Parker's Heritage Collection 2021: Heavy Char Wheat Whiskey

I’d like to thank Heaven Hill for providing this review sample to me with no strings attached.

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I’m not going to lie. I’ve been slacking a bit on reporting on samples that companies have sent to me. Between vacation, a covid scare, the worst allergies I’ve had in years, and then a booster shot, I haven’t had many opportunities for tasting whiskey. But that seems to be changing. I feel great so let’s start taking a look at the backlog.

Tonight’s whiskey was provided by Heaven Hill. It is the 2021 Edition of the Parker’s Heritage Collection. the 15th Edition if you can believe that. My, how time flies. This edition is an 11-year-old wheat whiskey, using the same mashbill as their Bernheim product. It comes in at a whopping 122° proof.

I’ll let Heaven Hill tell you what makes this special:

This edition continues the award-winning series of heavy char releases, exploring how a more intense char allows the liquid to penetrate deeper into each barrel stave and the effects on the resulting flavor. Comprised of 75 barrels charred for one minute and 30 seconds (Level 5), as opposed to the traditional 40 second char (Level 3) for Heaven Hill, the Wheat Whiskey reached peak maturation after 11 years on the sixth floor of Rickhouse Y. The heavy char allowed Heaven Hill’s traditional Wheat Whiskey mashbill of 51% wheat, 37% corn, and 12% malted barley to interact more with the oak, extracting a mix of sweetness, filled with hints of molasses and butterscotch. This release is only the second time the Wheat Whiskey mashbill has been featured in the Parker’s Heritage Collection, with the first released in 2014 as an Original Batch Cask Strength.

And as with previous versions of the Parker’s Heritage Collection, a portion of the proceeds of each bottle will go to support ALS research and patient care.

Parker's Heritage Collection: Heavy Char Rye Whiskey

Purchase Info: This review sample was graciously provided to me by Heaven Hill for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $139.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $9.33

Details: 11 years old, 61% ABV.

Nose: Very hot, very spicy. Notes of cinnamon, mint, almond, and oak.

Mouth: Cinnamon spice, mint leaves, vanilla, almond.

Finish: Long and warm with notes of dusty oak, red fruits, chocolate, mint, and a nice nuttiness.

Thoughts: Hot and spicy as might be expected from the high proof. The flavor seems most heavily influenced by the barrel, rather than the mash bill which is expected from both a double-digit age and a majority wheat mash bill. Overall, this is pretty close to what I would have expected. Which is to say that it is very, very good.

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Ancient Age 90 Proof

I love getting emails from readers. You guys are literally the only thing that keeps me going as this is not, and never will be, a profit center for me. Between hosting, domain registration, email accounts, and of course purchasing new and interesting bourbons for review? Well, let’s just say that if the time comes where I need to really look at making cuts to the budget, the thousands of dollars per year that I spend on this site will be one of the first things thought of for the ol’ chopping block.

And you guys write in for all sorts of reasons. Sometimes to correct me, which I appreciate. Many times to give me the ol’ attaboy, which I love. And occasionally one of you will write in with a request for the type of thing you’d want to see covered in upcoming posts, which is super helpful.

Sometimes the requests are for certain brands, but by far the most common of request is for more coverage of inexpensive bourbons. I like that suggestion. I’m a frugal guy. To be honest, the main reason that I don’t cover more inexpensive bourbons is not because I don’t like them, but because after doing the Bottom Shelf Brackets for so many years, I’ve basically run out of them. Or at least ones sold locally that aren’t TerrePure. I’m never knowingly putting that shit in my mouth again.

So I knew it was going to make at least a few of you very happy when, on my last trip to Kentucky, I saw a 375 mL bottle of a whiskey that I’d never had before. And one from a beloved producer at that. I’ve never picked up the 90 proof version of Ancient Age before. I’d had the 80 proof numerous times. I’d had the 10- year-old back in the day. I’m unconvinced that I’ve had the Ancient Age 10-Star bourbon. I just can’t remember. But I knew I had never had the 90 proof. So I picked it up. This is distributed in Kentucky, Tennessee, and parts of West Virginia.

