Must Try

Woodford Reserve Double Oaked Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
45.2% ABV/90.4 Proof
$50
Website

What the Distillery Says:
An innovative approach to twice-barreled bourbon creates the rich and colorful flavor of Woodford Reserve Double Oaked. Uniquely matured in separate, charred oak barrels – the second barrel deeply toasted before a light charring – extracts additional amounts of soft, sweet oak character.

The overwhelming response to our master’s collection seasoned oak finish offering inspired us to create a twice-barreled bourbon that is available year-round. Uniquely matured in our handcrafted white oak barrels, the second barrel deeply toasted before a light charring, creates Woodford Reserve Double Oaked – a smooth, full-bodied expression with a long, rich finish that we are proud to share with others who are as passionate about bourbon as we are.

Maturation in a new, charred oak barrel provides Woodford Reserve with all of its natural color and a great deal of its award-winning flavor. This double oaked expression has been uniquely matured in two separate, custom crafted barrels. The second was deeply toasted before its light charring. The double barreling of mature Woodford Reserve in this unique barrel allows the spirit to extract an additional amount of soft, sweet oak character. This unique practice has created bourbon that is rich in honey, chocolate, marzipan and spiced apple character.

Color: Deep amber
Aroma: Rich notes of dark fruit, caramel, sharp honey, chocolate, marzipan and toasted oak.
Taste: A full-bodied mix of vanilla, dark caramel, hazelnut, apple, fruit and spices.
Finish: Long and creamy with lingering hints of honeyed apple.

What Richard Says:
Nose: This reminds me of snickerdoodles with vanilla ice cream: vanilla, cinnamon, and sugar. After it opens up a little the sugar turns into a fruity caramel.
Palate: Holy crap that’s good! It’s like Woodford taken to the next level. You’re hit with a blast of fruity oak infused sweetness but it’s not overpowering. Lots of vanilla and caramel. Really tasty.
Finish: Golden delicious and granny smith apples on a long oaky finish that mellow into a rich creaminess.
Comments: Brown Forman says they went for this expression after the response they got to the Seasoned Oak release a few years back. Well, they went out and did one better. This is a worthy line extension and a superior Woodford.
Rating: Must Try

I would like to thank Brittany Gilbert with Brown Forman for sending me a sample for review.

Parker’s Heritage Collection 10 Year Old Barrel Finished
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
50% ABV/100 Proof
$75 to $80

What the Distillery Says:
Two great distillers have collaborated to create an extraordinary taste profile for the fifth offering in Parker’s Heritage Collection – Parker Beam, Heaven Hill Distilleries’ 6th generation Master Distiller & Alain Royer, innovative French Cognac blender. Their product: Cognac Finished Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey. Royer’s long family history and expertise in the French Cognac industry aided in the selection of two-to-three-year-old Limousin oak casks from the House of Frapin. The Grande Champagne Cognac, which had aged in those casks, permeated the wood with it’s very light, floral and evanescent bouquet. Meanwhile, Parker Beam carefully hand selected a very limited number of the finest, super-premium barrels of 10-year-old Bourbon. The Bourbon was then finished for six months in Limousin oak casks to take on some of the Cognac’s characteristics. Bottled without chill filtering to preserve the unique taste and aroma, this Cognac finished Bourbon is a rare treat for every Bourbon collector.

This series of limited edition American straight whiskeys is a tribute to innovative and honored 6th generation Master Distiller Parker Beam who has been distilling, aging, and selecting critically acclaimed American whiskeys since joining Heaven Hill in 1960.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Toffee and oatmeal come to mind. There is also base hint of succulent roasted meats that surprisingly is not off-putting. With a little water it opens up to a muscadine jelly note that reminds me of my grandmother’s preserves.
Palate: The palate is rich and creamy. The base flavors of light sweetness, mellow oak, and vanilla I find in Evan Williams show through but in a more refined way. It’s like Evan put his tuxedo on for the evening.
Finish: Oak, leather, and a hint of smokiness. I immediately think of enjoying this with a fine cigar in an old leather chair in men’s club.
Comments: The base whiskey Parker and company used for this year’s edition is a 10 year old from the Evan Williams recipe. It was a great choice. I find that recipe tends to be on the mellow side and doesn’t always make itself known. That same character makes it very receptive to the cognac influence. I also want to make a note on the use of water. I never add any to any Evan Williams bottling I’ve had. It’s much too subdued of a bourbon to take water in my opinion. This release is no different. While water opens up the nose a little to some of the fruitier components it wrecks havoc on the palate and finish. At bottle strength it’s very drinkable and that’s how I would recommend it.
Rating: Must Try

Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch 2011 Release Barrel Strength Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
55.6% ABV/111.2 Proof
$70 to $80
Website

What the Distillery Says:
Four Roses Distillery is adding to its collection of limited edition small batch bourbon expressions this September which mingles four recipes – aged between 11 and 13 years – of the distillery’s 10 unique recipes.

