George Dickel Superior No. 12

Recently I was lucky enough to join the Toronto Whisky Society in the first of what we hope is a constant amount of tastings.

In order to give everyone a shot at coming out, the entry “fee” was to bring a bottle that was NAS/10 years that was at least half full.

The following reviews are from said tasting, in which I was able to take my time, take pictures that don’t just show off one part of my apartment, and ensure my palate was thoroughly rinsed (with water) between each whisky.

George Dickel is a Tennessee whisky that is owned by Diageo. They make 5 standard whiskies, don’t add an “e” to their spelling, and have a history that starts in 1877 by George A. Dickel, a German immigrant.

They started as a sourcing company, and eventually sourced it enough to buy the source itself. In the 1920’s, this company fought prohibition, tooth and nail. And finally due to buyouts and capitalism, they ended up in Diageo’s hands. They made it larger, which caused a decrease in supply for a few years, and a young 3 year old spirit to show up.

George Dickel Superior No. 12 is made up of older whiskies, according to the website. How old? We don’t know. We do know it doesn’t carry an age statement, so there’s no way of guessing. At all.

What we do know (thankfully) is they’ve released the mashbill and the char on the barrels, which is pretty cool. It’s a mostly corn based mash, with rye in it. So pretty standard.

It all sounds nice, and the price is probably the best bourbon on the Ontario market. But how does it tastes?

Price: $29.95 CAD at the LCBO

Region: Tennessee

Mashbill: 84% corn, 8% rye, 8% malted barley

Char: #4 barrel, #2 head

Abv: 45%

Colour: 2.5Y 7/8

Nose: Wheat, tobacco, corn, nuttiness

I know there’s no wheat in this. It still, to me, smells like wheat. Angry comments can be put below.

There’s some tobacco to this. As I’ve said before, I’m not a fan of tobacco. It’s not a killer for me, but please keep that in mind when looking at my score.

Taste: Corn, hard candy, cereal, caramel

Almost candy corn. Which sounds like what you call a house that hands out caramel bites at Halloween. Corn forward, is what I’d say. Lots of cereal notes too.

No spice, which is odd given the amount of rye. It may be an older bottle, so I’ll have to have this again to be sure (what a rough life I live).

Finish: Mushroom, caramel, nutty, dry

Earthy. Lots of dry notes. Nothing overly complex. A good, indeterminable amount of nuts, in my mouth.

Insert joke here. Well, take the nuts out first.

Conclusion: This is an okay, pretty standard, nothing amazing bourbon. The individual notes don’t pop too much, and are muddled. The nose was probably my favourite part.

So a few things about my score: I’m rating this low, however it could be due to an oxidized bottle, as I don’t know how long it’s been open. I’m not a fan of tobacco, so there’s some marks off there. So it could be better than what I had.

That said, I have to accept what was handed to me, and according to the person who brought this, it hasn’t been open long enough to allow for oxidization. Personally I think this is what they set out: A smoother bourbon. And if you like that, drink it.

64/100

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