Stands Out

Blood Oath Pact No. 8

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Blood Oath Pact No. 8 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Finished in Calvados casks

49.3% ABV
$110
Website
Blood Oath Pact 8
We would like to thank Luxco and BYRNE PR for sending us samples to review.

What the Blender Says

Lux Row master distiller John Rempe continues his annual pact with bourbon drinkers with the release of Blood Oath Pact 8 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey finished in Calvados casks. A limited supply of 17,000 (3-pack) cases will arrive at retail this April at a suggested price of $119.99 per 750 ml bottle.

Blood Oath Pact 8 features a combination of the finest bourbons Rempe could find, including a 14-year ryed bourbon and an 11-year ryed bourbon, as well as an 8-year ryed bourbon finished in Calvados casks. Calvados is an apple or pear brandy from the Normandy region in northwestern France that is distilled from cider and aged for a minimum of two years in oak casks. These casks impart their unique aroma and flavor to make Blood Oath Pact 8 a one-of-a-kind pour.

Like with previous pacts, Rempe promises to make the best bourbon for the bourbon connoisseur, and as usual, he promises to never disclose the origin of the bourbons used to create Blood Oath Pact 8.

“I’ve once again sourced three great bourbons for Blood Oath Pact 8, and I’m particularly excited to include a bourbon finished in Calvados casks,” said Rempe. “The Calvados cask will bring additional tasting notes characterized by slight apple on the nose, with hints of vanilla and cinnamon, as well as flavor notes of ripe apples, juicy pears, butterscotch and even subtle hints of chocolate. Blood Oath Pact 8 is a bourbon I’m proud to share with bourbon lovers, but the recipe is a secret I’ll be keeping to myself.”

Blood Oath Pact 8 features a label similar to its series predecessors, but in a rich green hue to signify apples and pears, which are used to make Calvados brandy. The official launch of Blood Oath Pact 8 will include a total allocation of 51,00 bottles, 1,400 of which will be held for a future Trilogy Pack release. The first Trilogy Pack, featuring Pacts 1, 2 and 3, was released in 2018, and the second Trilogy Pack, featuring Pacts 4, 5 and 6, was released last September in conjunction with National Bourbon Heritage Month.

TASTING NOTES
AROMA: Slight apple on the nose with hints of vanilla and cinnamon.
PALATE: Ripe apples and juicy pears combined with butterscotch and hints of chocolate.
FINISH: Apples, pears, butterscotch, and chocolate.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Salted caramel, musty rickhouse, toasted orange zest, cinnamon, hints of baked apples and pears.
Palate:  Caramel, vanilla, honey, rye zip with cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper, hard apple cider and bit of mint.
Finish:  Moderately long, slightly drying with apple cider, caramel and mint.
Comments: Another really well made whiskey. I appreciate that Rempe and team have consistently used a deft hand with finishing in the Blood Oath pacts, so that it truly is a ‘finish’ that adds some subtle complexity to the bourbon without overpowering it. The Calvados influence is detectable, subtle, and delicious.  Lovely addition to the Blood Oath family!

Rating: Stands Out

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Woodford Reserve Bourbon Personal Selection

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Woodford Reserve Bourbon Personal Selection
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Personally Selected By Discount Drinks Etc. #1
Selection Date: 02/19/2020

45.2% ABV
$46
Website
Woodford Reserve Personal Selection Bourbon

What the Distillery Says

WOODFORD RESERVE BOURBON PERSONAL SELECTION
Because each barrel matures at its own rate, they take on a character of their own. So you’ll taste several as you craft your own two barrel batch. Then we’ll bottle your selections, complete with personalized labels. It’s Craft Bourbon, and you’re one of its craftsmen.

Here’s what you’ll receive:

180 1 Liter bottles of your selected bourbon, offered in personalized, individually labeled bottles bearing your name
Personalized barrelhead (upon request)
Personalized barrel (upon request)
A private tour of the distillery and lunch with tasting group
Your name or company name on display at the Distillery

What Gary Says

Nose:  Caramel, charred oak, cigar paper, orange zest, cinnamon, hint of milk chocolate.
Palate:  Creamy mouthfeel, sweet caramel, vanilla, allspice, cinnamon, toffee, citrus with a hint of anise.
Finish:  Moderately long and drying with cinnamon and toffee.
Comments:  A solid bourbon overall; not too sweet, not too spicy. Woodford Reserve hasn’t been one of my favorites, and not because it is objectionable – but I suppose that it is priced as a premium and doesn’t stand out enough to me. I hadn’t had regular Woodford Reserve in a while, so I picked some up in order to bump this against that in a blind side-by-side, and I couldn’t tell the difference between the two. Note that the ‘Personal Selection’ isn’t a single barrel program, but the next smallest batch size of two barrels – so I had hopes that this might be more different. Maybe if this was higher proof it would stand out more from the standard offering, although again – nothing objectionable with this. Other selections might vary more from the standard depending upon who does the selection.

