Hancock’s President’s Reserve Single Barrel Bourbon

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Hancock’s President’s Reserve
Single Barrel Bourbon Whiskey

44.45% ABV
$50-??
Website
Hancock's President's Reserve Bourbon

What the Distillery Says

In 1775, the Leestown settlement was established along the banks of the Kentucky River by Willis and Hancock Lee. Soon this became a well-known shipping port for tobacco, hemp and whiskey. The Single Barrel Bourbon Whiskey pays tribute to the pioneering spirit of Hancock Lee.

Tasting Notes
This Single Barrel bourbon whiskey is deep amber in color. The nose is light and sweet with traces of mango and papaya. The body is full and the palate shows a nice balance of honey, clover, fruit and a dash of spice. The finish is long and warm.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Vanilla custard, salted caramel, hint of butterscotch, maple candies, pecan pie, leather, rickhouse musty oak; bit of water brings out some cherry notes.
Palate:  Soft, sweet caramel sauce with nutmeg, toffee, vanilla, touch of cinnamon and black cherry ice cream with a hint of pepper at the end.
Finish:  Moderately long, drying with a nutty vanilla note.
Comments:  This is one of those rare whiskies that I find my self preferring the nosing experience over the drinking one. Very much reminds me of standing in Warehouse C at the Buffalo Trace Distillery and taking a nice deep breath (which if you haven’t had the opportunity – I highly recommend it!). A fairly nuanced bourbon.

Rating: Stands Out

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1792 High Rye Bourbon

/ / Bourbon, Review / ,

1792 High Rye
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

47.15% ABV
$38 – $45
Website

What the Distillery Says

By law, bourbon must be made using a mash bill of at least 51% corn. Traditionally, bourbons use rye as the secondary grain in the mash bill. This signature recipe for 1792 High Rye Bourbon uses a much higher percentage of rye as the secondary grain than most bourbons do, creating a robust and full flavor.

TASTING NOTES
The spicy rye notes are complemented by years of aging in charred white oak barrels, whose caramelized sugars delicately balance with the peppery rye flavor. Enjoy a perfect marriage of sweet vanilla, caramel, butterscotch and rye in 1792 High Rye Bourbon.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Herbal spice notes with caramel, thyme, subtle dill, dried mint, oak, nutmeg, clove, rice pudding, hint of anise with evergreen.
Palate:  Soft with caramel, allspice, subtle vanilla, herbal spices with a bit of pepper.
Finish:  Short with herbal notes and oak.
Comments:  Definitely get a lot of rye, but honestly I expected much more of an edge. I love rye whiskey and bourbon, but this one just never hit me right for some reason. It was very herbaceous and soft. Usually with rye there are more citrus spice notes, with a sharper cut; and usually with bourbon you get a fair amount of sweetness. This seemed to be missing the key characteristics of both and honestly was disappointing. Maybe the sample was off (always a possibility) but I prefer the standard 1792 over this by a wide margin.

Rating: Average/Stands Out

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Old Forester Bonded (Dusty; DSP-KY-414 circa 1980s)

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

Old Forester Bonded
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Dusty; DSP-KY-414 circa 1980s

50% ABV
Market $ varies
Old Forester Bonded Bourbon Whiskey
Note the image above is not from the same bottle sampled, but has the same ‘dimples’ on the side.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Spicy oak, caramel, butterscotch, tapioca, bit of dark fruits, raisins, chocolate, a hint of fennel.
Palate:  Rich mouthfeel, sweet caramel, vanilla, nutty milk chocolate, touch of pepper; bit of water brings out the butterscotch and toffee.
Finish:  Moderate in length, wet with caramel and pepper spice.
Comments:  First, this is really dark in the glass. While ‘Bonded’ means it is at least 4 years old (along with a bunch of other requirements), coming from the 1980s this has older bourbon in the batch. I love these dusty Old Foresters – just delicious. Keep in mind this wasn’t a ‘super-premium’ pour back in the day, but also not a bottom shelfer by any stretch. I’ve seen bottles like this go for hundreds of dollars at auction, and while I really like it – I’d never pay that kinda money for it. If you have the chance to drink someone else’s though – I’d absolutely try it. In fact, when it comes to dusty whisk(e)y, I’d rarely turn down a chance to taste some history!

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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Cambus 29 Year Old Single Grain

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Single Grain /

Cambus 29 Year Old
Single Grain Scotch Whisky

Comparing Different Barrels From Different Independent Bottlers

$100 (each, duh)

Why Compare Two Different Independent Bottlings?

