Stands Out

Blue Note Wheated Blend 101

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Blue Note Wheated Blend 101
Straight Bourbon Whiskey Unfiltered Small Batch

50.5% ABV
$45
Website
Blue Note Wheated Bourbon 101
We would like to thank B.R. Distilling Co and Ro-Bro Marketing & PR for sending us a sample to review.

What the Producer Says

Soft winter wheat takes the lead as Memphis heat pulls hidden nuance to the surface. Ripe peach, dark caramel, apricot, and cinnamon rise on the nose. The palate brings sticky toffee, pastry sweetness with a little grit, and hazelnut rolling into a honey-soaked finish. Smooth, but never timid—Blue Note Wheated carries true Southern swagger.

Nose: Caramel, apricot, peach, cinnamon
Body: Velvety, smooth
Taste: Toffee, pastries, hazelnut, sweet oak, graham cracker
Finish: Floral, honeysuckle, honey

TECHNICAL DETAILS
Product Type: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Mash Bill: 70% Corn, 21% Wheat 9% Malted Barley
Proof & Filtration: 101 proof, unfiltered
Availability: Select Markets, Crafted in Memphis

What Gary Says

Nose: Caramel, peach filled pastry w/ cinnamon and vanilla cream frosting, bit of oak.
Palate: Rich mouthfeel, pastries w/ caramel drizzle, pecan praline, honey and cinnamon.
Finish: Moderate length w/ honey and floral notes.
Comments: Very nice! I appreciate the ABV as well as the unfiltered treatment. As a straight bourbon with no age statement, guaranteed to be 4 years old (sources say 5 years, which wouldn’t surprise me). Strong honey notes on this, which I enjoy. Their limited edition Honey Cask is one I keep an eye out for (definitely worth picking up!). A bit of water brings out honey glazed brioche on the nose, and thickens the mouthfeel further bringing out some subtle fruit notes.

Rating: Stands Out

Blue Note Wheated Blend 101 Read More »

Old Forester 1924 10 Year Old

/ / Bourbon, Review / ,

Old Forester 1924 10 Year Old
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky

50% ABV
$115
Website
Old Forester 1924 10 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky

What the Distillery Says

The Whiskey Row Series’ 1924 10 – Year – Old is a limited annual release celebrating another milestone in Old Forester’s storied history.

During Prohibition, more than 200 distilleries were forced to close. Old Forester, however, continued operations because the federal government issued us one of six medicinal licenses, P-3. In 1924, Old Forester acquired barrels from closed distillers, with different mash bills, and bottled that liquid as Old Forester. This release commemorates that moment in time.

Aroma: Soft notes of fudge, cocoa, marzipan, and cured tobacco layered over hints of rich oak and warm cinnamon.
Taste: Chocolate covered graham cracker dusted with cinnamon.
Finish: Hints of spice and graham cracker crumbles.

What Gary Says

Nose: Caramel, fudge, vanilla, walnuts, pipe tobacco, charred oak and a hint of leather.
Palate: Chocolate, vanilla, caramel, walnuts, cinnamon with a hint of cherries and oak.
Finish: Moderately long, drying with toffee and oak spices.
Comments: This drinks well neat but try a couple of drops of water – brings out a bit of citrus on the nose and palate, and also thickens the mouthfeel nicely (borderline creamy). 10 years is a solid age for bourbon in my humble opinion – definitely getting some oak notes but not approaching too much. My only objection on this one is the price. It isn’t insane by today’s standards, but at almost twice the price of Old Forester 1920 – definitely didn’t love it that much.

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

Old Forester 1924 10 Year Old Read More »

Gambit No. 6 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

/ / Bourbon, Review /

Gambit No. 6 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Finished in Wine, Apple Brandy, Sherry & Tokaji Casks

46% ABV
$70
Website
Gambit No. 6 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
We would like to thank Foley Family Wines and Raptor Communications for sending us a sample to review.

What the Producer Says

THE DETAILS
ARE THE
DIFFERENCE
A rich and dry six-cask finished bourbon whiskey that reveals itself in layers of baking spices on the nose, and a balanced palate with hints of cacao, sweet tobacco, and a diverse blend of ripe fruit notes. Perfect sipped neat or in an Old Fashioned.

6-year Kentucky Bourbon
6 Distinct Cask Finishes

  • Sonoma Chardonnay
  • Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon
  • Apple Brandy
  • Oloroso Sherry
  • Muscatel
  • Tokaji

Why 6 Casks?
That’s the GAMBIT. Chip originally envisioned a double wine barrel-finished bourbon but found that adding four more barrel finishes added something unique to the blend in structure, palate, and finish.