Ancient Age 90 proof

Purchase Info: $6.49 for a 375 mL bottle at Liquor Barn, Louisville, KY

Price per Drink (50 mL): $0.87

Details: 45% ABV. 3- years-old.

Nose: Delicate on the nose. Notes of caramel, vanilla, red fruits and baking spice.

Mouth: Spicy cinnamon touched with cocoa powder, mint, dried grains, dried fruits, and vanilla.

Finish: Medium in length and warmth. Notes of cinnamon, red fruits, and caramel.

Thoughts: While this won't win many awards, it is nothing to turn your nose up at. At only three years old and less than $1 per pour, this is much spicier than I had anticipated. Especially as I've had the 80 proof that is sold here in Minnesota and it has next to no spice to it. For the price, I like it. I'd probably reach for Very Old Barton first, but if I'm in a Buffalo Trace kind of mood, but don't have a Buffalo Trace kind of budget, then this'll do in a pinch. Kinda gets lost in an Old Fashioned but would work ok in a Whiskey Sour.

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Jack Daniel's Tennessee Tasters' Selection: Jamaican Allspice, Spring 2020

Going to be a short one tonight. I got my vaccination booster last night and I feel like warmed-over poo. I originally got the J&J shot. It wasn’t too bad. Fever and Chills overnight the day I got it, but nothing lasting. This Pfizer one is wild though. For a while, I had every symptom of the flu except the lethargy. So I was amped up on coffee, raring to go but with chills, joint aches, etc. I got a bunch of work done this morning. Then boom. I got run over by a truck about 1 pm. And I’ve been down since. But hey, it gave me a lot of time to listen to podcasts and play a Star Wars Lego game on my iPad this afternoon.

Tonight’s whiskey (tasted this weekend prior to getting jabbed), is one of the Tennessee Taster’s Selections. As far as I know, these are only sold through the Jack Daniel’s Distillery Bottle Shop and select liquor stores in Tennessee. The Tennessee Tasters’s Selections are limited, experimental releases that take a Jack Daniel’s product and play with it a bit. This one was finished with “Jamaican Allspice” wood. Otherwise known as Pimento Wood, this is the wood that gives Jamaican Jerk Chicken its unique flavor.

So in the name of this being a short post, let’s get on with the tasting notes.

Jack Daniel's Tennessee Tasters' Selection: Jamaican Allspice

Purchase Info: $34.24 for a 375 mL bottle at the White Rabbit Bottle Shop, Jack Daniel’s Distillery, Lynchburg, TN

Price per Drink (50 ML): $4.60

Details: Finished for 180 days with Jamaican Allspice Wood. 50% ABV. Released Spring 2020. Selection number 6.

Nose: Oak, caramel, allspice, and pipe tobacco.

Mouth: Spicy with notes of tobacco, clove, caramel, and oak.

Finish: Medium to long and warm. Notes of tobacco, clove, and caramel.

Thoughts: Damn. I wish I'd bought a second bottle. This is delicious. Strong tobacco and clove notes throughout. Nice heat. Nice finish. This makes me look forward to the next two Tennessee Tasters’ Selections I have in the closet. This bottle, however, will live on the special shelf so I don't empty it too fast. Damn, that’s tasty!

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Just A Bunch of Things I Found on Vacation

I am an impulse buyer. Sure, I can make it through a grocery checkout line without buying a candy bar. But it isn’t likely that I will leave a liquor store, festival or distillery without buying at least something. Here are a few of the ones I picked up last month while visiting Tennessee and Kentucky. Even though some of them travelled almost as far as I did to get there.

Lincoln County Reserve Bourbon Barrel Aged Maple Syrup

Until my teenage years, we never bought syrup. My family made it. We tapped the trees and boiled the sap into syrup. But then we had a fire and the sugar shack we boiled sap in burned down. And since it was a collaboration between my grandparents and one of their cousins, the shack never got replaced. My brother has decided to carry on the tradition though, in order to teach his kids. I however buy mine from a 92-year-old lady who has been making it forever.

