Review

A Good Old-Fashioned Christmas Whisky 2022 Edition

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky /

A Good Old-Fashioned Christmas Whisky 2022 Edition
Blended Scotch Whisky

50.5% ABV
$110
Website
A Good Old-Fashioned Christmas Whisky 2022 Edition Blended Scotch Whisky

What the Bottle Says

Rich complex malts and the most elegant aged grain whiskies combined to create festive flavours and evoke the spirit of Christmases past
The Whisky Exchange
This festive marriage brings together rich sherry-matured whisky from Blair Athol with elegant old grain from Strathcylde and Cameronbridge, classic Speyside malt from Glen Elgin and spicy new-oak-matured Linkwood to create a dram that’s packed with Christmas flavour. Plum pudding and sticky toffee with apples, oranges and shortbread on the side – the perfect accompaniment to the festive season.

What Gary Says

Nose: Fruity, chocolate fudge, orange zest, pears, apples, raisins, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and a hint of a mineral note.
Palate: Creamy mouthfeel, fruity with apples, raisins, plums, oranges, cinnamon, pepper, candied ginger, honey, apricots and oak.
Finish: Moderate in length with spice notes, chocolate and honey.
Comments: The nose on this reminds me of mincemeat pie – which definitely takes my mind to the holiday season! I bought this at auction on a whim (for £50, which was around $64 USD at the time). The recommended retail price was £85 ($109) so a solid discount, even with the hammer price. My only regret is that Richard happened to buy a 2023 edition of this, giving me a sample that unfortunately didn’t have a good seal (and in recent years I’ve accumulated quite the backlog, so it’s been over a year since I got it). So I can’t compare this to that edition unfortunately, but based on this sample size – despite it being non-age stated I would pay retail for it (and in fact, just won an auction on a 2024, so look forward to bringing that comparison next year!)

Rating: Must Try

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New Riff 8 Year Old Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey

/ / Review, Rye Whiskey /

New Riff 8 Year Old Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey

50% ABV
$70-75
Website
New Riff 8 Year Rye Whiskey

What the Distillery Says

From our founding in 2014, New Riff Distilling has carefully set back whiskey for long-term aging. This addition to our core lineup of products is the first older expression of our award-winning flagship rye whiskey. It is bottled without chill filtration at 100 proof.

Drawing on our own experience as well as the sour mash traditions of the Kentucky whiskey-making regimen, this rye whiskey is full of character and delivers rich, spicy flavors. The freshness evident here is exception, suggesting a barrel of New Riff Rye at eight years old has a long life of aging ahead of it.

While New Riff is committed to bottled-in-bond standards, we made the difficult decision to waive that status for this release, focusing on a wider distribution network that previous specialty releases. Despite meeting all other requirements of a bonded whiskey, due to the comparatively small production from the earliest years of New Riff, this release blends whiskeys from two distilling seasons aged a minimum of 8 years.

Tasting Notes
BOTTLED WITHOUT CHILL FILTRATION
AGED AT LEAST 8 YEARS
100 PROOF (50% Alc/Vol)
Appearance: Medium amber, golden highlights.
Nose: Rounded and ripe with rye grass, notes of cinnamon, clove, red apple.
Palate: Fulsome, medium body; drying entry, lightly oaky with a sweeter core; slow development of spicy flavors; juicy, intense midpalate of spearmint/clove/apple, along with a lovely, aged grassy-mineral quality.
Finish: Long-lasting notes of clove, mint, peppercorn.

What Gary Says

Nose: Rye spice with mint, thyme, orange zest, lime, cloves and oak.
Palate: Creamy mouthfeel, drying with orange, mint, vanilla, oak, apple and cloves.
Finish: Moderately long and drying with pepper, mint and citrus zest.
Comments: This is a lovely high-rye rye whiskey! The only rye I tried in the “bottled in bond – almost” series, so not fair to compare. However like the New Riff 8 Year Bourbon, this shows that the early promise from New Riff continues to pan out. I’ve been a big fan of a 95% rye mashbill ever since I first tried a popular one from Indiana. Not to knock the ‘barely legal’ ryes out there (as I enjoy many of those), but the 95% rye delivers a more crisp differentiation from bourbon. Most importantly, this is just a really damned nice whiskey all on its own!

