On this snowy, Thanksgiving day, what better way to celebrate the start of the holiday season than with a Wild Turkey! This bottle of Diamond Anniversary pays tribute to Jimmy Russell's 60 years at the Wild Turkey Distillery. As the longest active Master Distiller in North America, Jimmy has forgotten more about bourbon than most of us have ever learned. Details: A blend of 13 and 16 year old bourbon barrels 91 proof $125 750ml Color: Golden Amber Nose: Caramel and vanilla sweetness up front along with a light, citrus-orange zest. It's an elegant and complex nose with a floral bouquet, black pepper spice, and toasted oak rising from the glass. Taste: Initial sweetness that transitions to a thick and spicy mouthfeel. It's well balanced with honey, vanilla, brown sugars, cayenne and black pepper. Finish: A medium finish with a delicate sweetness, rye spice, and mature oak. Conclusion: This is hands down the best Wild Turkey bourbon I have ever tasted. Jimmy's son Eddie hand selected and blended this bourbon and it makes me really excited for his future releases. Diamond Anniversary bourbon is a very drinkable whiskey that hits all the high points of what you'd expect from a great bourbon. When I bought the bottle, I was initially disappointed that it was not 101 proof (come on, WT 101 is THE brand), but this certainly exceeds my expectations. My Rating: A (Great) Bourbon Brothers Review:
Today I am delighted to share my review of a special, limited release from Bomberger's Distillery. This blend of American straight whiskies- courtesy of Dick Stoll, the Master Distiller for Pennsylvania's Mitcher's- was released to support the construction of a brand new Bomberger's Distillery in Lancaster County. As the Nation's oldest distillery [dating back to 1753], Bomberger's was a catalyst for the growth of whiskey distilling to a large scale industry. Details: Batch 1, bottle #1339 86 proof An 89/11 percent blend of 2 year bourbon (75% corn, 21% rye, 4% malt) and 3 year McKenzie rye whiskey
Color: Yellow gold Nose: "Yes, I have room for dessert"! Chocolate covered cherries in a glass. Semi-sweet chocolate. Thick butter, corn and baking spices create a rich, dessert like aroma. Taste: Similar to the nose, many sweet notes initially grace the palate; sweet corn, chocolate, cherries, buttercream. Rye spice sneaks into the flavor profile to add depth to a already uniquely complex whiskey. Finish: Fairly quick and smooth with subtle notes of buttercream sweetness, rye and pepper spice with the faintest amount of oak. Conclusion: This blend of straight American whiskies is an excellent example of an ole style whiskey. It's very drinkable and makes me want to come back for another glass (and then another)! At such a young age, many of the barrel flavors that we know and love are curtailed, but overall a good whiskey that is certainly worth a try! My Rating: B (Good)
Calling all Captains, Pirates and Scalleywags! Thanks for checking in for another Blundon Bourbon review- today we are drinking Jefferon's Ocean, aged at sea. This whiskey is a great example of how the environment can affect the taste of whiskey.
Details: Voyage batch 3 90 proof Aged 6-8 years in a traditional rick house; then aged for 6 months at sea, stopping at 5 different continents and crossing the equator 4 times.
Color: Bronze Nose: Brown sugar splashes out of the glass and brings with it a general airiness for a very unique bouquet. Waves of toffee, raisins, and sea salt quickly permeate the glass. A healthy dose of cinnamon and aged rum create a delicate aroma. Taste: Salted caramel, rum raisin ice cream, and oak create the base of the palate. Baking spices float on the mid palate with salty brine to combine for an extremely unqiue flavor profile.
Finish: The sweet notes fade quickly, but you are left with an everlasting dry and salty mouth-feel. Conclusion: It's a very interesting dram. A general saltiness stays with you from start to finish. I love bourbon with character and I can only think this hits the mark for what Master Blender Trey Zoller was hoping to accomplish- I'm really glad I experienced it. That being said, a bit too salty for my taste; and for the price, I will not seek out voyage #4. My Rating: B (Good)
Today we are featuring a straight bourbon whiskey from Eastside Distilling, an up and coming producer located in Southeast Portland's Distillery Row. They have been producing a variety of small batch rums, vodkas, and whiskey since 2009. For this review, we are drinking Burnside Bourbon, "put some sideburns on your face"!
Details: 96 proof 4 years old Mashbill: Spoke with a team member on the phone, he said that Burnside bourbon was at least 75% corn, and that the rye and barley vary (interesting).
Color: Bright amber
Nose: Sweetness in the form of fluffy vanilla icing and sweet corn. Fruity and floral notes express themselves with apples and rose pedals.
Taste: A light mouthfeel with a dry, subtle sweetness. Tart maple, sour applesauce, and cherry syrup. On the mid palate there is Captain Crunch cereal with a bit of cream corn, cinnamon, and bitter oak.
Finish: Moderately quick in length. Heavy ethanol reminiscent of a shot of vodka with sharp rye spice and slight oak. Conclusion: Right out of the glass you get the sense of a young, hot bourbon. The subtle sweetness, dominant ethanol and bitter oak may indeed just leave some sideburns on your face. At 4 years old, the $30 price tag on burnside bourbon is a bit more than I'm willing to pay. I hope that in the future, they age this bourbon for a few more years to give it that boldness it currently lacks. For now, I recommend trying this at a bar before picking up a bottle.
On this snowy, Thanksgiving day, what better way to celebrate the start of the holiday season than with a Wild Turkey! This bottle of Diamond Anniversary pays tribute to Jimmy Russell's 60 years at the Wild Turkey Distillery. As the longest active Master Distiller in North America, Jimmy has forgotten more about bourbon than most of us have ever learned.
