Four Roses Single Barrel: Private Selections from Binny's, OESQ and OESF

August 23, 2018 Eric Burke

IMAGE: Side label of 2 Private Selections of Four Roses Single Barrel showing they were purchased from Binny's Beverage Depot

Well, my wife left.

Not forever, just for the weekend. It's times like this when I realize just how much she does around here. Sure, I do a fair bit of the cooking even when she is here but that isn't what I'm talking about. No, she performs that greatest of all tasks: she deflects the kid.

My daughter is a bit of a worrier. Add in the fact that she is in her mid-twenties, and hasn't realized that other people know things yet, and you have the makings of a doting and slightly condescending young lady. One who is pretty sure that I can't take care of myself for a few days even though I took care of her for somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 years.

Luckily I convinced her that I wouldn't starve this evening and she decided to go out to see her boyfriend...now I just need to find something to eat. I had planned to run to the store before she left but I didn't, and she took the car. Guess she wasn't that worried.

But even though I may not know what I am going to eat, I have a pretty good idea of what I am going to drink this evening. Last weekend my wife and I tasted two different private selections of Four Roses from Binny's in Bloomington, Illinois. Binny's is mostly a Chicago chain, but they have a couple of locations further south in Illinois that I drive past on my to and from Kentucky.

These particular Four Roses Private Selections are OESF and OESQ. To my palate, these are the yeasts that are furthest from the classic bourbon flavor profile of caramel and spice. The F and Q yeasts tend to bring in more floral, fruity, and herbal notes. As such, they are some of my favorites to buy as private selections as they are both delicious and add a bit of fun to any blends I happen to make.

Four Roses Single Barrel Private Selections: Binny's OESQ and OESF

Purchase Info: Each bottle was $59.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Binny's Beverage Depot, Bloomington, IL.

Details: OESQ: 9 years 5 months old and 57% ABV. OESF: 9 years 6 months old and 56.7% ABV.

Nose:
OESQ: Caramel, cherry, dusty oak, and hints of leather.
OESF: Caramel, mint and citrus.

Mouth:
OESQ: Nice mouthfeel. Floral, fruity and mint notes. The proof brings a nice tingly warmth.
OESF: Proof brings a lot of heat. Once you get past that it follows the nose with sweet sweet caramel, herbal mintiness, and fruity citrus notes.

Finish:
OESQ: Longer side of medium. Dusty oak precedes lingering spicy, floral, and cherry notes.
OESF: Long and warm. Lingering cherry and mint.

IMAGE: A hand drawn heart because I love these!

Thoughts: I was super excited to find the F and Q versions of this on the same shelf. I had to talk my wife into allowing both to travel home with us, but we are both very glad that they did. The Q is my favorite of the two as I am loving the floral notes. My wife prefers the rich caramel of the F.

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Bottom-Shelf Brackets 2018: Other people's brackets

March 29, 2018 Eric Burke

Old Forester, Mellow Corn, Hirsch, Old Overholt, Four Roses, Old Grand-Dad, Ezra Brooks Rye, Two Stars

So one of the things I did this year to shake things up was to introduce more judges to this project. In the past, it has been just my wife and I and if we disagreed, I'd overrule her due to the fact that I do all the writing. Now I was not able to get everyone together in time to get started on these so I was unable to use their input in the initial rounds.

And now that I think about that, I think this is a good thing. This is a blog that is run by my wife and I and it reflects our palates. Plus, as you will see, everyone so far has chosen a different winner. But, there are a few commonalities in the results that I think you will find interesting. So let's begin.

This is the bracket of my friend Dave. He was the inspiration for this experiment because he asked if he could be a part of it. He knows almost nothing about whiskey that I haven't taught him but he is an enthusiastic amateur. I did the pouring for Dave's bracket. So one interesting thing that I think you will see is that Old Overholt was Dave's winner. I've described Old Overholt as one of the gentlest rye whiskeys that I'd found. And I think that it makes sense that an inexperienced whiskey drinker would like a whiskey that wasn't overly hot and aggressive. In fact, you'll notice that most of the whiskeys that made it to his last four were fairly nonaggressive whiskeys. A corn whiskey beat a rye, a low proof beat a high proof on a couple of occasions, and then there is Old Forester where he had a hard time choosing between the two.