So, one could say that I am quite the connoisseur of maple syrup. Either that or you could say that I’ve been spoiled by amazing maple syrup my entire life. And I’m pretty biased. I really do think that the best maple syrup comes from the upper midwest. Fight me Canada. That said, I do like trying new things and so when I saw Lincoln County Reserve selling Bourbon Barrel Aged Maple Syrup at the Kentucky Bourbon Festival, I knew that a bottle would be coming home with me. And funny thing, that syrup was made in Wisconsin. Merrill, Wisconsin, a city of fewer than 10,000 people and an innumerable number of maple trees. This bourbon was aged in 10 gallon used bourbon barrels from Distillery 291 in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

But is it any good? In a word, yes! It’s buttery with a nice bourbon flavor. The bourbon is not overpowering bringing a lot of brown sugar and caramel notes. It has a great mouthfeel, nice and thick. And let me tell you, it is amazing on French Toast and sausage. Highly recommended.

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Freddie's Old Fashioned Root Beer

Let me tell you about my college life. I had a wife, a kid, a job, and a major that was deceptively time-consuming. You might think that a fine art degree would be a cakewalk, but at least at the university I went to, you’d be wrong. Multiple all-nighters per week were extremely common as, due to our finances, I tried to fit a five-year plan for college into as few quarters as possible. One way we saved money was by renting an old farmhouse about a half-hour outside of town. Honestly, it was a pretty nice place. It was maintained by the local student-housing property management company. Meaning it was not maintained at all except by the elderly owner who was paying the property management company to, supposedly, do all of that for him.

Anyway, this farm was near a very small village of about 800 people. There was one grocery store, though it didn’t carry much. But one thing it did carry was Dr. McGillicuddy’s Root Beer Soda. I had no idea that the liqueur brand had lent its name to a soda, but every time I went to that tiny store for something, a bottle of that root beer came out with me. Eventually, I finished college, moved, and couldn’t find anywhere that carried the stuff. Until I first visited the Buffalo Trace Distillery. Apparently, Sazerac was the producer of that root beer, and one of the few places it could be purchased was at the distillery. I was super happy to pick up a six-pack every time I visited.

In 2019, Sazerac rebranded that root beer after beloved tour guide Freddie Johnson. He is a great guy and this is a great root beer. So I think it is a great match. But how does it taste? Caramel at first, followed by wintergreen. Unlike some root beers, the wintergreen is not overpowering though. This is subtle. After that is vanilla. The vanilla lasts long after you swallow. The thing that makes this so good is how well-balanced these flavors are. They're melded together so well that it is hard to tell where one ends and another begins. It has a nice creamy mouthfeel as well. This is my favorite root beer. A good part of that is nostalgia, but let an old man have that, ok?

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MB Roland Kentucky Dark Cherry Moonshine

This was a gift from my friends at MB Roland, but I found a great use for it so I wanted to share. Thought I’d mention that since everything else on this post was purchased.

The folks at MB Roland are some of the nicest people I’ve met. And one side effect of them being so nice, I gave their whiskey a try shortly after they opened. That whiskey was the start of my personal whiskey journey. So I guess what I’m saying is that if you enjoy reading BourbonGuy.com, on some level you have them to thank.

We visited them while on vacation, spent the afternoon just hanging out, and since they are good friends we were given a bottle of MB Roland Dark Cherry Moonshine. Something we hadn’t tried before. I’m a big fan of this in cocktails. Especially this Cherry Manhattan from FoodandWine.com. Scroll down the page, it’s worth it. But since this could be consumed alone, let’s give it the ol’ tasting notes treatment.

Ripe, dark cherries on the nose. The month is sweet with a strong, natural dark cherry flavor. No artificial flavors or cough syrup flavors here. Very little alcohol flavor so be careful drinking neat if you really love cherries. Works great in cocktails like the one above. I could also see this playing nicely with lime juice in a cocktail or even a highball. It does need to be refrigerated after opening, but a little fridge space is a small price to pay for delicious cocktails.

