Stands Out

Vintage 17

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Vintage 17 Years Old Bourbon Whiskey
47% ABV
$60

What the Distillery Says:
Our Vintage Bourbon is selected from the very rarest lot of barrels. Each Barrel is hand-picked and chosen according to our strictest criteria for taste, aroma, and bouquet. The extra years that we allow these barrels to age imparts flavor and taste characteristics not found among other bourbons. Unfortunately the many extra years of barrel aging also limits the quantities from each barrel to only a few precious bottles. Please enjoy this rare Vintage Bourbon in moderation. Best savored by sippin’ neat, of course.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Vanilla, cinnamon, and rum cake.
Palate: Creme brulee, cinnamon, and toasted oak.
Finish: Dry wood, leather, aged tobacco, and chalky mint.
Comments: This is a lovely aged bourbon. Given the skyrocketing prices for aged bourbon this is almost a steal at $60.
Rating: Stands Out

Vintage 17 Read More »

Green Spot

/ / Irish Whiskey, Review /

Green Spot Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey
40% ABV
$60 to $70
Website

What the Distillery Says:
Produced exclusively for Mitchell & Son. This Single Pot Still Whisky is unique to Ireland.

Nose: Fresh aromatic oils and spices with orchard fruits and barley on a background of toasted wood.

Taste: Full spicy body. A hint of cloves along with the fruity sweetness of green apples, rounded off with toasted oak.

Finish: Lingering flavours of spices and barley.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Peaches, oranges, fresh cut hardwoods, and grainy cereal notes.
Palate: Woody, lightly spiced, and under ripe fruits.
Finish: Wisps of pepper and cereal grains with minty notes. Very light and hardly there.
Comments: Redbreast’s little brother. I had a bottle of Green Spot years ago when it and Redbreast were really the only two left in the single pot still game. I didn’t think too much of it then and not much has changed. It’s a fine whiskey but Redbreast still overshadows the poor dram.
Rating: Stands out

Green Spot Read More »

Concannon Irish Whiskey

/ / Irish Whiskey, Review /

Concannon Irish Whiskey
40% ABV
$24.99
Website

What the Distillery Says:
Launched in U.S. in early 2012, Concannon Irish Whiskey is the independent spirit of Ireland. Developed as a joint collaboration between Livermore Valley-based Concannon Vineyard and Ireland’s renowned Cooley distillery.
Brand Ambassador and 4th Generation Vintner, John Concannon, is continuing his family’s legacy of blending rich tradition with pioneering innovation with the development of Concannon Irish Whiskey. “Our Irish roots run deep, and entering the Irish Whiskey market symbolizes building an eternal bond with the past by creating a bold, new chapter in our Concannon Family History.” Concannon Irish Whiskey, a special tribute to his Great-Grandfather, James Concannon, in admiration for his adventurous spirit, vision and ambitious endeavors. James Concannon also celebrates his birthday on St. Patrick’s Day.

Concannon Irish Whiskey is a refined blend of malted barley and corn, craft distilled for proper balance of character and purity. It is matured in bourbon barrels for a minimum of four years, then mellowed in Concannon Petite Sirah wine barrels for four months before blending. This is known as the “Concannon Effect”, which gives Concannon Irish Whiskey a uniquely fruity character with a full, clean and balanced taste.

Visual: Light golden wheat color
Nose: Toasted malt, red fruit and vanilla
Palate: Balance of honey sweet, spice, and citrus flavors
Finish: Medium-length. Warming and round, with hint fresh oak.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Malty, buttery and clean with a hint of fresh raked pine needles moist from a recent rain.
Palate: Grassy, and herbaceous, dry with a slightly sharp tannic bite followed by a light honeysuckle sweetness.
Finish: Clean, crisp, and slightly dry. It’s a little easy to forget what you drank.
Comments: This is easily my favorite recent release from Cooley. Those Concannon petite syrah barrels work wonders a 4 year old Cooley spirit.
Rating: Stands Out

I would like to thank the Baddish Group for providing me with a generous review sample.

Concannon Irish Whiskey Read More »

Bowman Brothers Pioneer Spirit

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Bowman Brothers Pioneer Spirit Small Batch Virginia Straight Bourbon Whiskey
45% ABV
$35
Website

What the Distillery Says:
John, Abraham, Joseph and Isaac Bowman were Virginia militia officers in the American Revolutionary War. In 1779, they led thirty pioneer families to Madison County, Kentucky and established Bowman’s Station. Later, the brothers helped establish and settle Fayette County. They were legends, admired and respected by fellow settlers for their courage and bravery. This hand-crafted bourbon whiskey is a tribute to these four heroic Bowman brothers from Virginia.

What Richard Says:
Nose: A little medicinal, dark and rich with notes of tart berries, honeysuckle, dried apricots, and chocolate truffles.
Palate: Smooth and slow to evolve. You have to roll this one around a bit. Your reward is a little caramel sweetness, rich butteriness and a dangerous drinkability.
Finish: Warm, comforting, dried popsicle sticks, and black pepper.
Comments: Sadly, I had rare occasion to try any Bowman whiskeys until Truman Cox’s passing. This fact makes a sad occasion even sadder. A fine bourbon to show the bar stool geniuses that no, bourbon is not only made in Kentucky.
Rating: Stands Out

Bowman Brothers Pioneer Spirit Read More »

Cragganmore 12 Year Old

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

Cragganmore Highland Single Malt Aged 12 Years
40% ABV/80 Proof
$50
Website

What the Distillery Says:
Speyside today is widely revered for its sublime malt whiskies and for its fine salmon fishing. It is here, in this fertile triangle of land between mountain and sea, long been known as the Garden of Scotland, that Cragganmore single malt whisky is distilled.

Barley is naturally a major crop, and the presence of Scotland’s fastest flowing river – together with peat from the uplands to the south – was the reason original Cragganmore owner ‘Big’ John Smith felt that it would be the perfect place for the perfect distillery.

And who could argue with his genius? Successive managers of Cragganmore have strived to continue his vision to deliver the sweetest, most complex of malt whiskies. Fruity, honeyed notes are often found and many a taster has talked of fruitcake and toffee flavours.

NOSE – A combination of sweet floral fragrances, riverside herbs and flowers with some honey and vanilla.
BODY – Firm, rounded, light to medium.
PALATE – A strong malty taste with hints of sweet wood smoke and sandalwood
FINISH – A long, malt-driven finish with light smoke and hints of sweetness.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Treacle tarts jump out initially but quickly mellow to a more subtle earthy sweetness. Meaty and herbal with a honey sweetness.
Palate: It starts off very soft and mellow. There is a light floral sweetness to it as it picks up steam toward the finish.
Finish: Dry and spicy. It is a little brawny compared to what you might expect from the palate.
Comments: Why doesn’t Cragganmore get more love? It’s an enormously pleasing dram and stands above the likes of it’s more popular 12 year old brethren like Glenlivet, Glenfiddich, and Macallan. I actually know the answer to my own questions. Diageo prices it out of popularity. At $50 a bottle it’s well above the three Glens and near $10 more than the perennially overpriced Dalmore and Macallan. The value proposition makes it hard to tell you to seek it out over other drams but from taste alone I find it to be a benchmark 12 year old.
Rating: Stands Out

Cragganmore 12 Year Old Read More »