Review

Stellum Black Equinox Blend #1

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Stellum Black Equinox Blend #1
Cask Strength Blend of Straight Bourbon Whiskies

58.63% ABV
$100
Website
Stellum Black Equinox Blend 1 Bourbon Whiskey
We would like to thank Stellum Spirits and Ro-Bro Marketing & PR for sending us a sample to review.

What the Distillery Says

This inaugural release of the Stellum Black Specialty Equinox was created using Stellum Bourbon. We slowly layered in rare sets of bourbon barrels, step by step, until the evening of the Vernal Equinox, when the blend was completed in honor of the changing seasons.

TASTING NOTES
Appearance: Golden amber.
Nose: Beautifully subdued nose gently opens up to ripe cantaloupe and the perfume of fresh cut grass. After it aerates, notes of sugar maple and toffee hit the senses with a distant kiss of wood spice and white pepper.
Palate: Dried apricot and honey immediately find their way into view. This unfolds into Saigon cinnamon and bruleed orange before slowly making its way to subtle notes of grapefruit and jasmine.
Finish: Finish is extremely long and slowly developed. The back-end jasmine blooms and bursts into rich notes of sorghum and wood tannin before finally dissipating into beautiful dark chocolate.

WITH 3 DROPS OF WATER: The water brings about the riper, more fruit forward qualities of the whiskey and really highlights the floral aspects that were merely an undertone before. And moves the heat from the alcohol from the back of the tongue to the cheekbones.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Rich, dark chocolate, musty oak, toffee, subtle vanilla, hint of coffee and spices.
Palate:  Viscous mouthfeel with caramel, toasted orange zest, honey, cinnamon and grapefruit.
Finish:  Long, warm and slowly drying with oak, citrus spice and dark chocolate.
Comments:  A delightful, spicy bourbon with a great mouthfeel and finish that lingers long after.  Grapefruit is one of those notes I don’t get too often in whiskey (and less so in bourbon), which is a nice twist. A bit of water brings out some fruit on the nose with peaches and apricot, and thickens the mouthfeel even more with adding apricot and turning up the orange notes.

Rating: Stands Out

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Barrell Bourbon Batch 033

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Barrell Bourbon Batch 033

58.3% ABV
$90
Website
Barrell Bourbon Batch 033
We would like to thank Barrell Craft Spirits and Ro-Bro Marketing & PR for sending us a sample to review.

What the Blender Says

Barrell Bourbon Batch 033 is a marriage of high-rye barrels and high-corn barrels ranging in age from 5 to 9 years old. The high-rye barrels were chosen for their distinct stone fruit, black pepper, and nutmeg notes. The high-corn barrels were chosen for their rich butterscotch, coffee, and citrus notes. Two sets of barrels mingled together for two months, then the balance was adjusted for the most optimal combination.

  • A blend of straight Bourbon Whiskeys
  • Distilled and aged in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Indiana
  • Selection of 5, 6, 7, and 9-year-old barrels
  • Aged in American white oak barrels
  • Bottled in Kentucky
  • 116.6 proof cask strength bottling

FLAVOR NOTES
Barrell Bourbon Batch 033 displays all the complexity of a blend of different distillates given time to blossom. Barrel character adds some diverse leafy notes at the margins without an overabundance of extractive woody or spice notes.

​Neat
Appearance: Citrine set in yellow gold.
Nose: Pear, lemon meringue, and shoofly pie set the stage for a bourbon deftly balanced between freshness and maturity. A bouquet of jasmine, nasturtium, and dandelion speak to a youthful exuberance, while peppermint and gentian root depict an oak barrel just creeping in. A gentle savory character expands into edamame, macadamia nut, and mesquite smoke.
Palate: Champagne, applesauce, and candied grapefruit peel show ample maturity without an excessive oak. The baking spice character is dialed up slightly, exhibiting cocoa powder, allspice, star anise, and juniper.
Finish: A burst of heat rides a wave of minerals across the palate that include limestone, beach sand, and salt-water taffy. Geranium, elderflower, and chamomile reinforce the nose’s bouquet. The finish fades to the slightly bitter prickle of returning gentian root and lime peel, wiping the palate clean.
With a few drops of spring water
The palate grows much more viscous; it’s rich and sweet with vanilla buttercream. The savory notes intensify, with pickled caper, fried mushroom and hush puppies leading the way. The fruity notes expand dramatically to include nectarine, honeydew melon, passionfruit, and coconut cream.

What Gary Says

Nose: Caramel sauce, dried fruit, toffee, oak, floral notes with baking spices of nutmeg and cinnamon.
Palate: Thick mouthfeel, spicy with orange, honey, pepper, oak, cinnamon, bit of lemon and a hint of anise.
Finish: Moderately long, drying with mineral notes, lemon and lime.
Comments: A sharper, spicier batch than some previous ones, which fans of a spicy bourbon will enjoy (it actually reminds me a bit of rye whiskey). A bit of water brings out more of the fruit notes and tamps the edges nicely. This works fabulously in a Manhattan or Vieux Carré.

