So, as you may or may not know, you can get a bottle of Buffalo Trace standard Bourbon at Total Wine Or BevMo or wherever for a scant 20 bones. EXCELLENT blue collar consideration. Here's the kicker; for a mere 5 extra dollars, you can get a single cask bourbon that is set aside SPECIFICALLY for K & L wines and has a unique flavor profile, and feel like your own special scintillating snowflake. For 5 dollars, its pretty tough to come by that kind of exclusivity. If you pay an extra 5 bucks when you go to a movie, what do you get? A cardboard box full of popcorn. By comparison, it's a pretty sweet deal.
This Whisky comes to us from Buffalo Trace, the same distillery that bears the name on this bottle, as well as the bottle i last reviewed, the Col E.H. Taylor Small Batch. This is the sort of bottom of the barrel (no pun intended) nothing special Whisky that is good enough to bear the distillery's namesake. Like i said, you can get this bottle any place, however, it wont be a single cask, hand picked by the good folks at K&L and readily available to be shipped to your front doorstep.
1st sip, neat: Light opening. Crisp, but no stingy alcohol wind-up. Leads into an earthy, carrot/carmel body, with a mellow albeit dry finish.
2nd sip: Opened up slightly, picking up more of a sugar cane in the opening, and more of a neutral, balanced mouth feel. Same slow, powder dry finish.
3rd sip with B.A.I.C: Slightly more peppery, and the mouth feel fell a tiny bit more flat, but made for a nice smooth sip, that if one were so inclined, could mow through and on to the next drink. Would be nice for pre-game cocktails or hors d'oeuvres accompaniment.
So, at this point, i did a little quick math. What's the number one whisky drink imbibed the world around? No idea. However, if'n i was a betting man, i would say it's probably a Jack and Coke, though i doubt most places serve it with a lime. A bottle of JD is what? 20 bucks? Bottle of BuffTrace? Same. Bottle of this super exclusive uptown-fancypants BuffTrace? 25. Why not put it to the test? And what better way to put it to the test, than to weigh it against JD Single Barrel?!?! I figure, its 2x the price, so it should at least be considerably better, right? Both "single cask/barrel" labeled, pretty straightforward stuff from my point of view.
The Buffalo Trace wins out... IF, and only if, you do not have a "money-is-no-object" view, OR you have the point of view that if you mix a bourbon and Coke, it must be Jack. I will say the Jack and Coke with the single barrel, tasted more like the standard Jack and Coke you can get just about any place, just hot-rodded a bit. However, i will say, as a refreshing cocktail, i preferred the BuffTrace version. And, for half the price for a fifth, and to know for sure, why wouldn't you? Now, if you have been drinking Jack and Coke one way for the last 25 years, and you'll be damned if it'll be beat by any other bourbon, let me save you the hassle, you're probably right. However, if you want to try a different spin on it, i'm willing to bet you'd prefer the Buffalo Trace in a blind taste test, just due to the complimentary flavor. Give it a shot. What could it hurt?
Based solely on the exclusivity, availability, cost and exceptional flavor, i give this 5 stars. Based on my scoring system, considering all the things i do, and based on me being located a short ride away, it is impossible not to. If i lived further than a stones throw, i'd give it a 4 star rating.
Now, if you'll excuse me, i have to go dry up 'til the next post.
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
Monday, March 3, 2014
An Evening With the Colonel: My Review of E.H. Taylor, Jr Small Batch
So tonight's selection is Colonel E.H. Taylor, Jr. Small Batch. This Straight Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey comes to us from the now monolithic Buffalo Trace distillery located in Frankfort Kentucky. In my experience their whiskies are pretty tough to disappoint. The social event that i purchased this bottle (and a few others) for ended up being the spark that started this blog, so, thanks BufTrace.
I had sampled a glass of E.H.T at Whiskey Thieves while visiting SF to see one of my favorite bands. I sat down and the barman asked "What'll you have?" to which i responded "You got a lot(they do). What do you recommend?" He poured a glass of it neat, and he and i got along pretty good from then on, to the tune of a bar tab north of 2 c-notes. I was on vacation, so if i had to do it again, i'd do it the same. Great bar. If you find yourself in SF, put it on your list. You're welcome. On to the review...
1st sip, neat: remarkably subtle opening. Heavy on the tongue, viscous, slow warm electric-blanket like finish, with notes of floral, mineral, and date.