This is the bracket of one of my dog sitting clients, Jeff. Jeff is a guy who likes whiskey but mostly sticks to the brands he knows. Jeff administered his own test which is why everything is labeled with a letter instead of a name, all the seeds are in the same location though. In this case, Old Grand-Dad beat Old Overholt, Two Stars beat Hirsch Corn, Ezra Brooks Rye beat Mellow Corn and Old Forester beat Four Roses. I haven't finished my bracket yet, but so far mine matches this one. And if you were to ask me how I thought my bracket might finish out, I can see similarities between his and mine. I'm a bit shocked that Two Stars beat out Old Grand-Dad, but hey Barton/Sazerac makes some pretty good juice. Oh, and for Jeff, Old Forester won.

This is my wife's bracket. She and I disagreed on whether Mellow Corn should beat Ezra Brooks Rye so I had her finish her bracket based on her scenario. Once again I administered the contest for her. As you will see, there are some similarities between the previous three, Everyone likes Two Stars more than the Hirsch Corn whiskey and Everyone liked Old Forester better than Four Roses. In fact, Old Forester was in the championship for every one of these three. It sort of makes me wonder if my bracket will follow suit? I guess we will see next Tuesday.

Now, this last one is from Pat, one of my wife's coworkers. Pat also administered his own test. And Pat went a different way than anyone else. Unbeknownst to Pat, he seems to be a fan of rye whiskey. And he found this fascinating since he hadn't had very much rye before. From what I understand, he is going to be remedying that in the future. Even so, I can see the Ezra Brooks Rye winning this. It is a good and flavorful whiskey that even at two years old, brings a lot of flavor to the party.

So I hope you found this as fascinating as I did. I liked seeing the trends among people. All of us liked Old Forester over Four Roses, which I didn't expect from me much less anyone else. It was split evenly between those who preferred Mellow Corn and those who preferred Ezra Brooks Rye. Only one person thought that the Hirsch Corn was better than Two Stars. And yet even with that, they all chose a different winner. I'm very curious now to know which one will win on my bracket.

Bottom-Shelf Brackets 2018: Round 1d: Old Forester vs. Four Roses

March 27, 2018 Eric Burke

Round 1d of the 2018 BourbonGuy.com Bottom Shelf Brackets features the only bourbon on bourbon action of the entire first round of the contest. We have number 2 seed Old Forester Bourbon (86 proof) versus Number 3 seed Four Roses Bourbon (this bottle still has a yellow label).

Old Forester is a product of Brown-Forman. It is the lowest proof offering in the Old Forester family of expressions. It earns a number two seed due to being 86 proof.

Four Roses (Yellow Label) is the entry-level product in the Four Roses family of expressions. It is a mingling of all 10 bourbon recipes produced by the distillery. It is the only 80 proof whiskey in the Non-Age Stated portion of the contestants and as such is a number three seed.

These were tasted blind in the following order. My thoughts on each are from before the reveal.

Old Forester

Purchase Info: $34.99 for a 1.75L bottle at Total Wine, Eagan, MN.

Details: 43% ABV, non-age stated.

Produced by: Brown-Forman

Nose: Almond, cherry, vanilla, and hints of anise.

Mouth: Sweet with good spice. Nice mouthfeel. Cherry/almond, baking spice and a bit of capsaicin-style heat.

Finish: Medium Length cherry and baking spice linger.

Pre-Reveal Thoughts: Very nice. Good mouthfeel. This could be a winner.

Four Roses (Yellow)

Purchase Info: $23.99 for a 1L bottle at Total Wine, Eagan, MN.

