Review

Nikka Coffey Malt Whisky

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

Nikka Coffey Malt Whisky

45% ABV
$70-$75
Website
Nikka Coffey Malt Whisky

What the Distillery Says

The Coffey Still is the world’s first patented continuous still invented by Mr. Aeneas Coffey in 1830. Masataka Taketsuru valued the feature of this type of still, which retains the flavors of ingredients and also creates a distinctive texture.

Coffey Grain and Coffey Malt are Nikka’s signature grain whiskies which show the beauty of our Coffey Stills.

Coffey Malt is made from 100% malted barley. However it is not categorized as “malt whisky” but as “grain whisky” since it is not distilled in a pot still. This unique production method results in extraordinary flavors and texture.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Sweet malt with butterscotch, vanilla flan, over-ripe pears, subtle oak and spice
Palate:  Lovely fruit notes of peaches, pears, plums, cherries, a bit of coconut, with a viscous mouthfeel.
Finish:  Moderately long with notes of fruit salad.
Comments:  This is a very nice malt. On the sweet side to be sure, but not sickeningly sweet. I get a nice range of fruit flavors, but clearly a malt whisk(e)y. Really shows that a column or Coffey still can make some lovely whisk(e)y, which fans of bourbon have known for years.

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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Caol Ila Unpeated 18 Yr 2017 Release

/ / Islay, Review, Scottish Whisky /

Caol Ila 18 yr ‘Unpeated Style’
Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Natural Cask Strength
Special Release 2017

59.8% ABV
$125 (SRP @ release)
Website
Caol Ila 18 Yr Old Unpeated Style

What the Distillery Says

This unusual limited release 18 year old is the oldest unpeated CAOL ILA ever bottled and was matured in refill American Oak casks. It has a style as
clean and fresh as the pale sky that follows clearing rain, with a bitter-sweet warmth and an appetising salty edge. Crisp, smooth hints of fruit and a wild strawberry sweetness dance boldly across the tongue like flecks of foam over wind-lashed waves.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Cut hay, salted caramel and vanilla, strawberry greens, gentle smoke and a hint of salted sea air; a bit of water brings out more smoke and maritime notes.
Palate:  Rich and thick mouthfeel that starts soft and gradually warms, caramel with berries, apricots, peaches, pears, bit of allspice and smoke pick-up in the middle along with honey malt.
Finish:  Long with a warm and subtle spice nod.
Comments:  Wow – this is delicious! I like Caol Ila, and when I heard ‘unpeated’ I’ll admit that my immediate thought was ‘Folks, if it ain’t broke – don’t fix it’. I was curious how this would be without the peat, and I am so glad to have had a chance to try this. Just a lovely, complex dram that highlights the craftsmanship of the makers. Some might wonder if peated malt is a lower quality (where the peat can cover up some mistakes). This shows that isn’t the case. Takes water well, although drinks like it is closer to 50% than 60%.

Rating: Must Try

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New Riff Single Barrel Bourbon

/ / Bourbon, Review /

New Riff Single Barrel Bourbon

Distilled Fall 2015, Bottled Fall 2019
Barrel 15-4134
55.8% ABV
$50
Website
New Riff Single Barrel Bourbon

What the Distillery Says

BARREL PROOF WITHOUT CHILL FILTRATION
AGED AT LEAST 4 YEARS
HIGH RYE MASH BILL – 30 % RYE

New Riff Distilling’s core Bourbon expression is a genuinely high-rye, full bodied whiskey offering savory, spicy character, bottled at Barrel Proof without Chill Filtration. Featuring a mash bill of non-GMO grains at 65% corn, 30% rye, and 5% malted barley, it represents a new riff on Kentucky’s most hallowed whiskey traditions. Aged four years in 53-gallon toasted and charred new oak barrels, there are no shortcuts taken in our production. All New Riff whiskeys are made with the full sour mash Kentucky Regimen; all carry an age statement, and are always bottled without chill filtration.