2nd sip, neat: didn't open remarkably, mostly aromatics. Caught some apricot and brown sugar that i didn't pick up in the first sip. Really nice, long slow finish still, with not much alcohol harshness. Could easily be sipped neat.
Finishing it off with a B.A.I.C: Man, that is nice. Just gets better each time I sip it. Really nice cold, as you get some pecan pie like notes, with a burnt brown sugar finish. It tastes like victory. The opening has such a nice sweetness, it really appeals to my sweet tooth. Would be excellent to have a slice of this after a meat-and-potatoes meal, for desert.
Overview: This is a great Whisky. Fantastic in every way. Appeals to my out-of-control sweet tooth, and for sure sets itself apart from the pack. Heavy on the tongue, yet easy going enough to pour yourself a double. The only thing that stops it from getting a fifth star is availability and price. Come down 20 dollars or keep it readily available at BevMo? You got a champion Whisky on your hands.
4 outta 5 stars.
I had sampled a glass of E.H.T at Whiskey Thieves while visiting SF to see one of my favorite bands. I sat down and the barman asked "What'll you have?" to which i responded "You got a lot(they do). What do you recommend?" He poured a glass of it neat, and he and i got along pretty good from then on, to the tune of a bar tab north of 2 c-notes. I was on vacation, so if i had to do it again, i'd do it the same. Great bar. If you find yourself in SF, put it on your list. You're welcome. On to the review...
1st sip, neat: remarkably subtle opening. Heavy on the tongue, viscous, slow warm electric-blanket like finish, with notes of floral, mineral, and date.
2nd sip, neat: didn't open remarkably, mostly aromatics. Caught some apricot and brown sugar that i didn't pick up in the first sip. Really nice, long slow finish still, with not much alcohol harshness. Could easily be sipped neat.
Finishing it off with a B.A.I.C: Man, that is nice. Just gets better each time I sip it. Really nice cold, as you get some pecan pie like notes, with a burnt brown sugar finish. It tastes like victory. The opening has such a nice sweetness, it really appeals to my sweet tooth. Would be excellent to have a slice of this after a meat-and-potatoes meal, for desert.
Overview: This is a great Whisky. Fantastic in every way. Appeals to my out-of-control sweet tooth, and for sure sets itself apart from the pack. Heavy on the tongue, yet easy going enough to pour yourself a double. The only thing that stops it from getting a fifth star is availability and price. Come down 20 dollars or keep it readily available at BevMo? You got a champion Whisky on your hands.
4 outta 5 stars.
Review: Fremont Mischeif's John Jacob Rye
First up! We have John Jacob Rye, which is brought to us by way of Fremont Mischief, a distillery in Seattle Washington. I've noticed a good amount of tasty items coming from the PacNorWest as of late, which further cements my opinion that they are starting to spearhead the second Civil War.
Notes on John Jacob Rye:
1st sip, neat. Very warm. Apple and cinnamon opening, bright, smooth, slow, long finish
2nd sip,neat after 10 minutes in glass: opened up considerably, could easily be enjoyed like this. Same as the first, but much more mellow. Very clean and mellow, notes of buttercream and toffee just before finish.
With Big Ass Ice Cube: Great Rye. Normal characteristic spicyness, but not overly hot. Still light and bright, not overly viscous. Noses with cinnamon and apple. Very faint with the cube though. Still lingering buttercream and toffee hints. Nice slow mellow finish, with lingering spicy notes.
Overall: This is a Great Rye. I'm a fan. I would be interested in trying some of their other spirits with the exception of vodka, as I'm not a 115lb anorexic gymnast. As it is very good, i have to search for what might be perceived as a downside, but if i had to make an assignment for that, i would say that the smoothness, combined with the non-heavy notes, could be mistaken for lack of bold flavor. I would say it is probably purposeful though, so i will say if you are looking for an easy sipping Rye whiskey, with subtle notes and flavor aspects, this is for you. Maybe a good intro for people who haven't tried enough ryes to realize they like it. 4 out of 5 stars.
It should also be noted that i made a cocktail with the John Jacob after my initial tasting, as i think that a real world, blue-collar evaluation must include cocktail-ability. I made a Manhattan up with Angostura bitters and Ponti Rosso Vermouth. It did the job, but i would say it masked the finer points of the spirit when i tried it both neat and with the B.A.I.C. Although, it might be a good candidate for the MashSpin signature cocktail, the Against the Grain, which is a 3oz cocktail with one part Rye, and one part non-rye billed, wheated Whisky such as Makers Mark 46 and one B.A.I.C.
