March 2024

Bourbon de Luxe (National Distillers)

/ / Bourbon, Review, The Collector's Cabinet / ,

Bourbon de Luxe
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
National Distillers (dusty)

40% ABV
$8.49
Bourbon de Luxe Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

What the Bottle Says

Bottled under United States Government Supervision by The Bourbon de Luxe Distillery Co. Frankfort, KY. Aged 4 Years

NOTE: The bottle has a tax stamp from the State of Georgia, as well as a ‘faux tax seal’ over the enclosure. The stamp on the bottle indicates it was made in 1987. There is no government warning on the label (which was mandated beginning in November 1989). The first part of the UPC is 86259, which identifies it as a product of National Distillers.

What Gary Says

Nose: Butterscotch over vanilla ice cream with a bit of caramel and nutmeg.
Palate: Creamy, caramel, vanilla cream, hint of butterscotch with a bit of toffee and cinnamon.
Finish: Short to moderate in length with caramel and faint spice.
Comments:  As far as dusty, glut-era National Distiller’s bourbon goes, this isn’t close to the top end. Wouldn’t go so far as to call it ‘bottom shelf’ since it is straight bourbon with a four year age statement, but more middle of the road. Given the late 80s, this bottle very likely has some whiskey that is older than four years old. If you’ve never had dusty ND bourbon, this is a treat! It holds a special place for me as being one of the first dusty whiskey finds I made in the wild in April 2013 (along with a tax stamped Old Charter that I had to pour out; was just horrible). This has that butterscotchy note that ND is well known for, and has a nicer mouthfeel than most 4 yr, 80 proof bourbon would. While not very old, it does benefit from some time in the glass, and I find myself appreciating the nose more than the palate. This isn’t a complex pour by any means. The whiskey itself I’d rate as ‘Stands Out’, but throwing a ‘Must Try’ in there if you’ve never had it (and if you can come across it for reasonable money).

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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Laphroaig 10 Year Cask Strength Batch 012

/ / Islay, Review, Scottish Whisky / ,

Laphroaig 10 Year Cask Strength
Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Batch 012, Bottled Feb 2020

60.1% ABV
$85-$110
Website
Laphroaig 10 Year Cask Strength Batch 012 Islay Single Malt Whisky

What the Distillery Says

Three words can describe Batch 12 with unfettered honesty – full, uncompromising, powerful. We invite you to uncork this particular offering of our Laphroaig 10 Year Old Cask Strength to experience the purest taste of the land, sea, and air of Islay. Its distinctive flavor comes from being barrier-filtered (which removes unwanted char particles) and then bottled directly from the barrel after a decade has passed.

This 60.1% vol cask strength full-bodied whisky is a result of this laborious process. There is a smokiness of renown present, as well as particular depths that speak to both an unrestrained sweetness and spiciness. The palate can be overwhelmed by the flavor of fudge, cinnamon, and toffee, as fragrances of leather, vanilla, and pipe tobacco fill the nose. A little watering of the whisky can reveal more features of sea salt and peat smoke.

Colour: Tawny.
Nose: Sweet cereals with biscuit notes, fresh oak, smoked cedar and Manuka honey. Amsterdam pipe tobacco, shoe polish and old leather combined with a touch of waxy church candle, vanilla cream, nutmeg and oak extracts.
Palate: Sweet and spicy, with burnt oak staves, barbecued marshmallows, toffee and sea salt, vanilla and Belgium caramel waffles. Roasted coffee fudge cream on sticky toffee pudding, with a hint of white pepper and crushed cinnamon.
Finish: Floral with spicy oak tannins, iodine and sea salt.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Smokey seaweed, wet bandages, creosote, salty sea air, hint of sulfur, bit of caramel, smoked meat with lemongrass.
Palate:  Warm and oily mouthfeel, peaty and peppery with honeyed biscuits, hint of toffee and lemon.
Finish:  Long with peat, apricots, smoke and iodine.
Comments:  Classic Laphroaig! If you don’t know, it is hard to describe in a way that sounds appealing. In my experience, Laphroaig (and most other Islay peated single malts) can be very polarizing. I don’t know many folks who are on the fence; they either like it a fair amount, or really dislike it pretty strongly. I fall into the ‘like it alot’ camp. In fact Laphroaig 10 Year Cask Strength (batch 003, January 2011, 55.3% ABV) was my first ever single malt scotch whisky purchase. I shared that story here so I won’t repeat it. In fact, I was down to the last 2 ounces of that bottle (which had been decanted more than once, so please hold off on the comments about air time, etc) so I decided to do a side-by-side. This batch 012 definitely had a sharper edge to it, was a bit less sweet and not quite as well balanced. I mistakenly thought I had reviewed that already and didn’t take detailed notes – sorry about that (the only other batch to date we have reviewed is batch 005 which Richard was a fan of). To be clear, while I preferred batch 003, there wasn’t anything off-putting about this one. I find that this makes an excellent smoky old fashioned, with no smoking of glass required!