At New Riff, single barrel expressions are a way of life. As former Kentucky liquor retailers, we are intimately familiar with some of Kentucky’s most famed private barrel Bourbon selections ever, and we bring that experience to New Riff. A New Riff Private Barrel selection, whether for trade or private clients, offers an unparalleled experience, replete with tasting notes and an immersive process in our warehouse. Each New Riff single barrel has been tasted and approved by our production panel. Our retail and on-premise partners then select each of their private barrels themselves. In the end, you can taste a New Riff Single Barrel knowing it was fully vetted and thoroughly tasted and approved.

TASTING NOTES
While each Single Barrel owns its specific flavor profile, New Riff Bourbon generally shows big and spicy flavors. This is not a light, delicate, simple whiskey—we have crafted for robust and fulsome flavor from start to finish. Our unfiltered bottling regimen allows all the character of the barrel to shine through in the glass.

Appearance: Extra rich, unfiltered deep amber color.
Nose: Butterscotch rounding into fresh oak, with hints of vanilla and rye spice.
Taste: Broad, fulsome mouthfeel, leading to a sweeter vanilla accent, before a gathering of rye spices (clove, cinnamon, mint, dark berry) into the finish.
Finish: Long, rye-led finish, with brambly red-black fruits amid white pepper and clove.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Corn flakes, vanilla, light caramel cremes, cinnamon, oak with a bit of anise and clove.
Palate:  A tad sharp and on the spicy side with caramel and vanilla, brown sugar, oak, hints of dark chocolate and toffee.
Finish:  Short, drying with toffee, brown sugar and spice.
Comments:  For a four year old bourbon, this is solid. I like that New Riff isn’t cutting corners, and using full sized barrels (and appreciate the non-chill filtration!)  Also really liked what I heard in an interview with Ken Lewis by Bourbon Pursuit (which was after I wrote this review).  At this price point, you’re paying a premium like you would with a craft distillery – but getting a solid whiskey, and supporting folks who are in the whiskey business to make great whiskey. I’m hoping that as products get some age (and they recoup some of their fixed costs) the prices will come down.  One thing I’m not a big fan of is their bottle.  I like to see the color of my whisk(e)y in the bottle, and the matte black treatment done to the top half (which I find is well executed as it fades, and artistically is attractive) tends to make it more difficult to see the true color of the whisk(e)y.  I’m not throwing that out as an accusation (the bourbon in the glass has a nice color, even at just four years old), but just an observation.

Rating: Stands Out

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New Riff Rye Bottled In Bond

/ / Review, Rye Whiskey /

New Riff Kentucky Straight Rye Bottled In Bond
Distilled Spring 2015; Bottled Spring 2019

50% ABV
$50
Website
New Riff Bottled in Bond Rye

What the Distillery Says

BOTTLED IN BOND WITHOUT CHILL FILTRATION
100% RYE (95% RYE, 5% MALTED RYE)
AGED AT LEAST 4 YEARS

New Riff Distilling’s core Rye whiskey is full-bodied, offering hugely spicy character. Building upon America’s 1897 Bottled-in-Bond Act—already the highest quality standard for aged spirits in the world—New Riff Rye is Bottled In Bond Without Chill Filtration. Featuring a unique mashbill of 95% rye and 5% malted rye, it represents a new riff on our hallowed local Rye whiskey traditions. Aged four years in full-size 53-gallon toasted and charred new oak barrels, there are no shortcuts taken in its traditional production. All New Riff whiskeys are made with the full sour mash Kentucky Regimen; all carry an age statement and are always bottled without chill filtration.

Our distillers learned the black arts of the hardest whiskey in the world to make—the famed 95% Rye—under the direct tutelage of the distiller who mastered it in Indiana, Larry Ebersold of Seagram’s. Taking Master Larry’s instruction in hand, we put a riff on it to the tune of adding 5% malted rye, a unique twist that aids in pulling additional flavors out of the rye and adds a touch of the elegance of malted rye. New Riff Rye is splendid with a splash of water, and of course folds magnificently into classic Rye Manhattan and Old Fashioned cocktails.

