April 2022

Woodford Reserve Bourbon Personal Selection

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Woodford Reserve Bourbon Personal Selection
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Personally Selected By Discount Drinks Etc. #1
Selection Date: 02/19/2020

45.2% ABV
$46
Website
Woodford Reserve Personal Selection Bourbon

What the Distillery Says

WOODFORD RESERVE BOURBON PERSONAL SELECTION
Because each barrel matures at its own rate, they take on a character of their own. So you’ll taste several as you craft your own two barrel batch. Then we’ll bottle your selections, complete with personalized labels. It’s Craft Bourbon, and you’re one of its craftsmen.

Here’s what you’ll receive:

180 1 Liter bottles of your selected bourbon, offered in personalized, individually labeled bottles bearing your name
Personalized barrelhead (upon request)
Personalized barrel (upon request)
A private tour of the distillery and lunch with tasting group
Your name or company name on display at the Distillery

What Gary Says

Nose:  Caramel, charred oak, cigar paper, orange zest, cinnamon, hint of milk chocolate.
Palate:  Creamy mouthfeel, sweet caramel, vanilla, allspice, cinnamon, toffee, citrus with a hint of anise.
Finish:  Moderately long and drying with cinnamon and toffee.
Comments:  A solid bourbon overall; not too sweet, not too spicy. Woodford Reserve hasn’t been one of my favorites, and not because it is objectionable – but I suppose that it is priced as a premium and doesn’t stand out enough to me. I hadn’t had regular Woodford Reserve in a while, so I picked some up in order to bump this against that in a blind side-by-side, and I couldn’t tell the difference between the two. Note that the ‘Personal Selection’ isn’t a single barrel program, but the next smallest batch size of two barrels – so I had hopes that this might be more different. Maybe if this was higher proof it would stand out more from the standard offering, although again – nothing objectionable with this. Other selections might vary more from the standard depending upon who does the selection.

Rating: Stands Out

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KOVAL Susan for President Barreled Peach Brandy

/ / Other Spirits, Review / ,

KOVAL Susan for President Barreled Peach Brandy

43% ABV
$45
Website
KOVAL Susan for President Barreled Peach Brandy

What the Distillery Says

Ethereal and delicate, the nose has surprising hints of white tea, wild flower, and bergamot. Whiskey dringers will appreciate the subtle, peppery entry resulting from the barrel-aging process, while the soft essence of peach will appeal to those with sweeter tastes. The meticulous attention to detail employed to distill Susan for President Peach Brandy pays off in the warm, round and fuzzy mouthfeel that mimics biting into a fresh peach — surprising and alluring

Susan for President commemorates the creative legacy of KOVAL co-founder and president Sonat Birnecker Hart’s Aunt Susan – an artist, sculptor, and connoisseur of finer things. As part of her artistic approach to life, she casually campaigned for President of the World, passing out calling cards adorned with humorous, often risqué illustrations and slogans. In memory of Susan, this line of specialty spirits is a posthumous way for her to continue the campaign, for as she used to say, “the beat goes on,” and there is still much beauty in this world to celebrate.

What Gary Says

DISCLAIMER: I’m a whisk(e)y enthusiast, and not familiar with Brandy (so read at your own risk!)
Nose:  Peach, honey, notes of tea, allspice, nutmeg, citrus notes with bergamot.
Palate:  Peaches, vanilla, honey, subtle spearmint with a hint of cinnamon.
Finish:  Short and drying with peaches and cinnamon.
Comments:  Again – NOT a brandy connoisseur, and similar to the Santa Fe Spirits Apple Brand – a bit of a one-trick pony. But this did have more complexity than that, and a bit less one dimensional. Just not enough to make me ever think of converting from whisk(e)y.

Rating: Average/Stands Out

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Santa Fe Apple Brandy

/ / Other Spirits, Review /

Santa Fe Apple Brandy

40% ABV
$45
Website
Santa Fe Apple Brandy

What the Distillery Says

Northern New Mexico with its centuries-old fruit orchards of apple, peach, pear, and cherry has been producing top-quality brandies for years. What better way to preserve one’s crop of fruit than to ferment it into wine and distill it into brandy? The end product is like taking the mountain air, water, and earth, ripening these elements into a sweet nectar, and then distilling that nectar down to its bare essences. The finished brandy stores for years, refining its inherent complexity with age. Traditionally, it is coveted for its quality and only shared with family; it has never been publicly available.

But Colin Keegan has been looking forward to sharing the fruits of his apple orchard in Tesuque with the general public for years. Originally homesteaded by Archbishop Lamy’s groundskeeper (who is rumored to have resorted to water theft in order to keep his high-desert oasis in Tesuque thriving) the Keegans’ orchard produces apples that express the singular uniqueness of the lush, green, riparian valley at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains where they struggle to grow.

