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Jimbaround

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12 minutes ago, Wanker Bob said:

Now this is the excellent info I don't pay you blokes for. I bought a 1920 a few weeks ago and like it. Got a weller today and I've never tried weller so looking forward to it. 

They also had a Master's Keep Rye but I'm not paying that much for this stuff

Cornerstone was good, but a one time thing. I’d hold out for Master’s Keep Decades. 

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27 minutes ago, Neonmoon said:

I originally thought  you were nuts with this opinion, but now I understand it. I think they are both delicious. 

1870 is the sneakiest Whiskey Row offering. It’s definitely a blend . I bet there’s some tasty 8 year old stock in there. 
 

Edited by billfromlaketravis
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Minnick’s 2020 BTAC rankings: 

1) Sazerac 18

2) WLW

3) Handy

4) GTS

5) Eagle Rare 17

A little bit of an upset at the top. WLW seems to win the BTAC tasting every year. ER17 consistently finishes last. Based on Minnick’s review and the 2020 world whiskey rankings posted upthread, it seems like a really good year for Handy. 
 

Again Minnick is a lucky SOB. Buffalo Trace sent him half pint sample bottles 3 months before we mere plebs could even hope to score some.

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On 9/11/2020 at 7:42 PM, billfromlaketravis said:

@Bert Orangedropped a bag. 
 

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Thanks again to @Bert Orange for the samples. Really good guy. He came out of his way to drop these off. Much appreciated. 

Preface: I'm not great on tasting notes, but I'll try my best. I'm a lot better at determining if something is good or not. 

My rankings: 

1) Smooth Ambler Old Scout, 10 years old, 107.8 Proof : 9.0/10

2) Boone County B & RS Pick, 14 years old, 109.8 Proof : 8.5/10

3) Old Carter American Whiskey Batch 3, 12 years old, 138.1 Proof : 8.0/10

 

Smooth Ambler Old Scout 

Nose: Smooth. trace amounts of ethanol, slightly astringent. 

Palette: Oak, good mouth feel up front, but thins out some.  Smooth. Doesn't have that medicinal MGP taste. Sweet caramel. Smoothes out the MGP rough edges that I haven't cared for in the past. 

Finish : Smooth. The hug stays with you, but for for very long. Slight burn. 

 

Boone County 

Nose: Fruity, slight ethanol burn. 

Palette: Oaky, sticky sweet. More oak, slightly astringent. Maybe two years too many in the barrel. Thin mouth feel but pleasant. Good, but I like the 12 year Eighteen33 a little better. 

Finish: Smooth, but leaves in a hurry. 

 

Old Carter 

Why is this American Whiskey and not bourbon? I searched online, but couldn't find much. My guess is that they used French Oak to age the whiskey. 

Nose: It stings the nostrils. Bold agressive. Not your typical nose, there's a little funk. French Oak Barrels maybe? 

Palette: Classic MGP profile, just at a much higher proof. Oak, leather, slight butterscotch sweetness. Flavor profile wasn't for me. It tasted like hot MGP. That said, pretty complex whiskey with a lot going on. I appreciate complexity. 

Finish: Hug all the way down. Long burn. 

 

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I scored a bottle of EH Taylor Barrel Proof today. 

Well done. Was this a stumble upon or a planned thing? I thought I had one lined up the other day back in my hometown (Tulsa), but kept striking out with local people to run up there. Had them on the shelf for a full hour after the store opened, but the person I finally got to go walked in about 10 minutes later. Crazy how different some markets are. Specs off 75 in Dallas had probably 60 people lined up before opening.


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4 minutes ago, BigDHornfan said:

c1be7a4b20a6bb22a0c625a9c79903d8.jpg
Little Book ch 4 is interesting.
Brown rice bourbon is very unique tasting.
Neck pour was good, excited to see how this one opens up.
Belfour LE Rye for when the Stars win tonight and send fucking Vegas out the bubble.

I need that Chapter 4 to complete my set but it’s already come and gone from TW.  LB is riding the chapter 3 hype and the secondary value is quickly approaching retail for 4.  I’ll still buy it though. 

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13 minutes ago, H_Boogie said:


Well done. Was this a stumble upon or a planned thing? I thought I had one lined up the other day back in my hometown (Tulsa), but kept striking out with local people to run up there. Had them on the shelf for a full hour after the store opened, but the person I finally got to go walked in about 10 minutes later. Crazy how different some markets are. Specs off 75 in Dallas had probably 60 people lined up before opening.


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I begged. It wasn’t dignified. 

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4 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

Thanks again to @Bert Orange for the samples. Really good guy. He came out of his way to drop these off. Much appreciated. 

Preface: I'm not great on tasting notes, but I'll try my best. I'm a lot better at determining if something is good or not. 