Both are Cambus 29 year Old, cask strength, distilled in 1988.  No way I was going to review them without satisfying my own curiosity by doing a side-by-side!  Plus – trying to differentiate two reviews in the table of contents for ‘Cambus 29 Year Old’ felt a bit silly.  Oh – and having just put this template together for the Knob Creek Single Barrel Select Rye, felt I might as well get more mileage out of it!

The Bottle Details

The Sovereign

 

Cambus 29 Year Old Single Grain

Old Particular

 

Cambus 29yr Old Particular

Picked By
Selected by and bottled exclusively for K&L WinesSpecially Selected for K&L Wines
ABV
44.6%46.9%
Distilled
September 1988September 1988
Bottled
July 2018September 2017
Age
29 Years, 10 Months29 Years
Cask Type
Refill HogsheadRefill Hogshead
Bottles
266281
Additional Notes
Cask Ref: HL15269
Non chill-filtered, Natural Colour
Natural Cask Strength		Cask Ref DL12138
No Chill Filtration, No Colouring
Natural Cask Strength
Tasting Notes
A fragrant nose of sandalwood, coconut, toffee and vanilla.
More toffee on the palate along with fruity notes of orange, apple and papaya.
A gentle, satisfying, medium length finish rounds things off.		Nose: Opens with a delicate and fresh quality with a hint of lime
Palate: Gentle spice then moving to vanilla toffee and sweet cereals
Finish: Distinct spices which warm gently, and lightly burnt sugar

What Gary Says

The Sovereign
Old Particular
Nose:Butter cream frosting, canned peaches and pears, subtle oak, hint of mandarin orange, ginger, heather.Butter cream frosting, subtle caramel sauce, touch of pears and limes, sandalwood, heather.
Palate:Sweet and fruity, a bit of toffee before cinnamon and pepper break in, butterscotch, honey.Rich mouthfeel, sweet with gentle fruit notes, rich toffee and butterscotch before spice notes kick in, bringing cinnamon with a soft pepper spice followed by honey.
Finish:Moderately long with honey and a herbal dryness.Long and wet with lingering spice notes and brown sugar.
Comments:A nice well aged single grain. Not the mouthfeel I had hoped for given its age, but a lovely dram none the less.  Single grain Scotch whisky is quite a bit more delicate than single malt.  Don’t expect a 29 yr old single grain to be like a 29 yr old single malt – it almost certainly won’t be (in fact the word “single” and the country of origin may be about all they have in common). It isn’t my favorite genre of whisky, but I can appreciate it for what it is.  And in the case of this bottle – dangerously drinkable!In the glass this was the darker of the two pours (not “dark” by any stretch, but The Sovereign had more of a faint yellow tint where this tends more towards golden).  This was a tad more rich on both the nose and the mouthfeel of the palate, and also had a longer finish.  Very similar for sure – the differences are pretty nuanced.  I personally preferred this one of the two, but not by a wide enough margin to bump the rating to a “Must Try”.
Rating:
Stands Out
Stands Out

 

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Longrow 18 Year

/ / Campbeltown, Review, Scottish Whisky / ,

Longrow 18 Year
Peated Campbeltown Single Malt Scotch Whisky

46% ABV
$180 – $200
Website
Longrow 18 year old

What the Distillery Says

Dark and slightly mysterious, our 18-year-old Longrow has a complex nose that unearths a peaty aroma reminiscent of dunnage warehouses.

Nose: A complex nose: Sweet fruits, citrus, peaches and orange zest at first before a gentle earthy peaty aroma reveals itself.
Palate: Rich and very, very tasty. Well balanced. Dark chocolate, creamy coffee and gingerbread to the fore, followed by rhubarb and vanilla custard.
Finish: Long and sweet, a hint of typical Longrow peat smoke combined with more chocolate and some dried fruits.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Thick, rich sherry, barbecue brisket, subtle peat, plums, poached pears, orange, vanilla, worn leather, oak, pipe tobacco smoke.
Palate:  Creamy mouthfeel with vanilla cream, grilled peaches, peat, sherry, cocoa, walnuts, pepper and allspice.
Finish:  Long with a nutty note of plums and peat smoke.
Comments:  A really lovely dram! Beautifully balanced with peat, fruit, smoke and a bit of spice. Reading their tasting notes and taking another sip – I do get coffee with a fair dose of cream now. This is a limited bottling, so a price of $200 isn’t unreasonable. Sure, there are some whiskies for less dough that I like as well (maybe even better), but not many. For a single malt, this has the complexity and balance of the better blends (if tasting blind, I would have wondered if maybe this was a Compass Box offering without any Clynelish in the mix). Thanks to Paul for the sample of this really delightful dram!

Rating: Must Try/Must Buy

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