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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Midleton Very Rare Irish Whiskey 2014

/ / Irish Whiskey, Review /

Midleton Very Rare Irish Whiskey 2014
Blended Irish Whiskey

40% ABV
$260 to $2,000 (range from new to vintage at auction)
Website
Midleton Very Rare 2014 Irish Whiskey

What the Distillery Says

Since 1984, each Master Distiller of Midleton Very Rare uses their eye for detail, their passion for quality whiskey and their exemplary skill to create the pinnacle of Irish whiskey, our special vintage release.

NOTE: The 2014 vintage was the first year that Brian Nation signed off on (following the legendary Barry Crockett), and is a blend of pot still and grain whiskies, believed to be aged from 12 to 22 years old.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Floral and fruity, poached pears, peaches, melon, roses, honeysuckle, soft oak and vanilla crème brûlée.
Palate:  Fruit salad with pears, apples, cherries, peaches, vanilla, honey, bit of toffee before a citrus note and a subtle mineral note.
Finish:  Short to moderate in length with dried fruit, a hint of cereal and vanilla.
Comments:  This is a nice layered dram with nuanced complexity, but a lot of work to unpack. If you didn’t let it sit and open up and just poured and sniffed at – may not have appreciated all it has going on. That said, while complex, it is a LOT of work to get after. Given the suspected age (and price, although many thanks to Richard for biting the bullet and sharing a sample!) I had higher hopes for the mouthfeel, and I can’t help but wonder if this would have been just lovely at 46% or more. Don’t get me wrong – if someone has one open and is offering me a pour, I’m not turning it down – but also wouldn’t pay the retail (let alone insane auction prices) for this one.

Rating: Stands Out

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New Riff 6 Year Malted Rye Whiskey

/ / Review, Rye Whiskey /

New Riff 6 Year Malted Rye Bottled in Bond
Kentucky Straight Malted Rye Whiskey

50% ABV
$65
Website
New Riff 6 Year Malted Rye Bottled In Bond Whiskey

What the Distillery Says

This style of whiskey is made of 100% malted rye grain, which is quite rare, even in today’s craft distilling scene. Plump, medium-full palate; finely dovetailed elegant spices; saltwater taffy, fruits, clove, and an interesting toasty – malty note. The finish is focused spice with clove and pink peppercorn. At six years old, our New Riff Malted Rye Bottled in Bond Without Chill Filtration is the oldest New Riff whiskey yet released, and will remain at six years as something of an exclamation point atop our standard portfolio.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Thick, cloves, figs, raisins, anise, tangerine, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar with a hint of toasted orange zest.
Palate:  Creamy mouthfeel, fruity with blood orange, ginger, apples, vanilla, hint of grapefruit, cinnamon, anise, clove and mint.
Finish:  Moderately long, drying with honey, citrus and a bit of caramel.
Comments:  As a rye fan, I’m absolutely loving this. My first taste of any kind of malted rye was a dusty Lot 40 (which to be clear, this doesn’t remind me of in the least – entirely different beast but in a great way). New Riff is right that 100% malted rye is pretty rare. The act of malting any grain is going to add some complexity and costs versus simply milling dried grain and mashing. Given that, this price point is quite reasonable, and I’m excited that New Riff is planning to continue this (and maybe even offer some limited barrels with more age, not that this is immature by any stretch?) This is more heavy on the spice notes of clove and anise than a non-malted rye. I would speculate that this would be an excellent cocktail rye, but I enjoyed it way too damn much neat to find out. Another delightful offering from the fine folks at New Riff.

Rating: Must Try

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