Bourbon

Basil Hayden’s 10 Year Old Bourbon

40% ABV
$60
Website

We would like to thank Beam Suntory and Multiply for sending us a sample to review.

What the Distiller Says

Basil Hayden’s® is excited to release Basil Hayden’s® 10 Year Old Bourbon, a special, extra-aged limited offering just in time for the holiday season. Debuting on shelves in December 2018, Basil Hayden’s 10 Year Old Bourbon will return in limited quantities each holiday season.

Basil Hayden’s 10 Year Old Bourbon features the same high-rye bourbon recipe that Basil Hayden’s fans know and love, amplified by aging the bourbon in American Oak barrels longer to offer an added layer of complexity to an already distinctive flavor profile. Basil Hayden’s trademark spice shines through as the perfect complement to the caramel sweetness and wood flavors, making the whiskey a memorable one for fans and newcomers alike. Basil Hayden’s 10 Year Old Bourbon continues to embody the spirit of the
brand while remaining approachable at 80 proof.

TASTING NOTES
Playing on the same great flavors that Basil Hayden’s Bourbon fans know and love, this limited-edition release offers the following characteristics:
Proof: 80
Color: Golden Amber
Aroma: Big oak, hints of char, vanilla and rye
Taste: Oak balanced by caramel sweetness and rye spice
Finish: Lightly smoky with a subtle hint of char
Sipping Suggestions: Best enjoyed sipped neat or on the rocks

What Gary Says

Nose:  Rich, chocolate orange, oak, vanilla w/ anise and a hint of clove.
Palate:  Soft and creamy mouthfeel, sweet  with vanilla, citrus spice, salted caramel and a note of mint.
Finish:  Moderately long, damp with trailing citrus notes and oak.
Comments:  In a world where lately the big limited editions are high proof, Basil Hayden stays true to its brand with an 80 proof pour that delivers a lot of flavor – while maintaining the subtle/nuance that the brand is known for.  Basil Hayden was 8 year age stated originally, having lost that a few years back – but this shows how lovely the whiskey can be with a few extra years in the barrel.  It is Basil Hayden with the volume turned up (not ‘cranked up, break the knob off’, but definitely a step or two up).  The citrus notes (very ‘rye-like’, which isn’t a surprise given the high-rye mashbill) are familiar, but the chocolate was a nice touch that I don’t usually get with Basil Hayden.  I can’t find anything here which would leave fans of Basil Hayden disappointed, and a fair amount that I think they’re really enjoy.

Rating: Stands Out

Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch Bourbon
44% ABV
$40
Website

What the Distiller Says
SMALL BATCH BOURBON WHISKEY
A traditional bourbon, from an untraditional place.
Our original, flagship, and defining product, the award-winning Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch Bourbon Whiskey.

ONLY WYOMING INGREDIENTS
The Big Horn Basin has everything we need to make great bourbon, and it is important to us to source our ingredients locally. The consistency and uniqueness of these whiskey elements make for a better bourbon that stands apart. It’s the Whiskey of the West.

LOCAL CORN, WHEAT, BARLEY, RYE AND NO GMOS.
WE KNOW WHO GROWS. Brent Rageth from Rageth Farm in Byron, Wyoming has worked with Wyoming Whiskey from the start to select strains of non-GMO corn, wheat, barley, and winter rye for specific starch and sugar yields, the building blocks of bourbon making. We use a corn strain that matures in 92 days, and is hand-selected by Brent. Rageth Farms also delivers summer and winter wheat that is grown exclusively for Wyoming Whiskey, and a winter rye that will be the key ingredient for a couple of rye products that are on the near horizon.

THE YEAST
THE SECRET STUFF. While our Mash Bill is in clear view, ask any distiller about their yeast and you’ll usually get a deafening silence. We’ll give you this much. To attain our profile, we use a combination of 2 yeasts; a high-yield yeast and a second proprietary yeast that yields a bit less, but produces a slightly fruitier alcohol.

TASTING NOTES
COLOR: dark amber
NOSE: floral, with a hint of vanilla bean and caramel pudding
PALATE: floral with brown baking spices and browned butter, vanilla crème, caramel, and a hint of cinnamon
MOUTHFEEL: light and smooth with vanilla bean and cinnamon spice filling the mouth cavity, hint of mint
FINISH: medium length finish with toffee. Spice and vanilla fade.

