My High-Fallutin' but Low-Brow & Low-Budget Whiskey Taste Test - Part I
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It's the devils blood!!
I have in-laws in MO, and a brother in AR. I will have them take a look.
The others you mention are well out of my target price for this exercise
I do like the Dickel and the JD Single Barrel though. Gentleman is twice charcoal mellowed versus once for other Jack products.Part II Bump:
Tonight I am trying Weller Antique 107 proof. I poured a finger and tried it neat. Wow. Way too much heat for neat. It also has a very oily mouthfeel. I take since it is not diluted to 90 proof or less, it retains a heavier concentration of the barrel char oils and other characteristics. I added an ice cube and a splash of water. Better, but now I can spot the taste is (understandably, since they are the same mash bill) the WR Weller Special Reserve (which I tried last week), but this adds the funky oily thing even with on the rocks. I would place EW Black above the Weller's, which honestly I would call a tie as they're pretty similar aside form the heat. The Wellers would be better than the Old Charter 8 and the two blends I previously tried (blech!). For the record, the 375mL of 107 proof was 10.99 and the 200mL of Special Reserve was 2.99.
On Monday, I tried not a bourbon, but Mellow Corn. This is a 100 proof American Corn Whiskey, bottled in bond. It is pretty much identical to bourbon, but aged in used (for bourbon) oak barrels and not new. The nose smelled like sweet - almost creamed - corn (duh) and that sweet smell alcohol of ethanol gasoline but not in a bad way. Basically, we have "moon shine" aged 4 years. It was lighter in color than bourbon, which makes sense as the oak was already used partially up by its first use before the Mellow Corn got to it. It has a very sweet, easy drinking flavor of corn, with some vanilla and oak picked up from the barrels similar to but less than a bouron. It has a somewhat oily mouth feel but not so much as compared to the Weller Antique I am drinking tonight. At 9.99 for 750mL this is a great bargain juice to keep on hand, and sips easily if you want a nice mellow dram to finish off a workday.
Over the last month I kind of dropped the cheap part of this - what can I say, it was the holidays!
But for the heck of it, I'll list them anyway:
Eagle Rare - being a NOT-wheated bourbon, I enjoyed this quite a bit! It's similar to the Buffalo Trace (same mashbill) I had several months ago, but I found Buffalo Trace a bit young. Being aged 10 years, this definitely takes the edge off and could be considered Buffalo Trace "Improved." Much smoother (which is a bad generic term) but still had enough edge to keep it entertaining. I prefer Blanton's which is Buffalo Trace's higher-rye mash bill, but then I am realizing I am big rye fan (also love Bulleit which is like a massive 30% rye mash bill) so I'm understanding my bias.
Hudson Baby Bourbon - this micodistillery is product from New York, and is relatively lightly aged. But since the mash bill is 100% corn (no rye or wheat), it's still fairly soft on the palate. It's kind of like Mellow Corn, but with more edge from being new barrels and aged for a shorter time. It's a decent drink, but nothing special for the price ($40 per 750mL).
Hudson 4 Grain Bourbon - from the same distillery as the Baby Bourbon, but with wheat and rye and barley added to the mash. It has a good amount of barley, as I detect and distinct Scotch tone to the taste. I am not a Scotch fan (sorry, the peat and smoke don't do it for me), but being a bourbon adds balances to overtones of Scotch and this gives it a great uniqueness. It is still pricey (same $40 per 750mL) but at least this one offers something special. I think it's worth a try and really enjoyed it.
Rankings so far (not all are reviewed here but I have had over the last 6-8 months).
Budget Pours (Under $25 per 750):
Bulleit (my normal pour, high rye juice from Four Roses and sold by Diago). $22.99 per 750mL but the tastes are up my alley, so it's worth the money.
Evan Williams Black. Balanced and easy sippin. At 8.99 per 750 the best bargain in Bourbon.
Evan Williams Single Barrel - $19.99 per 750. An improved Evan Williams and aged longer, and it IS better. But not sure it's 11 dollars (more than double) better.
Four Roses Yellow Label
Mellow Corn (not a bourbon)
WL Weller 107
WL Weller Special Reserve
Rebel Yell - a wheater from Heaven Hill juice, rather than Buffalo Trace (the Wellers) or Jim Beam (Markers Mark, which yes is a Beam brand and terrible IMHO)
Bulleit Rye (as much as I love a rye bourbon, a Rye Whisky is soo strong I can't consider one a regular pour)
Jim Beam Rye (same as above, though I prefered the Bulleit marginally more)
Jack Daniels Black Label
Old Charter 8
Jim Beam White (This is mediocre, really. I would probably consider this and Beam White and Jack a three way tie. And those below it I would probably just order a soda if they were all that were available.)
Jeremiah Weed blended
Kessler blended
Sunny Brook blended
Rankings of non-Budget Bourbons:
Blanton's
Four Roses Single Barrel
Jack Daniels Single Barrel (technically not a bourbon, but similar and due to the filtering has the most vanilla and maple flavor of any spirit I have had. Soooo good)
Elijah Craig 18 year (huge oak flavors, very intense due to the length of aging and angel's share. Interestingly all Elijah Craig and Evan Williams are the same juice, at different ages)
Bookers
Eagle Rare - note at 26 dollars a fifth, this is actually an excellent value and preferred over all of my "budget" offerings aside from the Bulleit.
Hudson 4 Grain Bourbon(this is the lowest I would call "Good!")