'Til next time, i gotta dry up.
Nice bottle. Has a picture of a bike on the front, which may have been 100 percent of the impetus behind my choosing it
I got news that they changed the imagery on the front of the bottle to some other image. Bummer. Anyhoo, on with the review:
Notes on John Jacob Rye:
1st sip, neat. Very warm. Apple and cinnamon opening, bright, smooth, slow, long finish
2nd sip,neat after 10 minutes in glass: opened up considerably, could easily be enjoyed like this. Same as the first, but much more mellow. Very clean and mellow, notes of buttercream and toffee just before finish.
With Big Ass Ice Cube: Great Rye. Normal characteristic spicyness, but not overly hot. Still light and bright, not overly viscous. Noses with cinnamon and apple. Very faint with the cube though. Still lingering buttercream and toffee hints. Nice slow mellow finish, with lingering spicy notes.
Overall: This is a Great Rye. I'm a fan. I would be interested in trying some of their other spirits with the exception of vodka, as I'm not a 115lb anorexic gymnast. As it is very good, i have to search for what might be perceived as a downside, but if i had to make an assignment for that, i would say that the smoothness, combined with the non-heavy notes, could be mistaken for lack of bold flavor. I would say it is probably purposeful though, so i will say if you are looking for an easy sipping Rye whiskey, with subtle notes and flavor aspects, this is for you. Maybe a good intro for people who haven't tried enough ryes to realize they like it. 4 out of 5 stars.
It should also be noted that i made a cocktail with the John Jacob after my initial tasting, as i think that a real world, blue-collar evaluation must include cocktail-ability. I made a Manhattan up with Angostura bitters and Ponti Rosso Vermouth. It did the job, but i would say it masked the finer points of the spirit when i tried it both neat and with the B.A.I.C. Although, it might be a good candidate for the MashSpin signature cocktail, the Against the Grain, which is a 3oz cocktail with one part Rye, and one part non-rye billed, wheated Whisky such as Makers Mark 46 and one B.A.I.C.
'Til next time, i gotta dry up.
Sunday, March 2, 2014
When Opportunity Knocks
In a moment of clarity (which i think is a phrase that alcoholics anonymous has monopolized and exploited for far too long...) at a whisky (this is how i will spell it from here on out in my blog, because brevity) tasting social event, at a friends volume challenged apartment i volunteered to be the designated driver for 7 friends.
What an idiot! Wait, there's more...
I donated a little north of 200 dollars to the event in booze, and i was getting to enjoy none of it, including my own. So, i decided if i was going to have to cart around 7 drunks as well as NOT reap the rewards of my contribution to a party celebrating one of my favorite items in the universe, i had to come up with a plan. I decided to bring 24 4oz, re-sealable glass vials, label them, fill them with 2oz each of some of the offerings and bring them home for later consumption and review.
I struck GOLD my friends.
So, with the offerings that i brought, plus the 24 vials, plus what i already have in my cabinet, i decided i had enough to start a pretty legit review site. So, it has begun. This is just a test post more or less, and i will expand on it at a later time like "about" pages and stuff that you are used to seeing in a normal blog, but for now, the blog is going to largely be about whisky (scotch, rye, bourbon, Canadian, etc.) and will also have blurbs on the bicycle world, as i am a bicycle mechanic, and know far more about that than i know about whisky...
...for now.
What an idiot! Wait, there's more...
I donated a little north of 200 dollars to the event in booze, and i was getting to enjoy none of it, including my own. So, i decided if i was going to have to cart around 7 drunks as well as NOT reap the rewards of my contribution to a party celebrating one of my favorite items in the universe, i had to come up with a plan. I decided to bring 24 4oz, re-sealable glass vials, label them, fill them with 2oz each of some of the offerings and bring them home for later consumption and review.
I struck GOLD my friends.
So, with the offerings that i brought, plus the 24 vials, plus what i already have in my cabinet, i decided i had enough to start a pretty legit review site. So, it has begun. This is just a test post more or less, and i will expand on it at a later time like "about" pages and stuff that you are used to seeing in a normal blog, but for now, the blog is going to largely be about whisky (scotch, rye, bourbon, Canadian, etc.) and will also have blurbs on the bicycle world, as i am a bicycle mechanic, and know far more about that than i know about whisky...
...for now.
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