Details: 40% ABV.

Produced by: Four Roses

Nose: Floral, cinnamon red hot candies, a bit of citrus fruit.

Mouth: Floral, baking spice, cherry, citrus fruit. A thinner mouthfeel than the previous one.

Finish: Warm, very floral with hints of mint.

Pre-Reveal Thoughts: Thin in the mouth and very floral.

Who wins?

I am an admitted and unashamed Four Roses fanboy. But then I like Old Forester too. Before the relatively recent release of the Whiskey Row series of expressions, it was my favorite of the brands made at least in part under the supervision of Master Distiller Chris Morris (86 proof, 100 proof and Woodford Reserve). It has since been surpassed as my favorite by the 1920 Prohibition Style expression but still ranks number two in the line-up for me. I had a feeling while setting up the initial matchups that this would be the closest of the four. It was not. One of these stood head and shoulders above the other when they were paired head-to-head. Thin and floral can't beat thick and spicy for me. Winner: Old Forester.

The 2018 BourbonGuy.com Bottom-Shelf Brackets

March 13, 2018 Eric Burke

So, this past Sunday my Twitter feed filled up with people complaining about the format of a show that announced whether their favorite team of college basketball players did or didn't make the cut to play in a basketball tournament. It reminded me, among other things, that I'm not much of a college basketball fan. It just never caught my interest. But just because I don't have a passion for college basketball, does that mean I want to miss out on all that competitive March bracketing?

No. No, it does not.

And for the last four years, I've been getting my fill of competitive bracketing by finding inexpensive bourbons and pitting them against each other head-to-head to see if there is one that stands head and shoulders above the rest. I mostly do this to have fun, but I also have a desire to find out if I can satisfy my inherent Midwestern frugalness and yet find an overlooked diamond in the rough.

But this is the fifth year of the Bottom-Shelf Brackets and I've been forced to shake things up a little bit. First, I've removed the word "Bourbon" from the name and opened the proceedings up to other forms of Straight American Whiskey. Second, I've been forced to redefine my definition of "Bottom-Shelf" to a slightly higher price point. Both of these have the same cause: I just couldn't find enough bourbons that met the price qualification that hadn't been in the tournament before. Even some of the previous winners have moved out of range.

The third thing is the most exciting for me though. I've included a couple more judges this year. Some of these people are complete novices. I did this mostly because one of my non-whiskey drinking friends asked if he could be a part of it and I thought it might be fun to get outside perspectives on the results.

Now that the changes are out of the way, just what are these qualifications that I spoke of earlier?

It must be straight American Whiskey, and it must be labeled as such. Too many brands are getting rid of this very basic statement of quality and I refuse to reward that. This means that Jack Daniel's Black label would not qualify for the tournament, but that Jim Beam White label would.
It has to sell for 2.4 cents per milliliter or less. Now, this might seem like a weird arbitrary number, but it works out to $18 per 750, $24 per liter or (in true bottom shelf fashion) $40 for a 1.75 L handle. And yes, I know that the math is wrong on that last one, but since you normally get a price break by buying in that large of quantity, I worked that into the equation. I raised it from $15, $20 and $35 this year, which had been the price since the initial year. In that time, just following the inflation rate would get us to over $21 for a liter so I decided to future proof a little.
The final guideline is that it must have never been in the tournament before. It would get pretty boring to see if I liked the same whiskeys year after year.

After I purchased the whiskeys here are the rules I used to seed them.

Stated (or assumed) age. Straight whiskey has to be at least two years old. But unless it is under four years old, you don’t have to put an age on it. So if someone does, it’s either a good thing or a bad thing. I like to reward good things and punish bad things.
Proof. Higher proof often equals better flavor. Not always, but it can be a good rule of thumb.