Rating: Stands Out

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Barrell Single Barrel Whiskey “Butter Cake”

/ / Other Whisk(e)ys, Review /

Barrell Single Barrel Whiskey
“Joe’s Playlist” Track #5 Butter Cake A136
Kentucky Single Barrel Whiskey

58.61% ABV
$110
Website
Barrell Single Barrel Whiskey Butter Cake

What the Blender Says

“Butter Cake” is a 117.22 proof 18-year-old Kentucky Single Barrel Whiskey that stands out as a buttery, biscuity nightly sipper. It was selected for its creamy, corn-forward nose that reminded Joe of comfort baking. There are 172 bottles available.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Soft, oak, buttered corn bread, vanilla, hint of nutmeg.
Palate:  Warm, sweet with honey, vanilla sponge cake with caramel sauce, bit of cinnamon and nutmeg.
Finish:  Moderately long, drying with honey, caramel and cinnamon.
Comments:  As a whiskey geek, what intrigued me with this was “why just ‘whiskey’?” Labeled as ‘straight whiskey’, legally it must be at least 2 years old (age stated beyond that), distilled to no more than 160 proof and going into a barrel at no more 125 proof. Now if this was ‘Corn Whiskey’ (80% corn mash bill), it can be stored in used or uncharred oak barrels – and as corny as this is, that is my guess (although maybe this was stored in a charred barrel? Or, it could be that it was stored in new – in which case it could be labeled as bourbon but they opted not to label it as such since it might come across as ‘too soft/mellow’ for bourbon). Or – it could be a blend of straight whiskies provided they are made in the same state? Things that whiskey geeks ponder. I enjoyed it, and while less complex than a bourbon or rye would be for this age, a pleasant sipper.

Rating: Stands Out

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Longmorn 2002 18 Year

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside / ,

Longmorn 2002 18 Year
Signatory Vintage Cask Strength Collection
Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

58.8% ABV
$120
Website
Longmorn 18 Yr Signatory

What the Bottler Says

AGED: 18 years
DISTILLED ON: September 17 2002
BOTTLE ON: October 21 2020
MATURED IN: Bourbon Barrel
CASK NO: 800626
BOTTLE NO: 204 of 220
NATURAL COLOUR

What Gary Says

Nose:  Heather, honey suckle, peaches, marzipan, hint of caramel, oak, and sponge cake.
Palate:  Thick mouthfeel, honey, fruity with peaches and baked pears, subtle kiwi notes and a bit of pepper and toffee.
Finish:  Long, drying with honey, fruit and milk chocolate.
Comments:  Yep, it’s official – I love Longmorn. I’ve only reviewed one other Longmorn, although I’ve tried several independent bottlings and don’t recall any being less than “really good”. This particular dram takes water well, retaining the thick mouthfeel and bringing out more peaches and pears on the nose. I really dig those tropical fruit notes of kiwi that come through.

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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Barrell Craft Spirits Gold Label Seagrass 1st Release

/ / Review, Rye Whiskey /

Barrell Craft Spirits Gold Label Seagrass
1st Release, 20 Yrs

Rye Whiskey Finished in Martinique Rum,
Malmsley Madeira & Apricot Brandy Barrels

64.06% ABV
$500
Website
Barrell Craft Spirits Gold Label Seagrass
We would like to thank Barrell Craft Spirits and Ro-Bro Marketing & PR for sending us a sample to review.

What the Blender Says

  • Rye whiskey finished in Martinique rum, Malmsley Madeira, and apricot brandy casks
  • Matured for 20 years
  • Distilled in Canada
  • Crafted and bottled in Kentucky

Gold Label Seagrass represents the pinnacle of Barrell Craft Spirits’ Seagrass series. It is clear from the nose that this Rye Whiskey is old and layered, with savory, herbaceous notes behind the trademark Seagrass tropical freshness. All in all, this whiskey is remarkably flavorful, showcasing the best of the Seagrass profile in a whiskey that can only be made this complex with time in the barrel.

Appearance: Rose gold with flashes of sunflower yellow.
Nose: Classic Canadian rye notes of white flower, toasted grains, and bright honey. As it sits in the glass, toasty tropical notes of apricot and roasted pineapple present themselves. Nutty, raisin-like madeira shows here too, as does a subtle wild-grassy freshness. After a minute, toasted hazelnut and orange blossom drift into focus.
Palate: Ripe Meyer lemon and clover honey show first, with fresh basil and perfectly ripe pineapple taking over in the mid-palate. There are glimmers of deeply aged rye, as this layered whiskey evolves sip to sip. Moments of heat are balanced with a viscous sweetness, brightened by the natural acidity of the Malmsey Madeira finish. Black pepper is present too, as this is a cask strength rye, but the tropical notes win out in out until the finish..
Finish: A touch of classic rye spice presents itself on the finish, with exotic pink peppercorn and Mediterranean herbs including fresh oregano and sun-dried rosemary. The spice is tempered by a sweet, apricot-dominated viscosity drawing out the finish. Finally, tropical sweetness subsides into more classic mature whiskey notes like leather and nutmeg, leaving your palate with lemon, honey, and cracked black pepper.
With a splash of spring water: The sweet tropical notes are supercharged. The lemon becomes passionfruit, and
the light honey darkens to fresh cane syrup. This whiskey opens up in the glass with a drop of water, but resists breaking against a few cubes of ice.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Canadian rye, cedar, honey, apricot, floral notes, oak, tangerine zest and grilled peaches.
Palate:  Lemon sour with honey, apricots, pepper, orange marmalade and a hint of vanilla.
Finish:  Long and drying with lemon candy and pepper spice.
Comments:  I’m a big fan of Canadian rye, and the nose on this is squarely that – with the added notes from the finishing. The nose on this is lovely, although for me the palate wasn’t quite as balanced, with sour lemon notes overpowering. As much of a fan as I am of aged Canadian rye, I didn’t love this as much as I wanted to (which was similar for the Gray Label Seagrass). I do enjoy Seagrass but the more limited editions just aren’t right in my wheelhouse.

Rating: Stands Out

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