Rating: Stands Out

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KOVAL Susan for President Barreled Peach Brandy

/ / Other Spirits, Review / ,

KOVAL Susan for President Barreled Peach Brandy

43% ABV
$45
Website
KOVAL Susan for President Barreled Peach Brandy

What the Distillery Says

Ethereal and delicate, the nose has surprising hints of white tea, wild flower, and bergamot. Whiskey dringers will appreciate the subtle, peppery entry resulting from the barrel-aging process, while the soft essence of peach will appeal to those with sweeter tastes. The meticulous attention to detail employed to distill Susan for President Peach Brandy pays off in the warm, round and fuzzy mouthfeel that mimics biting into a fresh peach — surprising and alluring

Susan for President commemorates the creative legacy of KOVAL co-founder and president Sonat Birnecker Hart’s Aunt Susan – an artist, sculptor, and connoisseur of finer things. As part of her artistic approach to life, she casually campaigned for President of the World, passing out calling cards adorned with humorous, often risqué illustrations and slogans. In memory of Susan, this line of specialty spirits is a posthumous way for her to continue the campaign, for as she used to say, “the beat goes on,” and there is still much beauty in this world to celebrate.

What Gary Says

DISCLAIMER: I’m a whisk(e)y enthusiast, and not familiar with Brandy (so read at your own risk!)
Nose:  Peach, honey, notes of tea, allspice, nutmeg, citrus notes with bergamot.
Palate:  Peaches, vanilla, honey, subtle spearmint with a hint of cinnamon.
Finish:  Short and drying with peaches and cinnamon.
Comments:  Again – NOT a brandy connoisseur, and similar to the Santa Fe Spirits Apple Brand – a bit of a one-trick pony. But this did have more complexity than that, and a bit less one dimensional. Just not enough to make me ever think of converting from whisk(e)y.

Rating: Average/Stands Out

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Cooper & Kings American Craft Brandy

/ / Other Spirits, Review /

Cooper & Kings American Craft Brandy

45% ABV
$35
Website
Copper & Kings American Craft Brandy

What the Distillery Says

A blend of superb exclusively copper pot-distilled brandy with real character and depth of flavor mingled in a unique, modern American style. Small batch distillation of superior, highly aromatic wine selected for exceptional quality.

Non-Chill Filtered For An Authentic, Uncorrupted Natural Flavor and natural color. Some Cloudiness, faint suspension or light sediment may be apparent at colder temperatures. Our ambition is to retain the integrity of the distillate with minimal intervention, with our signature mouth-feel and definitive aroma.

Matured in Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey and medium-char American white oak barrels for balance, complexity and a polished, velvety finish. The approximate blend is 90% Kentucky Bourbon Barrels & 10% New American Oak.

Tasting notes
Appearance: golden, caramelized oats, darkening harvest sun.
Aroma: caramel, honey, cherry wood, honeysuckle with a hint of melon and subtle floral bouquet.
Taste: luscious, ever so slightly oily & viscous. Honey, toasted oak, tobacco, dried stone fruit, feisty spice on the mid-palate.

What Gary Says

DISCLAIMER: I’m a whisk(e)y enthusiast, and not familiar with Brandy (so read at your own risk!)
Nose:  Honey, fruity with cherry, apples and kiwi, floral with subtle notes of tobacco.
Palate:  Sweet with honey, cherry, melon pepper (and maybe a bit of chili) spice.
Finish:  Moderate in length, damp with fading fruit and pepper spice.
Comments:  Of the three samples included in the Flaviar tasting box (The Brandy Bunch Vol. 2), this had the most complexity – but it still left me wanting more. Which might just mean I don’t care for brandy.

Rating: Stands Out

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Evan Williams 1783 Small Batch

/ / Bourbon, Review / ,

Evan Williams 1783 Small Batch
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

45% ABV
$20
Website
Evan Williams 1783 Small Batch

What the Distillery Says

Evan Williams 1783 Small Batch honors the year that Evan Williams founded Kentucky’s First Distillery. Pulled from fewer than 300 barrels, this extra-aged small Batch Bourbon won the 2019 Consumers’ 2019 SIP Award.

Proof: 90 Proof
Age: 6-8 Years Old

Tasting Notes
Color: Brilliant honey
Aroma: Oaky vanilla, sautéed butter, and sweet corn
Taste: Semi-sweet, oaky, and honeyed
Finish: Lean, off-dry, and regal

What Gary Says

Nose:  Salted caramel, vanilla, richhouse mustiness with a hint of cocoa.
Palate:  Sweet vanilla, caramel, honey, bit of clove and cinnamon with subtle mint.
Finish:  Short to moderate in length, drying with oak, caramel and bitter chocolate.
Comments:  One of the first dusty bourbons I ever had the good fortune to buy was the 10 year age stated Evan Williams 1783.  From what I recall from that, it had quite a bit more mint than this – although it would have been pre-fire Heaven Hill – so entirely different distillate. This is not that whiskey. When I first tried this, I thought it was quite nice – a solid albeit, sweet bourbon. It got me thinking how it might compare to Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond (which is a few dollar cheaper, but higher ABV).  In a blind side-by-side-by-side (which included Benchmark Bonded), this was very similar/close to the Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond. On the nose, they were incredibly similar, with this having just a touch more oak, and on the palate, this had a bit more spice – although these differences were subtle.  I actually preferred the BIB over this by a hair, but both were quite nice – and liked both more than the Benchmark Bonded (which was the most expense in that three-way tasting).

Rating: Average/Stands Out

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