So who are the contestants? The top six seeds were all non-age stated, and so I am assuming the 4-year minimum on them. The two number one seed in each of the divisions are Old Grand-Dad Bonded and Mellow Corn Bottled in Bond, both at 100° proof. Behind them at 90° proof is a Straight Corn Whiskey from Hirsch Selections. I found this one on sale, so it is a bit of a cheat but also figured that sale prices count when the entire point is to be frugal. A pair of 86 proofers come next. Old Forester 86° proof is the second number two seed while the Barton produced, Total Wine exclusive, Two Stars nabs the first number three seed. The final number three seed is 80° proof Four Roses Yellow Label. After that, we get to a pair of ryes that clock in at under four years old. Old Overholt is three years old and gets the first number four seed with two-year-old Ezra Brooks Rye nabbing the final spot.

There are a lot of interesting matchups this year with multiple styles and multiple price points going head-to-head. I think this one is going to be a lot of fun.

Four Roses 2017 Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon

September 26, 2017 Eric Burke

I don't really go in for Trophy Bourbon Hunting anymore. The hassle isn't worth the reward in most cases. The reward, in this case, being that I then get the opportunity to spend way too much money on a single bottle of bourbon. Nothing brought that home to me more than a conversation that my wife had with a coworker.

She had been tasked with finding something special for this coworker. while we were in Kentucky Something that he couldn't get at home. He gave her money and a budget thinking that he'd be getting a private selection from a store in Louisville or maybe something from Willett. Well, the only thing Willett had when I stopped in was a $165 bottle of twelve-year-old bourbon. Neither he nor I were getting anything from Willett.

But my wife and I each got the opportunity to purchase a bottle of this year's Four Roses Limited Small Batch. Don't get me wrong, we normally buy two for ourselves when we can, but we thought that it might be a nice surprise for the coworker. So we bought it figuring he'd want it and that if by some odd chance he didn't, then the worst that would happen was us having an extra bottle.

Oh darn, right?

Then my wife told him what she got and...he didn't want it. I believe the text read: "my wife would kill me if I spent that much on one bottle of whiskey."

In that moment it occurred to me that I may have started to lose touch with "normal people" when it comes to whiskey prices. I've watched bourbon's price creep happen for long enough that I hardly think anything of buying a $60 bottle of whiskey anymore. I mean I can't afford these all the time but, if a client has paid on time, it feels fairly normal. And sometimes, not always, I can even justify $120-130 if I try hard enough and think I'll get something "really good" in return.

Which is weird for me. I've always been frugal. Growing up with my brother and mom, dirt poor, in a trailer court in the Northwoods of Wisconsin will do that to you. But this situation was a good wake-up call to be reminded how people who haven't been immersed in the bourbon world think about the prices of bottles.

My budget hopes I remember that the next time I'm standing there trying to choose between a perfectly good $25 bourbon and one that is $60, though also only perfectly good.

Four Roses 2017 Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon

Purchase Info: $130 at Four Roses Gift Center, Lawrenceburg, KY.

Details: 54% ABV. A blend of 20% 15-year-old OESK, 40% 13-year-old OESK and 12-year-old OESV bourbons (percentages reported by Sipp'n Corn, but confirmed by Master Distiller Brent Elliot).

Nose: Fruity and soft with notes of vanilla, caramel, baking spice, and oak.

Mouth: Spicy and rich with a wonderful mouthfeel. Notes of caramel, nutmeg, fruit, and oak.

Finish: Long, warm and sweet. Lingering fruit, spice, and caramel.

Thoughts: I know what you are thinking. "Obviously Eric loves this, he's a Four Roses fanboy." Well, you are half right. I am a fanboy. But this doesn't rate a heart from me (my wife disagrees most vehemently). It does, however, rate a very high "like." It's thick and rich and the finish lasts for days.

Kentucky Bourbon Festival 2017: Bottled in Bond Fire

September 21, 2017 Eric Burke

I state in my Statement of Ethics that if I am reviewing something that I didn't pay for, I will disclose it at the beginning of the article. I received media passes to this event for both myself and my wife

Warm and sunny. The perfect late summer Kentucky day. It's too bad it was our last day in Bardstown because it's days like those that make me never want to leave. And I was extremely excited to go to the Bottled in Bond Fire event that night. It seemed like it would be the perfect end to the trip.

