Must Try

What Richard Says

Nose: Big rich hit of strong rye spice and minty comes jumping out. Citrus with notes of gingerbread cookies, licorice, honeysuckle, wisteria, and jasmine. Surprisingly little heat on the nose for the amount of alcohol.
Palate: Lime and blood orange zest floating over old leather, burnt caramel, white pepper, and polished oak.
Finish: The oak predominates but not in an overpowering way.
Comments: This is really a great rye. I’ve tried WhistlePig a few times and enjoyed it each time but I never bought a bottle until this one. The price is (in my opinion) still relatively high to comparable ryes but I can’t say I regret a penny of this purchase. A cracking whiskey for sure!

Rating: Must Try

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Evan Williams Single Barrel 2005 Vintage

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Evan Williams Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Single Barrel Vintage 2005
Barrel No 455
Barreled 2-17-2005
Bottled 2-18-2015
43% ABV
$25
Website
EVSB2005
What the Distillery Says:
Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage Bourbon is a five-time Whiskey of the Year award winner. Each year our Master Distillers Parker and Craig Beam select barrels that meet their exacting standards. It’s a bourbon that is vintage dated, meaning each bottle is marked with the vintage date it was put into oak and the year it was bottled.

Single Barrel tasting notes
Color: Delicate amber gold
Nose: Dark caramel, sweet oak & charred wood
Taste: Lush & spicey; oak with honey, apple & orange notes
Finish: Long, graceful and relaxed

What Gary Says:
Nose: Sweet oak followed by caramel, with hints of clove; bread baking.
Palate: Smooth, honey, lovely clean/crisp sweetness, a hint of orange sherry with a bit of spice on the back-end. The mouthfeel is a bit thin, but not distractingly so.
Finish: Moderate in length with a pleasant.
Comments: Very “Heaven-Hill-esq”, which is probably not helpful if you’ve not sampled a lot of whiskey from Heaven Hill.
Rating: Stands Out

What Richard Says:
Nose: Sweet, rich, and malty vanilla. Clove cigarettes, under cooked caramel, and chocolate orange candies.
Palate: Orange blossom honey with a slightly bland woodiness. It’s very light and kind of thin.
Finish: Heavier on the black pepper spice and oak.
Comments: This is still a nice dram and at a great price point but it seems to be thinning out a bit more and more in recent vintages. This 2005 is probably my least favorite in last five years or so but it’s still a stand out whiskey.
Rating: Stands Out

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Kinnickinnic Whiskey

/ / Other Whisk(e)ys, Review / ,

Great Lakes Distillery Kinnickinnic American Whiskey
43% ABV
$45
Website
GLD_2014_Whiskey
What the Distillery Says:
Kinnickinnic: [KIN-I-KUH-NIK] An Ojibwe word meaning “what is mixed”.

Our Kinnickinnic Whiskey is a blend of Straight Bourbon we have sourced from one of America’s finest distilleries and a Malt whiskey and a Rye Whiskey we produce here at Great Lakes Distillery. We bottle it at 86 proof and we don’t filter it so we can ensure ALL the very best flavor is making it into the bottle.

American Blended Whiskeys are typically a mixture of a little Whiskey and Neutral Grain Spirit (essentially vodka!). Rest assured, there is no Neutral Grain Spirit in Kinnickinnic. It’s 100% Whiskey, and possibly the only American Blended Whiskey made this way on the market.

About the name- On the south side of Milwaukee we see Kinnickinnic everywhere- there is a main street through the Bay View neighborhood and a river named for it and several businesses include it in their name. To keep it quick and simple for locals and outsiders alike, many abbreviate it “KK” in writing and conversation. Kinnickinnic is an Ojibwe word meaning a blend or mix of tobacco and other plants. (There’s a good description on the Wisconsin Historical Society site).

What does this have to do with whiskey? Well, we think there are some pretty good analogies- Bourbon is often described as having a fresh tobacco like flavor, and like those Native Americans we found blending our “tobacco” with another plant (in our case malted barley and rye) produced a truly unique and delicious spirit. In our own experiments we have also determined this whiskey which is spectacular neat or with a few ice cubes is great mixed too!

What Gary Says:
Nose: The malted barley is most prominent, vegetative and grassy with a subtle sweetness.
Palate: Light, young malt; bran cereal, a hint of corn sweetness.
Finish: Short to moderate; a bit boring.
Comments: For being a mixture of malt whisky, bourbon and rye – the malted barley component is the only one I’m really picking up on. Someone could have poured me this and told me it was a single malt whisky, and I wouldn’t have batted an eye. Not sure what the mixture is, but I wish it had more kick from the rye, and sweetness from the bourbon. I understand these smaller, craft distilleries can’t compete on price point, and I do appreciate their looking to blend other components in – but for the money I would have been disappointed.
Rating: Average

What Richard Says:
Nose: The nose is very corn forward. I would almost call this a Dickel if I didn’t know better.
Palate: Snickerdoodle sweetness with much less corn than the nose. Slightly astringent and a bit hot and harsh after the sweetness fades. Something that reminds me a bit of Ricola cough drops.
Finish: Hot chili pepper and fresh rubbed mint.
Comments: I’m Great Lakes praise for using actual whiskeys instead of grain neutral spirit blended with whiskey as some other bottlers have done. I also give the praise for being up front out the sourcing of their more aged component. Now that all the praise is done I have to say I find this young, harsh, and not really worth the $40+ price tag. Go grab a Buffalo Trace, Rittenhouse, Four Roses, or Evan Williams Bottled-In-Bond for half the price and be much happier.
Rating: Probably Pass

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Rock Hill Farms

/ / Bourbon, Review / ,

Rock Hill Farms Single Barrel Bourbon
50% ABV
$45 to $65
Website
rock-hill-farms-single-barrel
What the Distillery Says:
Named for the rich farmland along the Kentucky River, this 100 proof Single Barrel Bourbon Whiskey honors its Bluegrass roots, defined by rich tradition and smooth bourbon.

