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Alberta Rye Whisky Dark Batch

/ / Other Whisk(e)ys, Review / ,

Alberta Rye Whisky Dark Batch
Canadian Blended Rye Whisky
45% ABV
$30
Website
bottle
What the Distillery Says:
There is no quaint, “Old Grandpa So-and-So”, ancient family story here.

Truth be told, you have to be unusually patient, persistent, fanatical, and the right amount of crazy to make rye whisky. Alberta Distillers embraced this challenge and not only made rye whisky, they mastered it. Today, Alberta Distillers is the number one rye producer in North America with more than 450,000 barrels aging on site.

After years of perfecting their craft, the master distillers at Alberta Distillers wanted to continue to push the rye envelope and come up with not just another rye whisky, but a better rye whisky.

And so, Alberta® Rye Dark Batch™ was born. A true expression of the skilled craftsmen who have made rye whisky their passion for nearly 70 years.

91% Rye Whisky
8% Bourbon
1% Sherry

What Gary Says:
Nose: Malted rye, cereal grain, sherry, with subtle smoke
Palate: Soft, subtle-malty-cereal thing, cherries, not sharp/crisp like American rye, more Earthy; sherry is less prominent than on the nose
Finish: Moderate, with the sherry peeking through
Comments: When I first nosed this, I thought of Lot 40 (another Canadian Rye) . . . but different. When I tasted it, that comparison disappeared. This is much more of a subtle/gentle whiskey on the palate, and reminds me a bit of a bottled cocktail. I really love how unique it is (and unique in a good way – not a “well that was odd for the sake of being odd” way). I also really appreciate that it doesn’t break the bank to take it out for a spin.
Rating: Must Try

What Richard Says:
Nose: The rye kind of gets muted by a creamy sherry nose. There is a minty sweetness there but the sherry stands out. It’s kind of like a mint julep made with sherry instead of bourbon.
Palate: Dark fruits, more sherry, peppery rye spice, with a minty back.
Finish: A little touch harsh. Not hot, like young but more industrial. It’s like licking a rubber band.
Comments: I recently had a barrel aged Manhattan that a coworker had worked on for some time. His secret ingredient was a bit of tawny port. Wow did that overwhelm the drink. I applaud the inventiveness of Alberta here but the sherry, and really all fortified wines, should be reserved for finishing/aging barrels and not as an actual additive to the whiskey. It really overpowers the nose, is the 800 pound gorilla on the palate, and oddly leaves the finish unfortunately untouched. It stands out as being different to me but not in a “you should consider that in purchasing choice” kind of way. I’m not a fan of this one. This will be my first and last bottle. [Or I may just gift the rest to Gary 😉 ]
Rating: Average

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The Black Grouse

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky /

The Black Grouse Blended Scotch Whisky
40% ABV
$25 to $30
Website
the-black-grouse-plain
What the Blender Says:
To create the distinct smokiness of The Black Grouse, we take our Famous blend and enhance it with specially selected peated malts. The resulting Black Grouse whisky has a distinctive peaty character, which comes through in spice and dried fruit flavours with a long aromatic finish, reminiscent of our Famous blend.

Appearance: Dark, Russet golden, Clear and bright
Aroma: Smoky, Soft and Musky, Rich and full
Taste: Full flavour, Spice and dried fruits, Smoke through the oak
Finish: Long, Smoky, Aromatic

What Richard Says:
Nose: A very vegetal and meaty peat.
Palate: Light fruity sweetness layered between a little pepper spice and soft handed smokey notes.
Finish: Subtle, with a long, slow build through herbal bitters to a heavy grass note.
Comments: This is not really a bowl you over dram. It stands out against it’s peers (Famous Grouse, Johnnie Walker Red, etc.) but falls short against heavier hitters. A pleasant enough dram but not something that sings ‘come back to me’.
Rating: Average

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Kirkland Signature Sherry Cask Blend

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky /

Kirkland Signature Blended Scotch Whisky
Sherry Cash Finish, Aged 21 Years
40% ABV
$79.99
image1

What the Bottler Says:
This Kirkland Signature 21-year-old Blended Scotch Whisky has been created using a selection of some of Scotland’s finest single malt and grain whiskies. Matured in ex-Bourbon casks for a minimum of 21 years, the whiskies are then blended together and finished in Sherry casks. The result is a blended Scotch that is dark amber in color with aromas of Sherry and an intense yet subtly complex taste of fruit and toffee, which give way to a long, gentle, warming finish.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Rich, chewy, meaty, and slightly sweet sherry notes dominate the nose.
Palate: Rather mellow and uninspiring. Let it roll around in the mouth a bit and sherry notes come through with a sweet and tannic undercurrent. Berry compote and dried caramel flakes drive the sweetness.
Finish: Wine tannic and wet toothpicks. This one finishes kind of blah.
Comments: This bottling is the sherry forward blend that preceded the current 24 year old bourbon cask blend under Costco’s Kirkland Signature label. I’m a big sherry nut but this I like less than the newer blend. The sherry is heavy handed and a bit of a one trick pony. Beyond the sherry it is rather bland. If I was to recommend this to someone it might be as a table whisky at the hunting shack for a Macallan devotee.
Rating: Average

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JW Dant Bottled in Bond

/ / Bourbon, Review /

J.W. Dant Genuine Sour Mash Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Bottled in Bond
50% ABV
$12-$15
Dant
What the Distiller Says:

Really not a damn thing. Dant is historical brand that you can read more about . Heaven Hill owns and produces the brand now and from looking at their website you would never know it existed.

