The Whiskey Critic Thread

[blanikdog]

My understanding WW is that aging finishes when the spirit is bottled. So one could have a bottle of 100 year old whisky that was bottled at twelve years and it would be twelve year old whisky in a bottle for 100 years with no further aging.

If it was in barrel for that long the storage and other costs would be astronomical I would imagine.

I'd love to try some though.

blanik

[hstuurman]

Ok, a little call for some good whiskeys:
Bushmills malt (Irish)
Bowmore (Islay)
and a surprise because it ain't expensive but very good:
Te Bheag (scottish, island of Sky)
The last one is a smooth drinkable blend, but for me a winner

[Dan Call]

Here's surprise.

Buffalo Trace bought the old label called "Benchmark" 8 year old.

Benchmark has a sordid history that involves two brothers who were surveyors and distillers in Frankfort KY and made bourbon. Other stories say that it was a brand invented by seagrams in the 60's and resurrected by BT and added the Mcaffee (sp?) to honor the original brothers.

Either way, it's a low shelf Bourbon that has a surpring sweetness for a sub $10 price. I was expecting aged rubbing ETOH but that was not the case. Wouldn't drink much of it but it actually had some good characterisitcs. The color and mouthful are shocking light to be an 8 year old though I will admit to being spoiled by over 10 year olds and don't have much patience. It does have some good points.

[I-GOR]

I know it's not whiskey, but I tasted Pinnacle vodka the other day as was impressed. It's french, pot distilled and priced for bottom shelf. I've tasted top shelf vodkas that clearly were a product of crappy distilling and excellent marketing. Pinnacle tasted clean, I couldn't taste any heads or tails, excellent job on the distilling, had a sweet cream-of-wheat flavor. Once again, I'm convinced that pot distilled products beat columns for flavor and quality hands down, at least on the commercial level. Another low priced brand that is tolerable is Platinum, but I'm amazed at how vodka quality appears to bear no relation whatsoever to the price of the bottle.

[bgrizzle]

I-GOR, thats really funny what you said about Pinnacle and Platinum. I used to drink either of those 2 before I started brewing my own (depending on which one was cheaper at the time). When my freinds would come over, I would have them do a blind taste test. It was my absolute favorite thing to do (espicially if it was a liquor snob)! I would take the Pinnacle/Platinum and pair it against Grey Goose.

I had them base the testing on smell and taste. NOBODY EVER CHOSE THE TOP SHELF. I have run this test atleast a dozen times!!!

[madmonk]

Interesting thread. I reckon I'll stand on my hind legs and let my let my noobish palate shine out for one and all. Just think, you all can see the evolution of taste perception from beginning to finish I mentioned Jack Daniels' already, that is what I buy when I think of "the good stuff" but Evan Williams is less expensive and similar, to my taste (haven't had either for a while). I guess I should try Old Overholt or one of the other premium types to get a new benchmark. They used to sell a straight bourbon around here called Platte River which called itself 100% corn whiskey; if you mixed kerosene, transmission fluid, stale olive juice, and rubbing alcohol, that would be a pretty good approximation. (I-Gor, you may remember this brand, it was sold in our neck of the woods, years ago. Post me if you ever had it, and if I am right about the taste.) I have not really cared for Jim Beam that much, but it is cetainly not bad. It sounds to me, from reading in this forum, that it is not unreasonable to expect to be able to make a product at least as good as any of the commercial distilleries. I look forward to learning the craft. Reckon the hardest part will be the aging

[Stilly]

I've been drinkin' rye recently:

Sazerac Rye. (6 year old straight rye whiskey), it came highly praised so I had high hopes. 90 proof and surprizin'ly smooth for the strength, but the barrel flavour dominated all else. Not worth the 27$ for the overpowerin' taste of oak.

I bought at bottle of Sazerac Rye a couple months ago as I had no experience with Rye and that is all the local liquor store had at the time. The oak about ripped my tongue right out of my mouth. Funny thing, now that the bottle is partially gone and the rye has been exposed to some air it has changed and is now considerably smoother with not near as much of the tongue ripping bite. Very pleasant to drink now.

I would be very pleased if I could produce a similar product.

Cheers
stilly

[Husker]

Was at a retail liquor store trade show today. Sampled PLENTY of stuff, and I will comment on some of them. All tested neat, room temperature.

Four Roses, small batch: 90 proof. OMG!!!! 5+ stars on this one. It tasted as fine as my best product. No heads at all. Super smooth. Perfect bouquet and just the right amount of oak accents. This bourbon is a blend of 2 of the 10 recipes 4roses has. I would HIGHLY recommend this one. I actually bought a bottle on the way home tonight.

Four Roses, single barrel: 100 proof. Heavy rye. Nice and peppery. A decent bite. A bit headsy on the back end. Much stronger flavor and bite than the small batch, however, still a nice sipping bourbon.


Breckenrigdge Bourbon Wiskey (Colorado Distillery) 86 proof. A very young bourbon. Brand new distillery, only around 4 years, and just now bringing product to market. Was drinkable, but young. Definite headsy.


Beam Devil's Cut. 90 proof SUPER over woodsy. Does not live up to the hype. The bourbon flavor was masked by over charred woodyness. Actually seemed a little on the young/raw side.


Michael Collins 12 yr single malt. moderatly peated malt flavor. A little strong neat. Was fruity flavored, and had a nice finish, somewhat dry. Would not be my choice for a neat drink.

Michael Collens blended Irish whiskey. Delecate, sweet. Very different than the single malt. Much easier to drink, with most of the harshness of the single malt removed. Could be drank neat.

H.

[LWTCS]

The 4 Rs small batch was my first Bourbon and +1 on that H. Set a pretty high mark for me.
I cracked a 1792 ridgemont reserve few days ago. Not as smooth and a bit thin. I prefer when they continue to open up, ,,,,,,,,or unfold in your mouth after you swallow. And the heat should feel warm,,,,,,not sharp or raspy.

[MuleKicker]

That rigemont reserve is an interesting drink. I find it to have a bit of scotchy flavor, cant put my finger on it. Maybe a bit peaty?

Interesting take on the beam having a woody flavor H. I have always thought the same thing. I had a glass of regular beam on the rocks at the bar one night... dont ask why I thought it tasted like a soggy old oak tree. I bought a bottle of bakers the other day. That is a member of the beam family, 64%. That also takes on a woody flavor after sitting on the rocks for a few minutes. overall, not too bad for 64% whiskey.

[LWTCS]

Stanton's
H. ya gotta try it. More heat than 4 roses but very steady and even...opens up slow and seems to have 3 maybe 4 layers of flavor that opens up after a goodly 1 or 2 minutes after ya swallow.....

Really impressed.

[Surfer]

Thank you all for this wonderful information. I have sat here and enjoyed a Bullet Bourbon as I read this. It is reassuring to read that my taste buds are on the right track. I have not started my first build yet due to to many irons in the fire this year. But this thread has given me a long list to keep my taste buds entertained and maybe educate them some too.