60.5% ABV (for sample provided; varies by barrel) $90 Website We would like to thank Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey and The Brand Guild for sending us a sample to review.
What the Distillery Says
Bottled at cask strength, this Single Barrel Straight Rye Whiskey is what other ryes work hard to grow up to be. Tennessee does a lot of things well; growing rye is not one of them. So, we sought out the best from other states. Each of our inaugural barrels hails from New York, where they aged in new American oak for a minimum of four years after a short stint in B.C., where they were born.
These barrels began as a lofty experiment in 2017. Was it possible to create an ultra-smooth whiskey, with flavor galore, made from 100% rye? That was the question. The answer took a while but was well worth the wait: hell yeah.
What Gary Says
Nose: Rye toast, corn flakes, salted caramel, orange honey, cinnamon and a hint of anise. Palate: Caramel, orange bitters, bursting with rye spice, cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne pepper and lemongrass. Finish: Moderately long, drying with chili spice and citrus. Comments: I tried this side by side against the Uncle Nearest Uncut/Unfiltered Straight Rye Whiskey, which probably isn’t a fair comparison. The Uncut/Unfiltered is $60 more, but is the same mashbill, and the descriptions of treatment are similar (although both are non-age stated, and I suspect that is where the difference lies – besides this offering being a single barrel). While there is similarity between the two, I preferred the other. I found this to be a bit hot, thinner, and likely a bit younger (although not “young”). Now as a single barrel, maybe the one I tried is an outlier. It does take water well, and thickened up nicely. This is a very spicy and hot rye – which I think makes for a great cocktail.
Town Branch is handcrafted to pay homage to the rich distilling history in Lexington, Kentucky. Our Single Barrel Reserve Bourbon Whiskey is a cask strength, single cask expression of our flagship bourbon that is hand-selected by the most distinguished of palates.
TASTING NOTES: Oak, Caramel, Brown Sugar, Cherry PAIRING SUGGESTION: Best served simply neat or paired with a large ice cube, along with beef, lamb, cured meats, aged gouda, and cheddar cheese.
Sample from Barrel 2335
What Gary Says
Nose: Caramel, soft fresh hewn oak, vanilla, hint of corn bread, baking spices, bit of dark fruit, raisins and fall leaves. Palate: Caramel creme candies, cinnamon, vanilla, pepper, oak and roasted corn flakes. Finish: Short to moderate in length with caramel, dark fruit and pepper. Comments: Not sure the age on this particular barrel, but a lot of corn (more than I would have expected if this is in the typical 6 to 8 years age range). Now it doesn’t taste “young”, just very pedestrian to me for the price. A bit of water doesn’t change it much either. The dark fruit notes are interesting, although not enough so that I’d go out of my way for.
Oak & Eden Wheat & Honey Bourbon Whiskey Finished With A Honey Soaked American Oak Spiral
45% ABV $60 Website We would like to thank Oak & Eden and Champlin PR for sending us a sample to review.
What the Producer Says
DALLAS, Sept. 29, 2022 – Today, DFW-based indie whiskey brand Oak & Eden unveils Wheat & Honey, a small batch release blending the brand’s permanent wheated bourbon with a honey-soaked toasted American Oak spire. Honey is the first flavor that most people discern when drinking whiskey, making this infusion an obvious choice to take a good thing and make it great.
Oak & Eden is built on the foundation of innovation, believing whiskey should be constantly fresh and distinct, never the same. This pursuit leads the brand to constantly create new and unique whiskies that could only be achieved by its patented process of In-Bottle Finishing. Oak & Eden follows traditional distillation and aging to the letter, aging their whiskeys for at least two years in American Oak barrels. They then break tradition in the finishing (or double barrel) process, where instead of putting the fully aged whiskey in a second barrel to add more flavor coming naturally from the wood, they place in the bottle a Spire; a 5” long spiral-cut piece of oak fashioned from the same species and treatment as barrel oak.
With Wheat & Honey, the spire is paired with another libation, American honey, to infuse the oak with an additional element that adds an essence of flavor on the finish. Wheat & Honey, bottled at 45% Alc. by Vol., is available now exclusively online at oakandeden.com with a price of $59.99 for 750mL. Wheat & Honey will continue to roll out in select Oak & Eden retailers across 30 states in the coming months.
“Every Oak & Eden release reflects our pursuit in customizing the experience of whiskey in unique ways — not just with the products we create, but also with how they are designed to be used,” comments Co-Founder and CMO Brad Neathery. “We intentionally crafted Wheat & Honey to pair beautifully with a broad range of refreshing cocktails – cocktails that most people would never assume are whiskey based.”
As a naturally sweeter whiskey, Wheat & Honey lends itself as a go-to for cocktails. To complement the launch, Oak & Eden shares four distinct, easy-to-replicate recipes: Cloud Nine, Solar Flare, American Honey and The Gold Coast. Visit Oak & Eden’s Barkeeper’s Diary for full recipes, cocktail tips and more.
