Bourbon/Rye/American Whiskey

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Barrell Bourbon, Batch 36 Straight Bourbon Whiskey 114 proof

Notes:  Cask strength bourbon.  This one has a lovely peach and black cherry on the nose. There is little alcohol burn there.  But on the palate, you get a lovely, toasty burn with a rich, woody warmth.  It is definitely a drink to savor slowly.  Very pleasant

Over the years, we’ve been able to try and few of these batches.  And they’re all different.  But the quality is same, always high.  At Total Wine, we purchased this for just around $70.  While they have less expensive blends, these single batches are really worth seeking out.

Elijah Craig Private Barrel/Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 118 proof

Notes:  We love Elijah Craig a lot.  We ran across this bottling at Total Wine just recently.  These guys have a great selection.  And they are consistently good.  The label says this is 9 years old.  And it shows.

This whiskey runs $78 dollars.  But smooth, potency of this dram is really incredible.  It has a lovely, richness.  And the 118 proof will food you.  It does not smell or taste like it is that strong.  

Elijah Craig Toasted Rye Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey 94 proof

Notes:  We love Elijah Craig a lot.  Recently, I noticed this bottling.  I have no idea whether it is new or I’ve just been blind to it. 

It has a nice, rich character — just a tad more toasty than the standard Rye they put out. 

Their standard rye is my go-to.  I tend to take a dram of their standard rye with to bed while I read about wine — and just recently, Vermouth.

While this is a bottling is double the price of the standard rye, this will be a bottling that will be stocked at the house from now on.  

Blanton’s Single Barrel Bourbon Whiskey

Notes:  Until this week, I had never had Blanton’s before.  I have collected a lot of Bourbon and Rye, but I had just given Blanton’s the miss because my mental price point was around $40-80 per bottle.  And frankly, there are a ton of Bourbons and Ryes in that category.  I played in that price range for years.  But at Total Wine last week, they had about 20 of these on the shelves, special for Christmas.  So, I splurged.

This is every bit as good as people say it is.  The Bourbon dudes hanging around the section all vouched for it.  And they were right.  It is one of those products that I would pick if someone said, you can only have one Bourbon the rest of your life.  This would be it.  It is just lush, balanced, complex and rich in flavor.  Well worth the money.

Booker’s Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Notes:  Here’s another find at Total Wine.  I picked this up a week ago.  They said that it had come in the Friday before as part of their rarity allocation.  I did not hesitate to pick it up.

At 63.25% alc this is a fighter with a lovely burn to it, but boy is it plush.  It is highly sippable.  It has a rich complexity of flavors that balance out so nicely.  And honestly, I’ve never seen this bottling on a shelf before.  It’s one of those bottlings that Bourbon dudes whisper about.  

Eagle Rare Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Notes:  This is just one of the greats.  If you find it, buy it.  It is one that I’m glad to have a backup bottle of.  It is a polished, perfected bottle of Bourbon.  It is delightful.  I’m gonna stop there.

Colonel E.H. Taylor Rye

Notes:  One day about a year ago, I popped into Total Wine on a Friday.  It happened to be the first Friday of a given month.  There were a lot of guys hanging around the Bourbon section.  I asked what the draw was, and these guys all got really chatty all of a sudden, explaining that the allocation of special releases had just been delivered.  There was this bottling, Blantons and Eagle Rare.  So, I asked when I should get.  And they all said, you can have one of each (meaning, of course, don’t pass any of them up).  Bourbon dudes are really helpful.  And they like to talk.  Once you get them talking, they don’t stop, pointing out bottle after bottle that I needed to try.  And I left with about 6 bottles.  No complaints either.

This is just one of those bottles.  This is high end Rye.  If smells, tasted and feels opulent.  It tastes of extra time, attention and care.  If you should find yourself in a liquor store confronted with this bottle, buy it.  

Uncle Nearest Rye

Notes: I meant to photograph the bottle of 1856 as well, but screwed up and photographed the same bottle twice.  Maybe I’ll adjust that later.  But for now, you gotta try this Rye.  It has an almost sweet Rye bite to it.  It comes across as really raw while being opulent at the same time.  And this distillery has an amazing back-story as well.

This was given to me as a gift when I turned 60.  And I’ve loved it ever since.  It’s one of those bottlings that you just want to study because it has interesting edges.

Woodford’s Reserve Double Oaked

Notes: Yikes this is good stuff.  As a collector of things, when I started into acquiring Bourbons and ryes, Woodfords was top on my list.  They have such a range of bottlings.  And the collector in my said, “I want one of each!”  And after I’d tasted though their standard releases, I saw that they had this one available.  And after tasting it, I saw why it was special.  Their standard bottlings are so good, you don’t imagine they can top those!  But this one does.  It has a texture from the oak that creates almost a viscous mouthfeel. This is a bottling to seek out if you haven’t already tried it.

Woodford’s Reserve

Notes:  Here is a distillery that just doesn’t stop with their exclusive bottlings, variations in grains, double oaked bottlings, etc . . .  Like Elijah Craig, they have a deep bench of choices from reasonably priced to bottlings up in the 200 dollar range.  

Never had a Woodford’s that disappointed.  They are a high class, top shelf distillery with a price-point that makes us wonder how they do it.  Most of their entry level bottlings are really reasonably priced.  And the quality is amazing.

