Thanks to /u/smoked_herring [+2] for the sample.
How do you, a non-regular bourbon drinker, test yourself in hard ways? Why not one, but two mystery bourbon reviews!
I drank this blind. Only knew it was bourbon, and was to be drank second. It could have been great, it could have been bad. It could be aged totally in the US, in Kentucky, by someone who has so much detailed whiskey knowledge they’d make me look like a teenager stealing dad’s booze and filling it with water. Or it could have been put into a plastic bucket.
There we go, I feel I’ve given myself enough slack on it: Let’s see how this tastes, shall we?
Price: $90 CAD
Region: Kentucky
Warehouse: K
Floor: 3
Selected by: Ryan Engen
Abv: 64% (128 proof)
Colour: 7.5YR 5/8
Nose: Cream, floral, blueberry, cinnamon
Light, some floral aspects, some fruit. Feels a bit younger, though that floral and fruit aspect, along with the cinnamon, really makes me think it’s a rye.
Water opens it up quite a bit. Not an easy whiskey to figure out.
Taste: Cream, mint, floral, char
Smoother flavour, some strong notes, more rye aspects going on. Nothing that complex hinting at anything. More floral and mint, so I am feeling better about the rye guess I made above.
That said, not really figuring out the distillery behind this. Given the tight taste and needing water to open up, I think it’s close to Waterford, but that’s just a guess based on some lacklustre releases I’ve had.
Finish: Mint, cream, cloves, vanilla
Still spice, mint, and vanilla. I don’t hate it: On the contrary it’s really easy to sip on. Which really threw off my guess.
Conclusion: Smooth, has some interesting flavours, opens with a bit of water, but feels a bit closed off. My initial thought was a lower abv., and that was super wrong, and this will lay you out if you drink too much of it.
This is something I’m not totally used to: A bourbon that has different flavours than its normal profile (or at least differs in some interesting ways).
In reviewing previous Old Forester offerings I noticed a similar vein of fruit, spices, and other aspects, so I’ve at least learned something here. I don’t know if I’d pick this up after having a dram: I wish there was a bit more to it. That said it certainly was unique, and would widen what’s on your shelf for daily drinkers.
77/100
Guess: 5 year, rye, 47%, Woodford?
Actually: Old Forester Single Barrel Barrel Strength
Bourbon review #284, Kentucky review #180, Whiskey Network review #2222
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