What Gary Says:
Nose: Vanilla, bit of pepper spice, bit of oak; textbook rye bourbon.
Palate: Caramel corn, bit of maple & root beer.
Finish: Short and drying.
Comments: I found myself liking this more with each sip, although never loving it. A very solid/serviceable bourbon, but not memorable. If someone asked me to pick my favorite 3 bottles for under $18, I don’t know that this one makes the cut (I’d go with Heaven Hill 6yr BIB, Ezra Brooks 7yr 101, and Ancient Ancient Age 10-Star). But there’s nothing off-putting about this bourbon – and there are a LOT of options out there that I would select this over.
Rating: Average

What Richard Says:
Nose: Black pepper, toffee crisps, vanilla bean ice cream, and an earthy woodiness.
Palate: Creamy, easy drinking, caramel sweetness with vanilla and black pepper around the edges.
Finish: It finishes younger and hotter like you would expect. Alcohol heat, dry oak, more pepper at the top of the throat. There is also this weird rubber band flavor mid finish.
Comments: What would younger Elijah Craig taste like? Well here you go. It’s essentially the same bourbon more or less but much younger. It’s not going to knock your socks off but hell it’s less than $15 a bottle. I enjoy it much more than white label Jim Beam. It’s a solid campfire or back yard barbecue bourbon. And it dances circles around most of the craft whiskeys I’ve had!
Rating: Average

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Old Hickory Straight Bourbon

/ / Bourbon, Review / ,

Old Hickory Straight Bourbon Whiskey
43% ABV
$39.99
Website
Old_Hickory_Whiskey_Straight_Bourbon_Bottle_300
What the Bottler Says:
Old Hickory White Label is a straight bourbon distilled at 86 proof, which is the traditional “Perfect Proof” preferred historically by American distillers. Created for modern whiskey cocktails and bourbon connoisseurs, Old Hickory White Label is rich and near mahogany in color. With intense spice and oak aromas, this bold whiskey is masculine and displays notes of cedar and gingerbread. The over-proof delivers a lingering finish of pie crust and sweet tobacco.

What Gary Says:
Nose: Young and thin, corn (but not as much corn sweet as I’d expect) and sour wood with a hint of anise.
Palate: Thin mouthfeel, young and more wood influence than I expected. Subtle sweetness with a hint of caramel and vanilla.
Finish: Fairly short and dry.
Comments: I tasted this before I read up on it, and based on taste alone – I figured this was under four years old, and possibly aged in smaller than 53 gallon barrels (as I get more wood for something fairly young). After researching further, I’m disappointed at the lack of transparency. First, the web-site states it was distilled at 86 proof. This could be true, but I doubt it – my guess is that it is bottled at 86 proof (big difference). I had to go to R.S. Lipman’s website to get a fact sheet, which spells out that this was distilled at “the historic Joseph E. Seagram’s facility in Lawrenceburg, IN” – which is another way to say this is MGP like many other NDP bourbons on the market. This isn’t a negative – MGP makes (and has made) some really solid whiskey! But Seagram’s went out of business in 2000, and the distillery has been owned by Pernod Ricard, CL Financial (who renamed it in 2007 to Lawrenceburg Distillers Indiana – LDI), and MGP Ingredients since 2011. Later they mention MGP (as they want to use the social responsibility, environmental health, innovations, etc that they list on their site), but I still find it disingenuous to not give them credit from the go. They state that the whiskey is aged a minimum of 4 yrs and “has stocks up to 7 years old”, and as the label has no age statement, it must be a minimum of 4 yrs old – although if there is 7 yr old stock included, I would suspect that is a very small amount.

Saying I was unimpressed would be an understatement. For 86 proof straight bourbon, I would be much happier with Evan Williams black label personally. And seeing the suggested retail price would make this an easy pass for me.
Rating: Probably Pass

What Richard Says:
Nose: Light and barely there. There’s a bit of corn and licorice in the back but little else.
Palate: Sweet. This is lacking depth of flavor. It’s basically just sweetness.
Finish: Light and forgettable.
Comments: Again, like the Old Hickory Blended Bourbon this isn’t bad per se. It’s really just a bland, uninspiring whiskey that would be fine for mixing if it wasn’t priced so high.
Rating: Average

We would like to thank Double Diamond Marketing & Communications for sending us a sample to review.

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