Elijah Craig

Notes:  Personally, I lean toward rye in most cases, but you can’t go wrong with any release from Elijah Craig.  These guys are my every night sippers.  For starters, they don’t break the bank, and they are balanced, concentrated, rich and flavorful.  And when you think about how large a production they have, they are always amazingly consistent.  Another thing I love about ECraig is the deep bench of variations of Bourbon and Rye that they put out.

Barrell Bourbon

Notes:  My friend, David, brought over a bottle one day of Barrell 032, and I was immediately smitten with it.  But for some reason, a year later I finally headed to TotalWine.com and purchased a bottle.  

Now, at 114.44 proof, this has a lovely burn to it, but it also is loaded with flavor.  It has rich fruit and concentrated Bourbon flavors that just want to make you sit down in front of the fire with a couple shots in a nice glass and just enjoy the analysis.

Found this at TotalWine.com for $88.

Castle & Key Restoration Rye

Notes:  I have been picking it up at the local Raley’s store.  It seems to be widely available.  But I found this one about a year ago at TotalWine.com.  This was highly recommended by one of the rye experts that I seem to run into at almost any at Total Wine that I go into.  The cool thing about whiskey people is they’re usually appear to be quietly perusing the section, but the second you ask for a recommendation, they blossom and point out a couple dozen bottlings that I should try.  I love experts.  

It has a good price point.  And I like it enough to always keep a second bottle in the wings.  It’s just a solid, flavorful bottle of Rye with full body, no missing notes on the palate and a long finish.

Widow Jane Rye Whiskeys

Notes:  I’d been eyeing these bottles for a while and finally grabbed a couple off MissionLiquour.com when i had exhausted my list of top ryes I was wanting to try.  And after trying these I wish now that I’d started here! 

These ryes are amazing.  The paradigm is a lovely, sweet rye with such a smooth finish.  It has peach, caramel and toast on the nose.

But it is the Apple Wood that takes my breath away.  There is soft wood on the nose as well as apple, peach and cream.  But the palate shines with one of the most round finishes I’ve ever had.  It is sweet, smooth, delicate, gentle.

Russel’s Reserve Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Notes:  About 8 months ago I went on a buying spree and picked this up along with about 15 bottles.  I can’t say enough good stuff about Russel’s.  I have not tried anything from them except the bourbon, however.  But with a beverage this flavorful, I feel like I’ve already won — why go any further?

Russel’s is a keeper.  Perfect for sipping with a book in the evening.  It has great, balanced flavors and a warm, thick texture.

Michter’s Straight Rye

Notes:  For a little while Trader Joe’s carried the straight Rye, the bourbon and the sour mash from Michter’s.  I tried this one and the bourbon.  Talk about depth of concentrated flavors.  These guys go all out with their distillation and storage.  The nose and the flavors are powerful, pronounced and the balance is excellent.  This is one of those ryes that I have a backup bottle around at all times!

Sagamore Spirit

Notes:  I bought this blind off the shelf at Raleys in Fairfield, Ca.  And it paid off.  This is a really snappy rye with good balance, slight sweetness, great citrus and fruit.

It was about $40 bucks and I would turn around and buy it again.  As you can see, I’m barely visited with the bottle, so I’ll have more to say about it as I get to know it.

Redemption

Notes:  I have several Redemption ryes here at the house.  I tend toward the one pictured to the right.  Generally, I like higher rye content, but this one is a nice blend — and the Redemption 95% rye actually seems a little harsh to me.  

I like the rye snap to both of them though.  This one just has a rounder, sweeter finish.  And for the price, they are great values.

Redwood Empire

Notes:  Eventually, we will try the whole lineup of High West.  The ones we have tried have been cracking.  Super flavors, no off-notes and all of the bottlings taste very different from each other.

We started out tasting the bourbon, but over the last year I really got hooked on ryes (finally).  I like their rye even better than the bourbon at this point.  These are extremely sip-worthy whiskeys.

Redwood Empire

Notes:  Just love everything that Redwood Empire is putting out.  The flavors are intense, the nose fruity and appealing.  They put out a great range of products.  The bourbons are smooth and intense.  The ryes are zippy, spicy and mouthwatering.

I try to keep two of everything on hand.  Just noticed the cat’s butt in the left side of the photo.  Oh well, ignore her.

Bend Oregon Trip – various distilleries

Notes: we recently visited family up in Bend, Oregon.  And on a Sunday morning we wandered around a lovely farmers’ Market and they had quite a great selection of things for sale.  

One of the things one could taste and purchase was whiskey from some of Oregon’s distilleries.  The image shows selections we purchased from three of the four distilleries that we tasted.

Honestly, they give you a generous taste of each item and many of the distilleries had 4-12 distilled beverages to taste.  And you can taste all of them if you want.  It’s a very civilized place!  I left with a mild buzz.  But I wasn’t driving, so there.

Broken down, Oregon Spirit Rye was our favorite.  It is almost all rye.  And it’s spicy, sweetish and has lovely flavors.  

Broken Top was the next favorite and had a large array of different whiskeys.  Stafford’s Reserve was a lovely bourbon with a good wheat and corn nose.  

These are really lovely to drink and should be sought out.  None of them broke the bank.