Hudson Baby Bourbon (indifferent)
Buffalo Trace (indifferent)
Maker's Mark (thumbs down)
Woodford Reserve (thumbs down)
Tonight I am trying Weller Antique 107 proof. I poured a finger and tried it neat. Wow. Way too much heat for neat. It also has a very oily mouthfeel. I take since it is not diluted to 90 proof or less, it retains a heavier concentration of the barrel char oils and other characteristics. I added an ice cube and a splash of water. Better, but now I can spot the taste is (understandably, since they are the same mash bill) the WR Weller Special Reserve (which I tried last week), but this adds the funky oily thing even with on the rocks. I would place EW Black above the Weller's, which honestly I would call a tie as they're pretty similar aside form the heat. The Wellers would be better than the Old Charter 8 and the two blends I previously tried (blech!). For the record, the 375mL of 107 proof was 10.99 and the 200mL of Special Reserve was 2.99.
On Monday, I tried not a bourbon, but Mellow Corn. This is a 100 proof American Corn Whiskey, bottled in bond. It is pretty much identical to bourbon, but aged in used (for bourbon) oak barrels and not new. The nose smelled like sweet - almost creamed - corn (duh) and that sweet smell alcohol of ethanol gasoline but not in a bad way. Basically, we have "moon shine" aged 4 years. It was lighter in color than bourbon, which makes sense as the oak was already used partially up by its first use before the Mellow Corn got to it. It has a very sweet, easy drinking flavor of corn, with some vanilla and oak picked up from the barrels similar to but less than a bouron. It has a somewhat oily mouth feel but not so much as compared to the Weller Antique I am drinking tonight. At 9.99 for 750mL this is a great bargain juice to keep on hand, and sips easily if you want a nice mellow dram to finish off a workday.
Over the last month I kind of dropped the cheap part of this - what can I say, it was the holidays!
But for the heck of it, I'll list them anyway:Eagle Rare - being a NOT-wheated bourbon, I enjoyed this quite a bit! It's similar to the Buffalo Trace (same mashbill) I had several months ago, but I found Buffalo Trace a bit young. Being aged 10 years, this definitely takes the edge off and could be considered Buffalo Trace "Improved." Much smoother (which is a bad generic term) but still had enough edge to keep it entertaining. I prefer Blanton's which is Buffalo Trace's higher-rye mash bill, but then I am realizing I am big rye fan (also love Bulleit which is like a massive 30% rye mash bill) so I'm understanding my bias.
Hudson Baby Bourbon - this micodistillery is product from New York, and is relatively lightly aged. But since the mash bill is 100% corn (no rye or wheat), it's still fairly soft on the palate. It's kind of like Mellow Corn, but with more edge from being new barrels and aged for a shorter time. It's a decent drink, but nothing special for the price ($40 per 750mL).
Hudson 4 Grain Bourbon - from the same distillery as the Baby Bourbon, but with wheat and rye and barley added to the mash. It has a good amount of barley, as I detect and distinct Scotch tone to the taste. I am not a Scotch fan (sorry, the peat and smoke don't do it for me), but being a bourbon adds balances to overtones of Scotch and this gives it a great uniqueness. It is still pricey (same $40 per 750mL) but at least this one offers something special. I think it's worth a try and really enjoyed it.
Rankings so far (not all are reviewed here but I have had over the last 6-8 months).
Budget Pours (Under $25 per 750):
Bulleit (my normal pour, high rye juice from Four Roses and sold by Diago). $22.99 per 750mL but the tastes are up my alley, so it's worth the money.
Evan Williams Black. Balanced and easy sippin. At 8.99 per 750 the best bargain in Bourbon.
Evan Williams Single Barrel - $19.99 per 750. An improved Evan Williams and aged longer, and it IS better. But not sure it's 11 dollars (more than double) better.
Four Roses Yellow Label
Mellow Corn (not a bourbon)
WL Weller 107
WL Weller Special Reserve
Rebel Yell - a wheater from Heaven Hill juice, rather than Buffalo Trace (the Wellers) or Jim Beam (Markers Mark, which yes is a Beam brand and terrible IMHO
)Bulleit Rye (as much as I love a rye bourbon, a Rye Whisky is soo strong I can't consider one a regular pour)
Jim Beam Rye (same as above, though I prefered the Bulleit marginally more)
Jack Daniels Black Label
Old Charter 8
Jim Beam White (This is mediocre, really. I would probably consider this and Beam White and Jack a three way tie. And those below it I would probably just order a soda if they were all that were available.)
Jeremiah Weed blended
Kessler blended
Sunny Brook blended
Rankings of non-Budget Bourbons:
Blanton's
Four Roses Single Barrel
Jack Daniels Single Barrel (technically not a bourbon, but similar and due to the filtering has the most vanilla and maple flavor of any spirit I have had. Soooo good)
Elijah Craig 18 year (huge oak flavors, very intense due to the length of aging and angel's share. Interestingly all Elijah Craig and Evan Williams are the same juice, at different ages)
Bookers
Eagle Rare - note at 26 dollars a fifth, this is actually an excellent value and preferred over all of my "budget" offerings aside from the Bulleit.
Hudson 4 Grain Bourbon(this is the lowest I would call "Good!")
Hudson Baby Bourbon (indifferent)
Buffalo Trace (indifferent)
Maker's Mark (thumbs down)
Woodford Reserve (thumbs down)