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Old Forester Oleo-Saccharum Lemon Oil Syrup

I first heard about Oleo Saccharum in David Wonderich’s book Punch. I reviewed it here. Spoiler, I really liked it. It’s basically sugar and lemon peels left together until the sugar draws the lemon oils out of the peels and dissolves in it, creating a syrup. Easy to do, if a little time-consuming. So it was with interest that I saw this little bottle of premade Oleo-Saccharum at the Old Forester Distillery Gift Shop in Louisville, KY. I was staying in the Whiskey Row Lofts which are basically upstairs and had the thought that I might make a few cocktails with it. I did not and so it came home with me.

But what did I think of it once I did open it? It has a strong lemon nose. It’s very sweet and lemony on the mouth when you taste it by itself. It does really well in the champagne cocktail on the bottle (1 oz bourbon, 0.5 oz syrup, 4.5 oz brut sparkling wine, ice, lemon twist). It’s good, but at the end of the day, a lemon oleo-saccharum is too easy to make for me to buy this again. Especially since you use a quarter of the bottle for one cocktail. Maybe if I was on the road, travelling. But not for home use.

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Kirkland Signature Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

I know almost nothing about Costco. I have never had a membership. I’ve been in the liquor section of the location closest to me exactly one time. In fact, about the only thing I do know about the company is that their house brand is Kirkland.

So it was a bit strange when I went to my local mom and pop liquor store and saw a liter of Kirkland Bourbon on the shelf. Of course, I know that there is a Minnesota law that forbids store-exclusive liquor brands. But this has usually played out with the Total Wine Spirits Direct brands landing on the shelves of local stores. This is the first time that I’ve seen a Costco brand in the wild.

So like I said, I know next to nothing about Costco. But, unlike the Total Wine brands, I do know something about the Costco bourbon. Namely who made it. Emblazoned at the top of the label are the words “by Barton 1792.” I love this. In fact, it was what made me pick up the bottle we are talking about tonight. I really like the bourbon that comes out of the Barton 1792 distillery and I liked that they were willing to put their name on the barrels that they sold to someone else.

The usual practice in the US, for what would be termed “independent bottlers” in other countries, is for a company to source their bourbon from a distillery who then makes them sign an non-disclosure agreement about where they got it. In other words, they didn’t want their name associated with the bourbon for one reason or another. It is speculation on my part that this was, at least in part, because they were either selling a product that was non-standard for their house style or because that it was a product that wasn’t necessarily their best. Like I said, speculation on my part, but when someone doesn’t want their name on a product, what else are you supposed to think? I mean it could be that the supplier doesn’t want someone trading in on their good name, but if they are getting paid either way and they are selling decent stuff, is it really that bad?

No idea, I write for tips on the internet and they run multi-million dollar corporations. It is possible that they understand these things better than I do. But that said, I still picked up the Kirkland Signature by Barton 1792 and not one of many other NDP-produced bourbons that fill the shelves.

Kirkland Signature Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey by Barton 1792

Purchase Info: $33.99 for a 1 liter bottle at Viking Liquor Barrel, Prior Lake, MN.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $1.70

Details: 60% ABV. Non-Chill Filtered.

Nose: Caramel, vanilla, almond, oak, light fruit.

Mouth: Damn, that's hot! Nutmeg, almond, toffee, mint, and oak.

Finish: Medium length and warm. Toffee, almond, and mint.

Thoughts: Is this a world-beater? No. But, it tastes good, it's high proof, and it is only $1.70 per pour. Let's just say that I went back to the store to grab a few more liters of this before I posted the review. This is a great everyday bourbon that also happens to also be overproof. I'm a fan. It is tasty enough to use in cocktails or cooking and inexpensive enough that I don’t mind using it that way. Plus as I said, I love the transparency on who made it. Right on the front label. Even bigger fan of that.

If you are in Minnesota and see this at your local, pick it up. If you are anywhere else and have a Costco membership you should consider doing the same.