TASTING NOTES
Appearance: Extra rich, unfiltered deep amber color.
Nose: Spicy and detailed, showing mint, black pepper, and vanilla with hints of orange and oak.
Taste: Cinnamon spice, vanilla and sweet toffee moving into a bold mouth feel with rich Rye spice, caramel and toasted oak. Complex flavors drink older than four-year-old.
Finish: Bold Rye spice with vanilla buttercream and lingering brown sugar, plus a mineral-grassy Rye tone that fades slowly.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Big time rye spice with mint, dill, citrus spice tending more towards lemon/lime than orange, some vanilla with cracked pepper, pine, and subtle oak.
Palate:  Nice creamy mouthfeel with a sharp rye bite, vanilla, mint, cinnamon, pepper, a lemon/lime citrus zip with a bit of caramel.
Finish:  Short with minty pepper notes and lingering caramel sweetness.
Comments:  I’ll agree with that that this drinks better that most four-year old ryes. I appreciate the non-chill filtration, and that definitely helps. This takes water well, opens up the pine on the nose and mellows the rye bite a bit, bringing up a bit of honey. I won’t lie – $50 for a 4 yr bottle-in-bond rye stung at the register, but in a blind tasting – I liked this markedly more than Rittenhouse Bottled-in-Bond (and only a tad less than Pikesville 110 Rye, which is a bit higher ABV and 2 yrs older). After listening to an interview with Ken Lewis by Bourbon Pursuit (which was after I wrote this review), I’m an even bigger fan – and can’t wait to see how New Riff’s whiskey is with some age on it.

Rating: Stands Out

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Maker’s Mark Private Select – Dekalb Bottle House 2018

/ / Bourbon, Review / ,

Maker’s Mark Private Select
Exclusive Oak Stave Selection – Dekalb Bottle House (TANSTAAFL)

55.7% ABV
$70
Website

What the Distillery Says

At Maker’s Mark, our wood-finishing series was created to explore new, unique expressions of our signature whisky. Beginning as fully matured Maker’s Mark® at cask strength, Private Select is created by adding 10 custom wood finishing staves to each barrel. It’s then aged in our limestone cellar to extract a unique, flavorful taste profile. Participants in this special barrel program get their say in the selection of these wooden staves. The finishing staves can be any combination of five flavor profiles chosen especially for this program. With 1,001 possible stave combinations, each expression of Private Select has a customized finish and taste profile that is unique, yet undeniably Maker’s®. Maker’s Mark Private Select® is available in select markets and also at our distillery.

Below are the notes on the different staves
The Maker’s 46® stave: The one that started this whole experiment. It delivers notes of dried fruit, vanilla and spice that you may be familiar with if you’ve tried Maker’s 46.
The Baked American Pure stave: Baked American Pure is American oak that’s slowly toasted. It adds notes of brown sugar, vanilla, caramel and spice.
The Seared French Cuvée stave: Seared French Cuvée is a French oak stave that’s cooked with infrared heat. It imparts toasty notes of oak and caramel.
The Roasted French Mocha stave: Roasted French Mocha is French oak cooked on high in a convection oven. It adds pleasant traces of char, maple and cacao.
The Toasted French Spice stave: Toasted French Spice is a French oak stave, cooked at both high and low temperatures in a convection oven. This stave has a flavor profile of smoke, coumarin and spice.

The finishing with the additional staves is typically 9 weeks.

This specific barrel’s stave selections were:

Seared French Cuvée: 1
Maker’s 46: 4
Roasted French Mocha: 4
Toasted French Spice: 1

What Gary Says
Nose:  Caramel, toffee, butterscotch, bits of dark chocolate, hints of anise, cinnamon, french oak.
Palate:  Sweet but spicy, caramel corn, toffee, nutmeg, dusting of pepper and cinnamon, hints of clove and vanilla.
Finish:  Moderately long with lingering baking spices.
Comments:  Like other Maker’s Mark Private Selections, this is more spicy than your typical Maker’s Mark (even the cask strength version).  I like this a lot, and this makes an outstanding Old Fashioned.  Takes a bit of water well, keeping the spice while tamping down the edges a bit.

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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