Crown Royal Black

/ / Other Whisk(e)ys, Review /

Crown Royal Black Blended Canadian Whisky
45% ABV/90 Proof
$30 to $35
Widely available across the U.S.

What the Distillery Says:
“Robust, full bodied blended Canadian whisky.”

What Richard Says:
Nose: Warmth, mild oak, and a little burnt sugar. Very bourbon like.
Palate: Surprising sweetness on the palate like brown sugar. There’s something else that reminds me of something sweet and chewy. It could be raisins but that doesn’t seem quite right.
Finish: The finish starts off warm, moves toward a medicinal note that I’m not a fan of and then finishes with a charred oak flavor.
Comments: Crown basically positions this as the big brother of their standard offering. Kicked up a notch if you will. I really think that’s a needed notch. There’s a lot more going on here and I like it a lot more than standard Crown. I’d actually choose to drink this. That said, I’m not a big fan of Crown so if you are, you might not like this different approach. It’s kind of like Crown for bourbon drinkers.
Rating: Average

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How can we improve?

/ / Richard's Blog

We’re looking to change up a few things about the site in the next month or two and wanted to get suggestions from the masses. Is there anything we should add? Remove? Do more of? Do less of?

Any and all suggestions are welcome. Shoot us an email or comment on this post.

Thanks,

Your Whisk(e)y Apostles

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Four Roses Mariage 2008

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

Four Roses Mariage Collection 2008 Release Barrel Strength Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
53.9% ABV/107.8 Proof
$70
Collectible

What the Distillery Says:
2008 is the 120th anniversary of the Four Roses name. We’re celebrating with an exquisite limited edition small batch Bourbon – the first release in our Mariage Collection. From time to time, our Master Distiller will select a few exceptional barrels from our 10 Bourbon recipes and marry them by hand. He has married two to honor the day our Founder, Paul Jones, Jr., proposed to a beautiful Southern Belle. She replied that if her answer were “Yes,” she would wear a corsage of roses to the upcoming ball. Paul Jones waited excitedly the night. When she arrived, she wore a corsage of four red roses. He named his Bourbon “Four Roses” as a symbol of his passion for her.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Vanilla, candied apple, and berries
Palate: Sweet and spicy, like dipping a sugar cube in a Szechuan hot pot. The flavor is all spice, candied fruit, and berries.
Finish: Very oaky on the finish and all the heat on the palate dies down on the finish. Impressive for a barrel strength bourbon.
Comments: This particular mariage was a recipe of OBSV aged 13 years and 5 months mixed with a recipe of OESK aged 10 years and 10 months. No, this is no longer in production. There were two iterations of the Mariage release over 2008 and 2009. Beginning in 2010 it is now a “Limited Edition Small Batch” release. That just means they are using more than two recipes per bottling. This one was really very nice and call out saying “this is what small batch bourbon should taste like.” I love it. I’m sad that mine is all gone. Given the opportunity you should try it.
Rating: Must Try

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Willett Pot Still Reserve

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Willett Pot Still Reserve Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Bottle No 225 of 248 from barrel 1688
47% ABV/94 Proof
$35 to $45
Available in select US markets

What the Distillery Says:
Handmade by master craftsmen using time-honored methods in the art of distilling, handed down from one generation to the next. Made from pure limestone spring water, carefully selected grains, and proprietary strains of yeast. Aged in new white oak casks until fully mature. Bottled by hand at the peak of perfection in taste, quality and aroma.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Very soft and buttery with something (no tobacco) that reminds me of an old humidor.
Palate: Very easy to drink. Smooth and very enjoyable. Typical bourbon notes of vanilla with a woody base and a hint of spice.
Finish: Goes down like velvet.
Comments: This is what bourbons like Basil Hayden’s should aspire to. Very nice all around. This isn’t the world’s greatest bourbon but it is definitely very nice at a great price. I really think bourbon fans should try it.
Rating: Must Try

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New Releases: March ’11

/ / Bourbon, Other Whisk(e)ys

I’m a little late with the post this month but there are some interesting things coming down the pipe that will hopefully take your attention off of my tardiness.

Buffalo Trace 2011 Experimental
Timeframe: February 2011
Price: $46.35/375ml
ABV: TBD
So the story goes with this year’s experimental release comes from several barrel of stock Buffalo Trace acquired with the Old Charter brand back in 1998. They were poking around in those barrels and came across three groups they thought were worth bottling: 7 barrels from 1989, 8 barrels from 1991, and 8 barrels from 1993.

Heaven Hill Trybox Series
Timeframe: May 2011
Price: $24.99
ABV: 62.5%
This is the first two in a new series Heaven Hill is launching. This is the stuff coming right off the still, unaged. One will be a bourbon new make and the other a rye new make.

Four Roses 2011 Limited Edition Single Barrel
Timeframe: May 2011
Price: TBD
ABV: TBD
This year’s release will use the OBSQ recipe for those Four Roses geeks out there. That translates into a mashbill of 60% corn, 35% rye, 5% barley and a more floral yeast strain. 3,600 bottles will be available. Get yours while you can.

Woodinville Headlong White Dog Whiskey
Timeframe: Now
Price: TBD
ABV: 40%
These guys are a new distillery in Washington that opened last year. Headlong is their first whiskey product and is 80 proof white dog. The folks at Woodinville are also aging whiskey and hopefully some of that will be available by the end of this year but we’ll have to wait a see. Another really cool offering is a “Age Your Own” whiskey kit where you can buy white dog and a miniature barrel and do the aging on your own. The guys over at Woodinville sent me a sample bottle of Headlong so I’ll have a review soon.

Big Bottom Whiskey
Timeframe: Now
Price: Port Cask – $35, 3 Year Old – $28
ABV: 45.5%
Big Bottom is a new independent bottler out of Oregon. They are coming to the market with two whiskeys, a 3 Year Old 36% rye Bourbon and a 2 Year Old Bourbon finished in Port Cask that held 10 Year Old Tawny Port. As of right now you can only get this in Oregon or from K&L Wine but I traded emails with Ted Pappas, the head honcho over at Big Bottom and there is a good chance of it coming to Georgia and Tennessee in the near future. I’ll keep you posted.

That’s it for March. It was an interesting month. Most the stuff is not something you would consider mainstream. Stay tuned for that Headlong review. I should have it up by the end of next week.

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