By blending his own apples with the fruit of neighboring New Mexico orchards, Colin has finally achieved his goal of producing Santa Fe Apple Brandy for the general public. Overtones of apple peel, vanilla, fruit, and cinnamon yield to hints of granitic earth, sweet water, and dry air. Each bottle is truly a treasure: a gift from the Keegan family for your enjoyment.

What Gary Says

DISCLAIMER: I’m a whisk(e)y enthusiast, and not familiar with Brandy (so read at your own risk!)
Nose:  Green apple, toasted oak with cinnamon and honey, slight grassy note.
Palate:  Vanilla, honey, apple cider cut with apple juice.
Finish:  Short to moderate in length, damp with apples and cinnamon.
Comments:  Again – NOT a brandy connoisseur, but for me this was pretty one dimensional. If you really like apples (insert Goodwill Hunting joke here), this might be right up your alley. I do like Apples, but personally would prefer a lower ABV and sweeter apple wine over this.

Rating: Average

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Cooper & Kings American Craft Brandy

/ / Other Spirits, Review /

Cooper & Kings American Craft Brandy

45% ABV
$35
Website
Copper & Kings American Craft Brandy

What the Distillery Says

A blend of superb exclusively copper pot-distilled brandy with real character and depth of flavor mingled in a unique, modern American style. Small batch distillation of superior, highly aromatic wine selected for exceptional quality.

Non-Chill Filtered For An Authentic, Uncorrupted Natural Flavor and natural color. Some Cloudiness, faint suspension or light sediment may be apparent at colder temperatures. Our ambition is to retain the integrity of the distillate with minimal intervention, with our signature mouth-feel and definitive aroma.

Matured in Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey and medium-char American white oak barrels for balance, complexity and a polished, velvety finish. The approximate blend is 90% Kentucky Bourbon Barrels & 10% New American Oak.

Tasting notes
Appearance: golden, caramelized oats, darkening harvest sun.
Aroma: caramel, honey, cherry wood, honeysuckle with a hint of melon and subtle floral bouquet.
Taste: luscious, ever so slightly oily & viscous. Honey, toasted oak, tobacco, dried stone fruit, feisty spice on the mid-palate.

What Gary Says

DISCLAIMER: I’m a whisk(e)y enthusiast, and not familiar with Brandy (so read at your own risk!)
Nose:  Honey, fruity with cherry, apples and kiwi, floral with subtle notes of tobacco.
Palate:  Sweet with honey, cherry, melon pepper (and maybe a bit of chili) spice.
Finish:  Moderate in length, damp with fading fruit and pepper spice.
Comments:  Of the three samples included in the Flaviar tasting box (The Brandy Bunch Vol. 2), this had the most complexity – but it still left me wanting more. Which might just mean I don’t care for brandy.

Rating: Stands Out

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McConnell’s 5 Year Old Irish Whisky

/ / Irish Whiskey, Review /

McConnell’s Irish Whisky Aged 5 Years

42% ABV
$30-$35
Website
McConnells 5 Year Old Irish Whisky

What the Producer Says

It’s all in the Blend: Creamy, Citrus, Floral, Fruity & Smoky.
The perfect blend between malted barley & grain and the special handpicked bourbon barrels add a delicate and subtle sweetness with a deep oak woodiness & light char to the finish.
Nose: Light citrus notes, peppered spice and vanilla undertones.
Taste: Earthy fruits, butterscotch & vanilla sweetness from the bourbon casks, white pepper followed by an oak woodiness.
Finish: Sweet, spice, oak, with lingering ripe fruits.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Vanilla sponge cake, orange creamsicle, cereal grains, touch of oak.
Palate:  Creamy vanilla, sweet malty grain, subtle lemon candy note with honey.
Finish:  Short with a bit of pepper, honey and a salty, sour oak note.
Comments:  Not objectionable, but also not particularly memorable. Both the nose and the palate have a thickness to them which I do appreciate, as well as the age statement (even if 5 years old isn’t that old – I always appreciate transparency). I enjoyed this, although the maturation in ex-bourbon casks only does leave it with less complexity. In a blind side-by-side with Jameson, whose blend includes some ex-sherry casks, I preferred the Jameson personally as it brought some fruit to the party. And given that Jameson is less expensive, I’d go that route (although if you value the packaging, this is a more attractive, heavy bottle). You may be wondering “Hey, don’t they use the ‘e’ in whiskey for Irish?”  You wouldn’t be wrong, but either is acceptable, and their site explains that the ‘e’ was added to differentiate Irish whiskey in the 1900s and their brand didn’t need such nonsense.  That’s not what Irish Distiller’s purports here, but regardless – at this point it’s really just marketing.

Rating: Average

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