More on Wheat & Honey: Whiskey: Wheated Bourbon – Wheat & Honey begins with a remarkably smooth combination of 51% corn, 45% wheat and 4% malted barley. Once distilled, the bourbon is aged in new American Oak barrels producing a rich, deep yet sweet spirit. Wood: American Oak – Containing hundreds of naturally occurring botanicals, Oak & Eden uses a 5” American Oak spire in Wheat & Honey, which produces a rich, velvety whiskey full of caramel, butterscotch, and allspice notes. Fire: Medium Toast – Before placing the spire into the wheated bourbon, it is exposed to fire, technically a Medium Toast, toasting the wood to the perfect degree that will produce a finish that is deep and rich with subtle notes of candied fruit, vanilla, toffee, and caramel. Infusion: American Honey – Each spire is infused with American Honey before being placed in the bottle for that naturally sweet finish. Tasting notes: Honey, Marshmallow & Candied Fruit
Oak & Eden will debut additional expressions to its Infused Series over the next year as well as build upon its unique Bottle Builder program where customers can craft their own whiskey bottle using one of the maker’s four finished whiskey bases and over thirty infusion options. The Bottle Builder program is currently offered ($90/ 750ml bottle) at the brand’s Flagship retail location and nano-distillery in Bridgeport, TX.
Check out oakandeden.com for more information on Wheat & Honey as well as the brand’s full lineup of whiskies.
What Gary Says
Nose: Sponge cake, vanilla, oak, raw honey, hint of roasted marshmallow. Palate: Creamy mouthfeel, sweet with honey, caramel, vanilla, cinnamon, oak, and subtle pear notes. Finish: Short to moderate in length, drying with honey, vanilla and a touch of oak. Comments: An interesting dram and enjoyable sipper. I do like honey in bourbon (especially when recovering from a sore throat), and this hits that note. Having done some experimenting with charred oak sticks in bottles, I wonder how time alters this. Will the honey or oak notes continue to grow heavier? Will it improve? Will it get off-balanced? I’ll post an update in a few months (didn’t want to delay this until then). This doesn’t need any water, which is good because it thins out rather quickly with a bit of it.
AGED: 22 years DISTILLED ON: October 30 1996 BOTTLED ON: May 29 2019 MATURED IN: Hogshead CASK NO: 8730 BOTTLE NO: 24 of 192 NATURAL COLOUR
What Gary Says
Nose: Caramel, honey, mixed nuts, fruit salad with mandarin orange slices, oak, bit of a mineral earthy note. Palate: Fruity with green apples, not-quite-ripe pears, peaches, grapefruit, sharpens with tonic, cinnamon and pepper. Finish: Moderately long, dry with tonic, honey and citrus. Comments: The nose has a hint like it ‘might be peat’ but not quite (and to be clear, this isn’t a peated whisky). Astringent and bitter despite the fruit notes, reminds me a bit of a hard cider. A bit of water only slightly dampens this edge, and a bit more thins it out, so go easy with the water on this one. Not particularly in my wheelhouse.
52.5% ABV $55 Website We would like to thank Buzzard’s Roost for sending us a sample to review.
What the Producer Says
OUR PROCESS We start by sourcing the best aged whiskey we can find, but the real magic is in our barrels. We use only brand new, 53-gallon white oak barrels that are carefully toasted and very lightly charred. Each one is designed from the ground up to deliver a specific flavor profile.
We work closely with our cooperage to tweak every parameter of the barrel – from the seasoning to the charring to the development of our custom toast profiles. All of our barrels are unique and proprietary to our company, giving Buzzard’s Roost a truly one-of-a kind flavor. After resting only a few weeks in our new barrels, the whiskey is purposefully transformed and ready for bottling.
About: Buzzard’s Roost is excited to announce the launch of its third bourbon in celebration of three years of making exceptional whiskeys. Created from 4-year-old whiskey, then aged in our proprietary barrels, this bourbon is created from a mash bill of of 59% corn, 36% rye, and 5% malted barley.
The color is a rich bronze, and this bourbon is sure to stand out in your favorite whiskey cocktail or enjoyed straight on its own.
Char #1 Bourbon offers tantalizing aromas of brown sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, and vanilla. The palate is a perfect blend of flavor and structure, with woody notes that are matched with cherry and dark fruit notes. The finish is long with just the right intensity. The fruit and vanilla hints are accompanied by a pinch of spice.
• Nose: The nose is full of brown sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, and vanilla. • Palate: Once on the palate, flavors of sweet vanilla and brown sugar lend themselves to a sweet and rich mouthfeel. • Finish: A harmonious and subtle fade to cherry and blackberry.
What Gary Says
Nose: Cooked corn mash with brown sugar, vanilla, touch of honey, oak and cinnamon. Palate: Vanilla, brown sugar, caramel, pepper spice with oak and cinnamon. Finish: Short with oak, pepper and vanilla. Comments: The nose definitely comes across as young (which at 4 years it is). I do appreciate the higher ABV, and this is one of those rare whiskies < 55% ABV where I actually prefer it with a bit of water – which amps the brown sugar on the nose to almost molasses, and tamps the edges on the palate with even more brown sugar.