Tasting Notes:
Seductive aromatic notes of toasted walnut, dried red fruits, spice, cocoa and marshmallow. Flavors of dark chocolate, chocolate covered almond, coffee, tobacco and dark caramel. The finish is smooth, silky, toffee sweet and honeyed.

What Gary Says:
Nose: Stepping into a rickhouse in the fall, musty oak, bits of corn and cinnamon, with a hint of licorice.
Palate: Wow . . . (my exact thought was Austin Powers “yeah baby yeah!”) Silky sweet, caramel corn balanced very nicely with spice.
Finish: Moderately lingering, pleasant.
Comments: I first tried Rock Hill Farms at a restaurant, and was quite underwhelmed – so I was expecting the same. This completely changed my opinion. Very well balanced; the bit of corn on the nose gave me pause that it might be young, but the palate was something else. Being a single barrel, there is always a risk of variability there, but I’m definitely reconsidering picking up a bottle in the future (and not only because the bottle is pretty freaking cool as well).
Rating: Must Try

What Richard Says:
Nose: Cocoa powder, hair spray, cinnamon, dried cherries, raisin’s pulled of a box of raisin bran.
Palate: Burnt caramel, more cherries, dark chocolate truffles, toffee crisps covered in white chocolate ganache.
Finish: Dry cocoa powder and bits of honeysuckle.
Comments: I realize there is only so much time to review whiskey since this isn’t a paying gig but I can’t fathom why it has taken me so long to review this. The brand is about 20 years old but as with many Sazerac brands it has been in short supply lately. I grabbed this bottle on a lark when I saw a couple tucked away at a local retailer last fall. It was $65 in Atlanta but you can get it as low as $45 if you know where to look. This is made from the #2 rye bourbon mashbill at Buffalo Trace. That’s the same one used in Elmer T Lee, Blanton’s and Hancock Reserve. This is ridiculously drinkable. I pulled it out a few days ago with the guys in the neighborhood who had never tried and we almost killed the bottle. All that was left was enough for my formal review and a sample for Gary. If I see it again I will grab another for sure. At $45 it’s a must buy but in the $60+ range it’s something you should certainly at least try.
Rating: Must Buy/Must Try

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Henry McKenna 10 yr Bottled-In-Bond

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Henry McKenna Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Bottled-In-Bond Aged 10 Years, Barrel No: 1360
50% ABV
$30 to $35
Website
henry-mckenna-single-barrel-lrg-upd
What the Distillery Says:
In 1837, a young man from Ireland known for his remarkable whiskey-making skills, came to America with his family’s whiskey recipe that had been passed down for generations. Young Mr. McKenna settled in Kentucky and discovered the uniquely American drink known as Bourbon. McKenna instantly took a liking to Kentucky whiskey and set out to create a better Bourbon using his family’s recipe. To ensure the highest quality, he insisted that his Bourbon age in oak barrels before bottling. From this process, highly unusual for the time, emerged a remarkably smooth Bourbon boasting a distinctive character.

As the only extra aged Bottled-in-Bond Single Barrel Bourbon, Henry McKenna Single Barrel satisfies those looking for a real whiskey with real history. The super-premium status is conveyed through new packaging. The front label contains handwritten authentication of the barrel number and the barreled on date. It also emphasizes the Bottled-In-Bond designation and the 10 year age statement.

What Gary Says:
Nose: Oaky, subtly sweet with a citrus tinged fruitiness (although a bit astringent?)
Palate: Honey sweet, well balanced – not as much oak as I’d expect on a 10yr; really nice mouthfeel (not exactly creamy or silky, but somewhere in between.
Finish: Moderate in length.
Comments: I’ve only bought one Henry McKenna Single Barrel personally, and was so disappointed I’ve not bought a second. However I’ve tried several others prior, and a couple since – all of which have been a far sight better, including this sample (thanks Rich!) With any single barrel, variability is a risk you take – but at least they include the details on the label (so if you find a great barrel, you can pick up more – where some single barrel bourbons such as Elmer T Lee lack these important details). Considering the price point, age, and proof – I think this is a solid bourbon.
Rating: Stands Out

What Richard Says:
Nose: Nice vanilla and cinnamon interplay with oak notes.
Palate: Creamy in the mouth. Cinnamon, vanilla creme brulee, and a Hershey’s kiss milk chocolate note.
Finish: Dry with hints of black pepper and oak.
Comments: I found this particular bottle delicious but I’ve also noticed that the Henry McKennas seem to vary more from barrel to barrel than your typical single barrel bourbon. In general they range from average to stands out. If you can get it for around $30 then even if you get a less stellar barrel it’s a great cocktail bourbon for sure.
Rating: Stands Out

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