The release of the Four Roses 2011 Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon will coincide with September’s Kentucky Bourbon Heritage Month and will be officially introduced at the 2011 Kentucky Bourbon Festival. It will include four recipes hand-selected by Master Distiller Jim Rutledge. The bourbon utilizes Four Roses’ recipes coded OBSK and OESQ, both aged 13 years, as well as recipes OESV aged 12 years and OESK aged 11 years.

The 2011 Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon presents aromas of honeysuckle, toasted oak, almond toffee, and spicy hints of nutmeg and cinnamon, with subtle fruit flavors of dried apricot, ripe plum, plus brown sugar, honey and dark chocolate covered cherries.

“This year’s limited small batch release is a classically refined bourbon that really showcases our ability to utilize the distillery’s 10 distinct recipes,” said Four Roses Master Distiller Jim Rutledge. “The combination of spicy, fruity and floral flavors make this a rich, mellow offering perfect for any occasion.”

The distillery will produce approximately 3,500 bottles of the barrel strength, non-chill filtered bourbon to markets where
Four Roses is currently available in the U.S.

Four Roses’ limited edition bourbon offerings have historically sold out quickly and been highly acclaimed by spirits critics. Last year’s 2010 Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon was rated third by Paul Pacult amongst the top 140 Five-Star Rated Spirits of the world in his renowned liquor industry publication The Spirit Journal.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Wow! The nose on this is amazing. It’s rich and candy-like with notes of honey, caramel, vanilla, wildflowers, and cherries.
Palate: There’s a smack of spicy rye on the palate. Water opens up notes of stone fruit, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and chocolate.
Finish: Oak stands out on the finish. Even with a healthy dose of water the oak still stands strong. As it lingers, the finish develops a little nutty sweetness.
Comments: This is easily one of the top five annual releases I look forward to every year. It’s interesting to see this limited edition series develop from it’s Mariage origins to the mingling of four different recipes this year. The nose on this is just shy of heavenly. It doesn’t quite stand up to the 2008 Mariage, which for me is the standard bearer for this series but that’s only due to a little too much oak on the finish and a fickle palate. This really is an exceptional bourbon. I recommend trying this one.
Rating: Must Try

I’d like to thank Laura with The Baddish Group for providing me with a review sample. I usually buy a bottle of this every year but I was having some trouble procuring one this year. Maybe I should stop tell all of you how good this stuff is. 😉

Parker’s Heritage Collection Wheated Mashbill Aged 10 Years
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
63.9% ABV/127.8 Proof
$75 to $80
Collectible

What the Distillery Says:
Parker’s Heritage Collection is a series of rare, limited-edition American Whiskeys, a tribute to sixth-generation Master Distiller Parker Beam. Parker has been practicing his family’s craft of distilling, aging and selecting some of the world’s most criticall-acclaimed Bourbons and American Whiskeys since joining Heaven Hill Distilleries in 1960. Park Beam, his grandfather and namesake, was the brother of James Beauregard Beam, better known as “Jim” Beam. Parker’s father Earl was the first to ply his trade at Heaven Hill. From him, Parker learned how to make great American whiskey. Earl turned the daily operations over to Parker in 1975 making him the sixth-generation Beam to earn the title of Master Distiller.

Says Parker, “My role is to guide a carefully-refined process that Heaven Hill has used for generation – everything from how the stills are used to relying on our own strain of natural yeast. Knowing which ‘honey’ barrels to select and when the whiskey has matured to our standards ensures one-of-a-kind taste and quality.”

What Richard Says:
Nose: You’ll need to tame this 127 proof monster with some water to get at the nose. When you do you’re rewarded with a nose of chocolate, cinnamon, rum, and vanilla latte.
Palate: Again you’ll want to hit this dram with some water. It’s sweet and smooth in the mouth with lots of vanilla, cocoa, and breakfast syrups (think IHOP).
Finish: The finish is clean, smooth, and leaves traces of cocoa powder, oak, and nuts.
Comments: There is so much more to wheated bourbon than Maker’s Mark. This gem from Heaven Hill is the 2010 (4th) release in the Parker’s Heritage Collection. This gives us a peek into what may be to come for the Old Fitzgerald line now that Parker Beam is giving it a go. Heaven Hill fans, Pappy Van Winkle fans, wheated bourbon fans, and anyone else who just like good bourbon should actively seek this out before it’s all gone.
Rating: Must Try