Rating: Must Try

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New Riff 8 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

/ / Bourbon, Review /

New Riff 8 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

50% ABV
$70-75
Website
New Riff 8 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

What the Distillery Says

From our founding in 2014, New Riff Distilling has carefully set back whiskey for long-term aging. This addition to our core lineup of products is the first older expression of our award-winning flagship bourbon. It is bottled without chill filtration at 100 proof.

Drawing on our own experience as well as the sour mash traditions of the Kentucky whiskey-making regimen, this high-rye, unfiltered Bourbon delivers savory-spicy flavors over the inimitable foundation of mature Kentucky whiskey. Like all New Riff whiskeys, an abundance of rye spice is present, however, secondary and tertiary flavors are significantly deeper and more developed. Oaky flavors throughout are richer and the freshness evident here is exceptional, suggesting a barrel of New Riff Bourbon at eight years old has a long life of aging ahead of it.

While New Riff is committed to bottled-in-bond standards, we made the difficult decision to waive that status for this release, focusing on a wider distribution network than previous specialty releases. Despite meeting all other requirements of a bonded whiskey, due to the comparatively small production form the earliest years of New Riff, this release blends bourbons from two distilling seasons aged a minimum of 8 years.

Tasting Notes
BOTTLED WITHOUT CHILL FILTRATION
AGED AT LEAST 8 YEARS
100 PROOF (50% Alc/Vol)
Appearance: Deep amber, copper.
Nose: Copious cherries and red fruits, fresh spearmint leaves.
Palate: Dark berries, cedar plank, savory rye spice.
Finish: Rich tannic oak balanced with a sweet cream butteriness.

What Gary Says

Nose: Salted caramel, vanilla, black cherry, charred oak, toasted orange zest and rye spice.
Palate: Chocolate, toffee, vanilla spongecake, caramel, cinnamon, oak with a hint of walnuts.
Finish: Long and drying with caramel, cinnamon, pepper and oak.
Comments: Of the three bottled in bond bourbons I tasted (yes, I know TECHNICALLY this isn’t BIB – but close counts), this one had the most intense flavor.  Granted, the other two were 6 year olds, and one of those was a wheater, but still pretty impressed with the intensity of flavor for 50% ABV. From the first taste I had of bourbon coming out of New Riff I thought “Damn, these folks are doing it right” – and as one would hope, it is only improving with age. This is one of the few smaller producers that I’m not afraid to buy without trying, as other than one single barrel that Kevin gave me a sample of (let’s call that an outlier) it’s all been really good to damned good.

Rating: Must Try

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Still Austin Bottled in Bond Bourbon 6 Year Fall 2024

/ / Bourbon, Review / ,

Still Austin Bottled in Bond Bourbon 6 Year
Fall 2024 Release

50% ABV
$80
Website
Still Austin Bottled in Bond Bourbon 6 Year Fall 2024

What the Distillery Says

RELEASE #3 // FALL 2024
STRAIGHT BOURBON WHISKEY
50% ABV / 100 PROOF AGED AT LEAST 6 YEARS
For this fall release, represented by the golden stallion, the high-rye content calls to mind the crisp fall air, while the use of white corn conjures visions of autumnal fields—and the spirit’s deep amber coloring recalls the red and gold leaves of the season.
MASHBILL: 70% WHITE CORN, 25% RYE, 5% MALTED BARLEY