Historically, Saturday night was reserved for the Gala, a formal event. And since the last time I was voluntarily in a tux was my wedding day 20 years previous, let's just say I am never going to be covering the Gala. Not my speed. I'm a bourbon around the fire sort of guy. Not a bourbon in a rented outfit sort of guy.

So yes, when they introduced the Bottled in Bond Fire event last year, I was pretty stoked. I didn't go, as it was introduced after I had purchased my tickets, but I was pretty sure I wanted to go this year. And as things worked out, I got media credentials to the event.

The Bottled in Bond Fire event is held at Wickland, Home of Three Governors. Wickland is an old Bardstown home (oddly the home of three different Kentucky Governors) which is available for tours and events. I had never visited before and was excited to see some of the details of the old house. When we first entered we were greeted by the check-in station and the food line. The event was serving barbecue, beans, and slaw. Perfect food for a bonfire.

Off to the right was a sitting area. Comfortable chairs and the featured speaker of the evening, Susan Reigler, Prsident of the Bourbon Women. Ms. Reigler was around to answer any bourbon questions that guests might have.

Bottled in Bond Fire, Buffalo Trace Selection

Off to the left of the main entrance was the Bourbon Room. Here, four distilleries were pouring mostly bonded bourbons. Buffalo Trace brought Colonel E.H. Taylor Small Batch and Single Barrel, Both Bottled in Bond.

Heaven Hill table at Bottled in Bond Fire

As is to be expected, Heaven Hill brought the most options to an event featuring Bonded products. They even brought one surprise...

I wasn't really expecting to see their Bonded Brandy, Sacred Bond, being poured at a Bourbon Festival. But it was and I tried it. It was fine, nothing to write home about.

Barton was only pouring Very Old Barton Bonded. Which is fine by me. VOB Bonded is my go-to bourbon for the hotel room or cabin when I'm in Kentucky.

Four Roses table at Bottled in Bond Fire

Four Roses was a bit of a surprise for me. Seeing as they have no bonded products. There were no representatives there, but they did have Small Batch and Single Barrel on hand.

Obviously, the fires were outside. There were also tables to eat at, bean bag toss and live music.

Fire pit just as it is being lit with the band in the distance.

The live music was provided by The Echoes, a Louisville trio. I enjoyed the music. It fit the mood of the event perfectly. I really hope someone thought to bring them a bourbon or two.

Indoor crowd at the Bottled in Bond Fire event

Since I had never been there before, they were nice enough to let me wander the house and go upstairs. Knowing that they offer ghost tours of the place, I was curious to go take a look. I didn't see any ghosts, but the empty old rooms in the light of the twilight were certainly a bit creepy. On the way down, I got a better view of the food and entrance area.

It wouldn't be a bonfire without s'mores. And although I'm guessing that liability concerns wouldn't allow people to toast their own, my wife tells me the desserts inspired by them were a very tasty substitute.

So, final verdict. I thought it was a decent event. My wife loved it. It was fun, the people were talkative, the bourbon was tasty, and the music was entertaining. Everything that you would want. All in all, I will probably drop the $75 to go as a paying guest next year so that I can enjoy myself a little more (hard to really relax when everyone thinks you work there due to the press credentials around your neck).

Four Roses Single Barrel

June 1, 2017 Eric Burke

I have have been a Four Roses fanboy for as long as I've been a bourbon fanboy. To me, Four Roses Bourbon is everything that a bourbon should be.

Which makes it extremely odd that I have never reviewed their flagship release, Four Roses Single Barrel. I've talked about Yellow Label and Small Batch. I've talked about store releases of all ten recipes. But somehow Single Barrel has fallen through the cracks.

And it's about damn time that I remedied this gross miscarriage of justice. (It doesn't hurt that it gives me an excuse to buy another bottle either.)