What Gary Says

Nose: Fruity with pears, apricots, figs, vanilla, oak, bit of cocoa, caramel, cinnamon, nutmeg, mint and a hint of mandarin orange.
Palate: Dark chocolate covered cherries, toffee, red wine, red berry compote, cinnamon, orange zest, vanilla, brown sugar and pepper spice.
Finish: Moderately long, drying with citrus spice, cinnamon and honey.
Comments: Very interesting pour. The nose is bourbon with the fruit dial cranked up. On the palate the wine cask really stands out, enough so that the bourbon doesn’t stand out quite as much (not that it’s “not bourbon”, but harder to pin down). All that said, this is very enjoyable sipping neat, although a few drops of water doesn’t hurt it – bringing out more cocoa on the nose and taking the dark chocolate more towards milk chocolate (plus thickening the mouthfeel nicely).

Rating: Stands Out

Gambit No. 6 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Read More »

GlenAllachie 15 Year Old

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

The GlenAllachie 15 Year Old
Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

46% ABV
$100-125
Website
The GlenAllachie 15 Year Old Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

What the Distillery Says

This spectacular Scotch whisky embodies our unwavering dedication to obtaining Sherry wood of the highest standard. A watchful eye throughout the maturation journey ensures the whisky is bottled at its optimum.

With an intense mahogany hue, this single malt exudes sheer indulgence with layers of cinnamon, orange zest, vanilla toffee and dark chocolate.

We proudly present The GlenAllachie 15-year-old with integrity; at a high strength of 46%, without added colouring or chill filtration, enabling its true charm to shine through.

What Gary Says

Nose: Dried fruit, raisins, figs, cherries, orange marmalade, oak spices and brown sugar.
Palate: Honey and vanilla with cherries, raisins, orange zest, baked apples, cinnamon, nutmeg and pepper.
Finish: Moderate in length, drying with cocoa, oak, brown sugar and spices.
Comments: A nice sipping dram. Sherried for sure but not a ‘bomb’. Fairly well balanced, a bit on the dry side – almost sharp with the spice notes. This is the first GlenAllachie I’ve reviewed, although have some single casks I’ll get to at some point.

Rating: Stands Out

GlenAllachie 15 Year Old Read More »

High West A Midwinter Night’s Dram Act 12 (2024)

/ / Review, Rye Whiskey /

High West A Midwinter Night’s Dram
Blend of Straight Rye Whiskeys Finished in Port Barrels
Act 12, Scene 7 (2024 release)

49.3% ABV
$150
Website
High West A Midwinter Night’s Dram Act 12

What the Producer Says

Dram is our beloved flagship whiskey, “Rendezvous” (a blend of straight rye whiskeys ranging in 4 to 10 years of age), finished in Ruby and Tawny Port barrels.

Nose: Crushed blackberries, mandarin zest, almond shortbread, fig jam, dulce de membrillo, allspice, old vine zinfandel, plum syrup spilled on a mahogany table
Palate: Marionberry preserves, chocolate-dipped cherries, marble rye bread, mochaccino, cinnamon bark, oolong tea, winter pine, smoldering Havana cigar
Finish: Velvety and spiced–chai cold foam, clove-studded orange flesh, soft ginger chew

How to drink: We recommend that you enjoy this special spirit neat, due to its many layers of complexity, next to a warm fire as the snow piles up on the window sill.

What Gary Says

Nose: Dark fruit, plums, blackberries, figs, heavy port, allspice, hint of anise and orange zest.
Palate: Blood orange, plum, cinnamon, bitter chocolate, nutmeg, cloves and sour oak.
Finish: Moderate in length, drying with citrus spice and cloves fading.
Comments: Reviewed this for the first time back in September of 2020, and just late last year I received a sample of Act 13. A few months later, a friend gifted me this sample – and as luck would have it I still had some of the Act 13 to perform a side-by-side comparison. They were incredibly similar. On my first side-by-side, I only detected slight differences; in the next attempt I couldn’t tell any difference. On the nose I found a hint of anise that I didn’t detect on the 13 (and maybe a tad more of orange zest?), although on the palate I couldn’t find any difference. I repeated this a couple more times, with the same results. As I wasn’t terribly impressed with the Act 13, this was a bit disappointing – but confirmed that Act 13 wasn’t an “off year”. And I can’t say that it has changed – for all I know my tastes have changed (and maybe if I had a new bottle of the early ones – I’d find them very similar).

Rating: Stands Out

High West A Midwinter Night’s Dram Act 12 (2024) Read More »