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George Dickel Bourbon

I’m not going to lie, I bought a lot of whiskey on vacation. And by no small coincidence, a lot of the stuff I purchased happened to be things that I either haven’t had, or haven’t written about. You gotta have content. And as such it’ll probably be December before I stop referencing it. I really hope that you don’t get sick of posts that bring it up.

I mean, I could try writing so that I don’t mention it, but where is the fun in that?

Anyway I primarily stayed in two cities while on vacation, Chattanooga and Louisville. I’ve been to Louisville numerous times but I’d never been to Chattanooga before except as a place I drove through on the way to somewhere else. And as it was our first time in the area, we really felt the need to do some touristy things. We visited Rock City, which was cooler than I’d have thought it would be; we paid our respects at the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park; and because of who we are, we went to distilleries. I did the tour and tasting at both Jack Daniel’s and at Chattanooga Whiskey. I didn’t at Cascade Hollow though. Mostly because they were not offering tours. Instead I spent a lot of money in the gift shop as I picked up a few things that I couldn’t easily get at home. I grabbed a 15-year-old Single Barrel, I grabbed a current Bottled-in-Bond for about $15 cheaper than I’d find it at home, and I grabbed tonight’s Bourbon. That’s right, Bourbon.

From June’s launch press release:

For Cascade Hollow Distilling Co.'s General Manager and Distiller, Nicole Austin, creating Dickel Bourbonwas an opportunity to showcase the amazing, mature whiskies at the distillery. At the same time, it allowed the brand to give a home to those barrels that leaned into more traditional bourbon notes and did not express the Tennessee Whiskey tasting characteristics found in the rest of the George Dickel offerings.

Basically it is the same juice, following the same procedures, that is in all of their other Tennessee Whiskey products, it just tastes more like a traditional bourbon then those do. But much more important to me than what they call it, is how it tastes. Let’s find out.

George Dickel Bourbon

Purchase Price: $40.00 for a 750 mL bottle at the Cascade Hollow Distilling Co. Gift Shop, Tullahoma, TN. $30.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Kroger, Louisville, KY.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $2.67 (TN), $2.07 (KY)

Details: 8 years old, 45% ABV

Nose: Red fruit, herbal mint, caramel, baking spice, and mineral notes.

Mouth: Thin mouthfeel. Caramel, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

Finish: Medium length and very flavorful. Cinnamon red hots, caramel, vanilla, mint and the "Dickel" mineral note.

Thoughts: I like this one. Not as much as the high-end, extra-aged Dickel products, but more than No. 8 or No. 12. I picked up a bottle of Bottled-in-Bond at the same time for only five dollars more, and I definately like that better. But since people in my neck of the woods are gouging on the Bonded, this will be a pretty good alternative once it shows up here in Minnesota.

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Daviess County Double Barrel Bourbon

I’d like to thank ByrnePR and Lux Row for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

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Last year, Lux Row launched Daviess County Straight Bourbon (for about $40) as well as a French Oak cask-finished bourbon and a Cabernet Sauvignon cask-finished bourbon (for about $45). Their timing on the launch wasn’t great. As their press release confirmed, a lot of things were going on right about the time the brand launched, and a lot of people, myself included, just forgot about them. Luckily for all of us, Lux Row has reminded us of the Daviess County line of bourbons by releasing a new variety: Double Barrel Bourbon. I did an in-depth discussion of the history of the Daviess County brand last year when the initial three products in the line were released so I won’t go into all that again except to say that I really enjoyed all three and was happy to receive the reminder that the line existed.

Daviess County Double Barrel is being released in partnership with Ducks Unlimited and the name is a play on both the gun often used in duck hunting as well as the finishing process used to create the bourbon. According to the press release:

Finished in Missouri white-oak barrels with toasted heads, Daviess County Double Barrel was created by Lux Row Master Distiller and long-time DU member, John Rempe. Double Barrel features a mashbill that is similar to the other Daviess County Bourbon variants, along with the same proof level (96 proof). The double-barrel finish gives this limited-edition release a unique flavor profile … Available for purchase beginning mid-September, Daviess County Double Barrel Bourbon has a limited supply offering at a suggested retail price of $49.99 per bottle. DU members can sample and bid on Daviess County Double Barrel Bourbon at a series of DU events to be announced later this year.

