Average

Courvoisier V.S. Cognac

/ / Other Spirits, Review / ,

Courvoisier V.S. Cognac

40% ABV
$26
Website
Courvoisier VS Cognac

What the Producer Says

THE BLEND
A youthful and lively blend of cognac, delivering a spectrum of sensations.
Courvoisier® VS Cognac is a blend of several crus aged between three and seven years (four to eight for Russia), composed principally of Fins Bois with a balancing hand of Petite Champagne.

TASTING NOTES:  The fusion of younger and older cognacs gives Courvoisier® VS a fruity, delicate taste and a bouquet filled with ripe fruit and spring flowers.

Ripe Fruits | The chalky soil in Fins Bois delivers a hint of ripened fruits that is its signature aroma.

Spring Flowers | Inhale deeply for the bouquet of spring flowers, which is a hallmark of grapes harvested at their peak from the Fins Bois crus.

Fresh Oakiness | The rich, fresh oak bouquet is controlled throughout the aging process to make sure it doesn’t dominate the young cognac.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Floral, grapey, honey suckle, fruity with apples and pears.
Palate:  Sweet, floral and fruity with apples and pears, hint of cinnamon, vanilla, and white wine.
Finish:  Short to moderate in length, drying with apple.
DISCLAIMER: I’m a whisk(e)y enthusiast, and not familiar with Cognac (so read at your own risk!)
Comments:  A crisp and fruity dram. Nothing offensive or off-putting, although not especially interesting either (at least to me). This was the first of three Cognacs I sampled side by side, and spoiler alert – was my least favorite.

Rating: Average/Stands Out

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R6 Distillery Single Malt Whiskey

/ / Other Whisk(e)ys, Review /

R6 Distillery Single Malt Whiskey

43% ABV
$65
Website
R6 Distillery Single Malt Whiskey
We would like to thank R6 Distillery and Power Digital Marketing for sending us a sample to review.

What the Distillery Says

100% malted grain from a single distillery, this whisky incorporates a European style grain bill with an R6 twist: peated malt, distiller’s malt, chocolate malt, and coffee malt.

Never Chill Filtered

Nose: Smoked Coffee and Chocolate
Palate: Smoky and Slightly Sweet with Subtle Undertones
Finish: Warm, Dark Coffee

What Gary Says

Nose:  Young honeyed malt, light roast coffee, toffee, cedar and bit of milk chocolate.
Palate:  Milk chocolate and toffee with pepper spice, smoke and a slightly sour oak note.
Finish:  Short to moderate in length, drying with cocoa and oak.
Comments:  So while there isn’t anything objectionable, this tastes like young whiskey aged in smaller casks. If you’re a fan of craft whiskey done in this way, this may be right up your alley. It does have some interesting chocolate notes, and I appreciate the non-chill filtration. With age (and moving to full-sized casks), the grain bill has potential to be really interesting and different. The price point is steep if you’re looking to buy just to drink rather than buy to support a small business.

Rating: Average

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Hercules Mulligan Rum & Rye

/ / Other Spirits, Review / ,

Hercules Mulligan Rum & Rye
Rum, Rye Whiskey, Ginger & Bitters

43% ABV
$50
Website
Hercules Mulligan Rum and Rye

What the Producer Says

Named for the little known tailor, spy, and hero of the American Revolution, who changed history and secured freedom for all, Hercules Mulligan is based on a unique recipe from the period. It’s what Mulligan, the man, stood for, and it’s what this Rum & Rye blend embodies. A spirit of independence.

Simple in its nature – Rum, Rye Whiskey, Ginger & Bitters – yet utterly complex and delightful, this unique composition tickles the nose and loosens the lips.

WHAT MAKES A HERO?
The Balance
A unique recipe from the era of revolution and self-determination, custom-tailored for the modern independent thinker. Perfectly balanced Caribbean Aged Rum & American Rye Whiskey create an equilibrium of duality – a secret to be (re)discovered.

The Unique Character
The Rum & Rye blend is combined with macerated, fresh organic ginger – not artificial flavors. And it’s the essence of this magical root, that gives the blend a kick and builds its distinctive character.

The Audacity Favored by Fortune
The potion is finished with a dash of bespoke bitters that add that extra flavor. No fakery, only honest-to-God ingredients that capture the essence of a bittersweet life.