TASTING NOTES
NOSE: BLOOD ORANGE ZEST, BRANDIED CHERRIES, FRESH PECAN PIE, AND TOASTED S’MORES
PALATE: NILLA WAFER, BLUEBERRY MUFFIN, CASHEW BUTTER, CRACKED WHITE PEPPER, & COFFEE CAKE
FINISH: LONG, CRISP YET LINGERING, BLACK CURRANT, FIG NEWTON, SWEET HIBISCUS AND STAR ANISE

What Gary Says

Nose: Rich caramel, toffee, oak, figs, dates and orange zest.
Palate: Rich mouthfeel with caramel, toffee, cinnamon, nutmeg, bit of apples and orange.
Finish: Moderately long and damp with caramel and figs.
Comments: This is a really nice bourbon! As I sat down to review three different bottled in bond bourbons (Holladay Soft Red Wheat Bottled in Bond 6 Year Bourbon and New Riff 8 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey), I noticed that despite not being the oldest this was definitely the darkest in the glass (that Texas maturation pulling a bit more color from the cask). While there’s definitely more color, it didn’t pull a lot of the oak tannins that you might think – which highlights the skill of the folks at Still Austin.

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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Holladay Soft Red Wheat Bottled in Bond 6 Year Bourbon

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Holladay Soft Red Wheat Bottled in Bond 6 Year Bourbon
Missouri Straight Bourbon Whiskey

50% ABV
$55-60
Website
Holladay Soft Red Wheat Bottled in Bond 6 Year Bourbon

What the Distillery Says

Mash Bill: Corn 73% | Wheat 15% | Barley 12%
The finest bourbon results from an ideal combination of climate and geology that is rare outside of Kentucky but is found in the rolling hills of Weston, Missouri at the Holladay Distillery.

It is remarkable how one ingredient in a recipe can change the entire taste profile of a spirit. Holladay Soft Red Wheat is crafted with the original Holladay recipe with one substitute: wheat for the rye. Holladay Soft Red is made in the original stillhouse, barreled in Missouri white oak barrels, aged onsite in iron-clad rickhouses, and bottled at 100 proof.

Using wheat in a bourbon mash bill often results in a softer and sweeter taste profile than a bourbon made with rye, which typically adds spice to the palate. Soft Red Wheat has lower protein levels, red bran, and minimal gluten compared to other classes of wheat. Bourbons crafted with Soft Red Wheat offer a soft, smooth finish just as the name suggests.

Holladay Soft Red Wheat Bourbon is one of the very few bottled-in-bond wheat bourbons on the market aged 6+ years and it was worth the wait. To meet the rare and prestigious requirements to be classified as Bottled-in-Bond, a product must be distilled, aged, and bottled in the same location to assure a mark of authenticity.

It is also classified as a Real Missouri Bourbon under a 2019 law requiring that any whiskey labeled as Missouri bourbon must not only meet the federal standards for bourbon, but also be mashed, fermented, distilled, aged, and bottled in the state; aged in oak barrels manufactured in the state; and—beginning January 1, 2020—made with corn exclusively grown in the state.

The Holladay Distillery was founded in 1856, making it both the oldest distillery in the state of Missouri and the oldest distillery west of the Mississippi still operating on its original site. The property sits on active limestone springs that were first charted by Lewis and Clark in 1804, more than fifty years before Ben Holladay purchased the land that would later become his legacy.

What Gary Says

Nose: Vanilla wafers, caramel, honey, oak, hint of cinnamon and dried fruits.
Palate: Creamy mouthfeel, caramel, butterscotch, cinnamon, cloves, vanilla and honey.
Finish: Moderate in length, damp with vanilla, honey and oak spices.
Comments: This is a very soft and gentle bourbon, which isn’t too surprising for a wheater (and I’ve had some wheated bourbons that, for whatever reason, had a bit more spice kick that might try to trick you – this isn’t one of those!) Drinks nicely neat, but adding a couple of drops of water reveals notes of marshmallow on the nose, and the palate transitions into an old-fashioned caramel creme candy.

Rating: Stands Out

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