What Gary Says
Nose:  Vanilla flan, caramel toffee with a hint of nutmeg, oak, and subtle floral notes.
Palate:  Sweet caramel creme candies, vanilla, honey, subtle uptick of cinnamon and nutmeg.
Finish:  Moderate in length, soft with vanilla notes fading.
Comments:  Many ‘craft’ distilleries start up with young product aged in small barrels. When Wyoming Whiskey got started, it was younger (labels included a 3 yr age statement), but they age all of their whiskey in new, 53 gallon white American Oak barrels from Independent Stave (char level 4 for those keeping score at home). For those unfamiliar with their history, Steve Nally (former Maker’s Mark master distiller and 2007 Bourbon Hall of Fame inductee) was their first master distiller, and was instrumental in the setup of the distillery, selection of the mashbill, and I’m sure insisted on the use of 53 gallon barrels (not to suggest anyone else in Wyoming Whiskey was looking to do different). His experience was invaluable at establishing a quality distillery. He left a few years back to return to Kentucky where he had lived most of his life, and while his involvement at Wyoming Whiskey isn’t any secret, I was disappointed that there is zero mention of him on their web-site (which otherwise is very well done, with a lot of information). I get that they want to focus on the here/now, and the current distillery team, but seems to me that if a member of the Bourbon Hall of Fame helped setup my distillery – and I’m emphasizing tradition, etc – I’d call that out.
Enough about all that – the whiskey itself is a pleasant, soft, smooth sipping bourbon. I believe fans of wheated bourbons (such as Maker’s Mark, the Weller lineup, Larceny, the Old Fitz lineup, etc) would find this a pleasant enough pour. It isn’t a complex pour, and at 5 yrs old (per their web-site, this is 5 yrs old; the label inexplicably lacks any age statement) you wouldn’t expect a lot of complexity. There isn’t anything offputting. In fact, and I mean this as a sincere compliment, I would never have guessed this as a “craft whiskey”.  Aged in 53 gallon barrels for a respectable period of time, and lacking those tannic notes or ‘young whiskey’ notes often associated with craft whiskey, this stands out big time in that category.  That said, for the money, there are plenty of other bourbons I’d pick up (although to be fair, I’m more of a rye-mashbill bourbon kinda guy). If I lived in or near the state of Wyoming and wanted to support local business, different story – I wouldn’t hesitate to pick one up (or explore their other offerings). I do understand the pricing difference (larger distilleries have long paid the enormous expense associated with their fixed costs), and if you’re supporting other local business, this would be a bargain in comparison to most craft whiskey I’ve had (and not just a bargain, but a better executed whiskey!)
Rating: Stands Out

We would like to thank Wyoming Whiskey and Colangelo & Partners for sending us a sample to review.

Sonoma Distiller’s Edition: Cherrywood Smoked Bourbon Whiskey
47.8% ABV
$50
Website

What the Distiller Says

About Sonoma Distilling Co.
Owner/whiskeymaker Adam Spiegel, distilling since 2010
Non-GMO grains milled in-house
Direct-fire heated 250-gallon Copper Alembic pot stripping stills
Barrel size: 15, 30 and 53 gallons of new American Oak from Minnesota & Missouri
3rd degree charred, 12-24 month dry aged wood

Seasonal Release: Fall

MASH BILL
67% Corn (Origin: California & Canada)
20% Rye (Origin: California & Canada)
13% Cherrywood Smoked Barley (Origin: Wyoming; Smoked in Petaluma, CA)

AGED: A minimum of fifteen months with majority of blends above two years

FLAVOR PROFILE: Maraschino cherry, smoke, allspice, and vanilla

What Gary Says
Nose:  Young, vanilla, corn and cherry with a fresh oak note; a hint of clove.
Palate:  Sweet and creamy to start, rich cherry pie with currants, allspice, nutmeg and a hint of root beer – with subtle smoke underneath throughout.
Finish:  Short to moderate in length with a bit of root beer and subtle pepper spice.
Comments:  The cherrywood smoking is a mild influence, although clearly present.  Compared to Sonoma Bourbon, this has more flavor, and I like how the higher barley content plays here.  I do find it a little odd that their bourbon is a wheated mashbill, but for this they went with rye (as that certainly also makes it different).  A very unique pour and enjoyable pour, although it leaves me wondering how this would be if the smaller barrels weren’t part of the mix.
Rating: Stands Out

We would like to thank Sonoma Distilling Co. and Verdant PR & Marketing for sending us a bottle to review.