SPECS
CATEGORY: Rum & Rye
ORIGIN: The US & the Caribbean
NO. OF SPIRITS IN BLEND: 6
HERO INGREDIENTS: Rum, American Rye Whiskeys, tailor-made bitters, fresh ginger

What Gary Says

Nose:  Freshly cut ginger, menthol shaving lather, bitters.
Palate:  Syrupy mouthfeel with candied ginger, rum and bitters.
Finish:  Moderately long, wet with ginger, pepper and honey.
Comments:  So I got this from Flaviar when my quarterly benefit included a ‘free premium bottle’ but the selection offered didn’t have any whisk(e)y I wanted. I like Rock & Rye, like ginger, so what the hell. Glad it was a throw in. The nose on this reminds me of lathering for a wet shave, then slicing fresh ginger into a glass of Bacardi with bitters. I don’t get any rye (maybe the mint from the rye is that menthol note?) Definitely not the sort of thing I’d sip neat. Been trying to find a cocktail that it works in, as it seems like it would be suited for that – but alas, a mixologist I am not.

Rating: Probably Pass/Average

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Woodinville Straight Bourbon Whiskey

/ / Bourbon, Review / ,

Woodinville Straight Bourbon Whiskey

45% ABV
$40
Website
Woodinville Straight Bourbon Whiskey

What the Distillery Says

This truly small-batch bourbon starts with traditionally grown corn, rye and malted barley. All of our staple grains are cultivated exclusively for us on the Omlin Family farm in Quincy, Washington. The grains are mashed, distilled, and barreled in our Woodinville® distillery, then trucked back over the Cascade Mountains to our private barrel houses, where Central Washington’s extreme temperature cycles promote the extraction of natural flavors from the oak. Prior to being coopered, the barrel wood is seasoned in open air, rain, wind, sun, and snow for eighteen months, softening the wood’s harsh tannins. The barrels are then slowly toasted and heavily charred to further enrich the wood’s desirable flavors. This meticulous process yields a truly hand-crafted spirit with aromas of crème brûlée and spice cabinet, as well as notes of rich caramel, dark chocolate, and vanilla bean on the palate with a sweet, lingering finish.

*Also available in Cask-Strength at distillery only.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Vanilla, light caramel, corn, musty oak, peaches with a hint of cherries and brown sugar.
Palate:  Vanilla ice cream with caramel sauce, light baking spices and black cherries.
Finish:  Moderate in length, slightly dry with a bit of oak, baking spices and cherries.
Comments:  A decent enough pour, although the corn on the nose and lack of depth on the palate would lead me to believe it is young (being non-age stated ‘straight’, this would be four years and a day). The nose is nice, with a bit more to offer than the palate, but appreciate that this doesn’t “taste like craft” to me.

Rating: Average/Stands Out

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The Singleton of Dufftown 15 Yr

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside / ,

The Singleton of Dufftown 15 Yr
Single Malt Scotch Whisky

40% ABV
$70
Website (sort of)
The Singleton of Dufftown 15 year old

What the Bottle* Says

Fruity Decadence
Vibrantly fruity, chocolatey and subtly spiced.

Indulge in this deeply delectable 15 Year Old. Here we’ve got whisky from both refill ex-Bourbon casks, known for imparting a kiss of sumptuous vanilla, and Pedro Ximenez Oloroso seasoned casks, which infuse some fruity vibrancy into the spirit. There’s lots to explore in this exciting dram. With zesty coriander, zingy pepper, decadent chocolate and creamy coffee, this is a tasty treasure trove to delight in.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Sweet and savory, with dark fruit notes of raisins and plums, honey and oak with herbal notes of fresh oregano and tobacco.
Palate:  Thin but sweet, lightly fruity with pears, apples and hints of plum, vanilla and caramel with a subtle spice.
Finish:  Moderately long with fruity malt notes and a bit of oak.
Comments:  A very pleasant, light and fruity dram. Wish it was higher proof, as it wasn’t off-putting but was a tad boring? One I enjoyed nosing more than sipping, as there was more depth going on with the nose where the palate thinned out.

Rating: Average/Stands Out

 

* A rant: I get that some smaller producers don’t have well organized web-sites, or don’t always keep them up. Diageo isn’t a small company. Why in the hell their ‘Singleton’ site makes zero mention of the Dufftown releases is beyond me. I assumed perhaps this was discontinued, but it is fairly widely available on the other side of the pond. Just to get the details on the bottle required a fair amount of searching for label images because Diageo apparently doesn’t want you to be able to find squat on this bottle. I went so far as to connect via VPN to a UK server to ensure they weren’t trying to limit information where the product might not be available – nothing. For the most part, going to a distiller/producer/blender’s site and getting the details to populate these reviews is pretty straight forward. Every once in it seems like they really don’t want you to know of a bottle’s existence.

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