Four Roses Single Barrel

Purchase Info: $33.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Details: 50% ABV. Barrel 89-4S, Warehouse HW. OBSV (as all of the standard single barrel releases are).

Nose: Caramel, cherries, and leather.

Mouth: Warm and tingly with caramel, cherry, nougat, and baking spices.

Finish: Warm and long with lingering JuicyFruit gum and baking spice.

Thoughts: This has long been one of my favorite bourbons. I have no idea how it slipped through the cracks for all these years. I have a very short review to go with this very short post.

This is a fantastic bourbon. If you haven't had it yet, you should. If you buy it and you don't love it, I'll be happy to drink it for you if you send it to me.

Four Roses Elliot's Select Single Barrel, 2016

April 13, 2017 Eric Burke

If you follow me on Twitter, you might realize that I am a passionate guy. Whether the topic is politics, football or my loved ones, my opinion is out there for the world to see. But there is no topic that I am more passionate about than my wife. Over the years, I've lost count of the number of times that I've slept in a hospital chair as she recovered from surgery. But the one that happened about five years ago was the worst by far because that was the time she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

One of the reasons that I love my wife so much is that she has an unconquerable spirit. Instead of just quietly accepting her illness, she took every bit of her doctor's advice. She not only went through the chemotherapy but, to quote her, she did her very best not to let it "get in the way of living." Three months after Chemo was over, with her full strength just starting to return, she hiked up a mountain in the Rockies.

My wife truly is the best thing in my life. And so on Monday, when she got back from her cancer doctor and said that the doctor didn't need to see her anymore, we felt it was worth celebrating. And yesterday when we got the final test results back, we felt like celebrating again. Now yesterday's dram was pretty special. During one of her last Chemo treatments, we read the news that Elijah Craig 18 year was going on hiatus. She had me run out the next day and buy her two bottles. One to drink then, and one to put away until she officially reached five years cancer-free. Last night we opened that bottle to celebrate. It was the tastiest bourbon I've ever tasted, and it had almost nothing to do with what was inside the bottle.

Oh and the one we celebrated with on Monday? Well, that was a sample generously shared with me by a friend of mine. It was last year's Four Roses Elliot's Select. We have been big fans of Four Roses for a long time. Just about five years in fact...

See, my wife was sitting down in the chair for her first Chemo treatment. She was nervous as hell, as you might expect and earlier that morning she'd posted such on Twitter. Once her treatment began she basically just had to sit in the chair until it was done. When she opened her phone, she found a simple message from the Four Roses Twitter account: "Get well soon! You are in our thoughts." It's weird how much the fact that someone who wasn't a friend or family was thinking of her affected us both. From that moment on, I've been an unashamed Four Roses fanboy. So celebrating with a glass of Elliot's Select just seemed appropriate.

Four Roses Elliot's Select Single Barrel, 2016

Purchase Info: This large sample was a generous gift to us by one of our whiskey loving friends.

Details: 14 years old. OESK recipe. 58.6% ABV. Warehouse QN. Barrel 532W. Bottle 9483 of 10,224.

Nose: Brown Sugar, cedar, and a lovely floral note.

Mouth: Hot and sweet. Floral, nutmeg, and anise. The mouthfeel is lovely and viscous.

Finish: Long and hot with lingering floral notes.

Thoughts: (I did these tasting notes before we got the good news, so it didn't affect what I am about to say) I love this. I never seek out the Limited Single Barrels because they are mostly sold closer to the tall buildings here in the metro than I regularly venture. I really wish I had sought it out. I love floral Four Roses bourbons and much to my surprise, this OESK had that in spades. Just so much love!

Blog

Four Roses Single Barrel Private Selections: Binny's OESQ and OESF

Old Forester

Four Roses (Yellow)

Who wins?

Four Roses 2017 Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon

Four Roses Single Barrel

Four Roses Elliot's Select Single Barrel, 2016