Now, fast forward to a couple of weeks ago when I left on a wonderfully long vacation. The day I left, I happened to receive a FedEx package containing the newest release in Lux Row’s Daviess County line of bourbons. And because I am the type of person who likes to drink bourbon while on vacation, I immediately shoved the bottle into my luggage and brought it along. I also decided to grab a couple of Glencairn glasses so that I could do the tasting notes while I was gone as well. I mean, you folks probably want to know if it is any good, right?

Daviess County Double Barrel Bourbon

Purchase Info: This sample was provided by the producer for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $49.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $3.33

Nose: Bubble gum, mint, red fruits, good bread, and oak.

Mouth: Caramel, chocolate, mint, cinnamon.

Finish: Medium warmth and length. Notes of bubblegum, mint, cinnamon, caramel, chocolate, fruit, oak, and good artisan bread.

Thoughts from a Louisville Loft: This has a really nice finish. Tons of flavors coming through after you swallow. I'm a fan.

Thoughts from Home: This is really good. Powerful cinnamon with a lovely sweetness when compared to the Straight Bourbon. Double Barrel is much sweeter than the straight bourbon. It also has more defined cinnamon notes and is lacking some of the “burn.” One might say Double Barrel is “smoother” if they were apt to use that descriptor. I enjoyed the heck out of this while on vacation and will continue to enjoy the rest of it now that I am home.

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Little Book Chapter 5 - The Invitation

I’d like to thank the folks at Jim Beam for providing the following review sample with no strings attached.

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By the time you are reading this, I will be on vacation. I’m guessing I will be somewhere in Northern Missouri if you are reading this the evening it came out. Hello from Wednesday! Did the world survive?

This is my first real vacation since before Covid. Even vaccinated, I’m a little nervous. But if I didn’t go, I’d lose all the money I paid for housing…so here I go. I’ll be as safe as I can and mostly just try to avoid being too close to people. Which is kinda how I usually do vacations anyway. And since I am in the middle of working my way through a list of “Things That I Should Have Done Last Week But Need To Be Done Before I Leave,” I’m going to jump right into the whiskey portion of this post.

I’ve been a fan of the Little Book releases since they were first released. I’m pretty sure that I’ve enjoyed every one I’ve tried. I really like the experimentation that Freddie Noe is doing with them. And this is no different. The whiskeys included in this blend range from two to fifteen years old. Paraphrasing the sell sheet provided with the sample (and quoting where appropriate) here are the blend components and what they say each brings to the final blend:

• 2-year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon: It “comes off the still and goes into the barrel at a lower proof delivering a whiskey that’s complex and balanced.” This whiskey contributed a creamy mouthfeel and sweet grain flavors.

• 3-year-old Malted 100% Rye Whiskey: This whiskey brings in peppery notes and toasted grain/cereal notes with a hint of nuttiness.

• 5-year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon: This whiskey brings in hints of vanilla, corn sweetness on the nose, and a smooth finish “that help to balance the flavors from the younger whiskies and the 15-year-old bourbon.”

• 15-year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon: This brings heavier barrel flavors and adds complexity to the final blend.

That’s what Beam had to say, let’s see how it tastes.

Little Book Chapter 5: The Invitation

Purchase Info: This sample was provided by the producer for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $124.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price Per Drink (50 mL): $8.33

Details: 58.4% ABV. A blend of 2-year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 3-year-old Malted 100% Rye, 5-year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon, and 15-year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon.

Nose: Bright ginger and cinnamon, toasted nuts, milk chocolate.

Mouth: Hot and spicy. Notes of vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, and a generic nuttiness.

Finish: Warm and long. Notes of baking spice, chocolate, leather.

Thoughts: This is really good. I don't know that I'll be paying $125 for this, but I might check out Total Wine to see if they carry it for a little cheaper. But if you don't see a problem dropping $125 on a special release then add this one to your list. I like it.

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