My rankings: 

1) Smooth Ambler Old Scout, 10 years old, 107.8 Proof : 9.0/10

2) Boone County B & RS Pick, 14 years old, 109.8 Proof : 8.5/10

3) Old Carter American Whiskey Batch 3, 12 years old, 138.1 Proof : 8.0/10

 

Smooth Ambler Old Scout 

Nose: Smooth. trace amounts of ethanol, slightly astringent. 

Palette: Oak, good mouth feel up front, but thins out some.  Smooth. Doesn't have that medicinal MGP taste. Sweet caramel. Smoothes out the MGP rough edges that I haven't cared for in the past. 

Finish : Smooth. The hug stays with you, but for for very long. Slight burn. 

 

Boone County 

Nose: Fruity, slight ethanol burn. 

Palette: Oaky, sticky sweet. More oak, slightly astringent. Maybe two years too many in the barrel. Thin mouth feel but pleasant. Good, but I like the 12 year Eighteen33 a little better. 

Finish: Smooth, but leaves in a hurry. 

 

Old Carter 

Why is this American Whiskey and not bourbon? I searched online, but couldn't find much. My guess is that they used French Oak to age the whiskey. 

Nose: It stings the nostrils. Bold agressive. Not your typical nose, there's a little funk. French Oak Barrels maybe? 

Palette: Classic MGP profile, just at a much higher proof. Oak, leather, slight butterscotch sweetness. Flavor profile wasn't for me. It tasted like hot MGP. That said, pretty complex whiskey with a lot going on. I appreciate complexity. 

Finish: Hug all the way down. Long burn. 

 

Any time. Glad you enjoyed them (at least it appears you did). MGP has a lot to offer to bourbon. Thankfully they weren’t low aged supply when everyone else was or secondary would be even more fubar. 
 

Interestingly I’d put that SAOS squarely in the bottom of the top third of the bottles I’ve consumed from them. It gets even better from there. 
 

Just feel MGP has its place and a well-done MGP can hang with Kentucky juice.  

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25 minutes ago, Bert Orange said:

Any time. Glad you enjoyed them (at least it appears you did). MGP has a lot to offer to bourbon. Thankfully they weren’t low aged supply when everyone else was or secondary would be even more fubar. 
 

Interestingly I’d put that SAOS squarely in the bottom of the top third of the bottles I’ve consumed from them. It gets even better from there. 
 

Just feel MGP has its place and a well-done MGP can hang with Kentucky juice.  

Do you have any advice for buying SAOS? Obviously look for Distilled in Indiana, and store picks, but is there a proof/age sweet spot? 
 

 

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7 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

Do you have any advice for buying SAOS? Obviously look for Distilled in Indiana, and store picks, but is there a proof/age sweet spot? 
 

 

It’s so barrel dependent that there isn’t really a formula. But have had most success in the 10-12 year and 110-120 proof ranges. 

Edited by Bert Orange
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It hit GG two weeks ago and last week it hit Spec’s. Got a new Spec’s in Weatherford and so I stepped in to see what their beer selection was like. BP and ER were just sitting there behind the counter and they had cases of all 3 sizes of BT and WSR on the shelf.

EHT BP#6 is probably definitely in my top 5, possibly even top 3 favorite bottles of all time.

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While we're on the subject of Old Forester, some observations from Zykan and the Bourbon Pursuit fellas: 

- Despite being BFF's with Zykan and Campbell Brown, the Bourbon Pursuit/Whiskey Quickie guys gave 2020 Birthday Bourbon an unfavorable ranking. Thumbs up on the nose, sideways thumbs on the taste and finish. I'd say it's time to hit the panic button on 2020 Birthday. You know the samples OF sent out were the absolute best of the lot. 

- Zykan described 2020 Birthday as having a funky, tropical fruit nose. The Bourbon Pursuit guys described the note a lemon custard. It sounds like she tried to double down on the cherry bomb note that worked so well in 2019. 

- Zykan has some very, very nontraditional views on how bourbon should taste and how to age it in the barrel. She expressed an interest in pumping air into the barrel as the bourbon aged. She also referenced Old Forester turning on the heater during the winter in their rickhouses. Finally, she derided proofers for being overly masculine. For anyone that's curious, I'd recommend Bourbon Pursuit Episode 270.  

- Zykan argued against precedent that Birthday was a 12 year old product. It sounds like barrels containing 2020 Birthday had an abnormal amount of leakage and there some concern about putting out 2020. 

- She said most of their 6-8 year bourbon stock is committed to OF 100. There's a reason it's so good. The rest gets blended into their Whiskey Row Series. 

- I love and hate Zykan. I love that she doesn't want Old Forester to be boring. She wants to push the envelope and it has created some wonderful products like 1910, the rye, 1870, and 1920. I hate that she has de facto veto power on what barrels become Birthday Bourbon. She's going to hit some homers, but there going to be some whiffs. It sounds like 2020 is going to be a whiff after the terrific 2019. Birthday is such a sought after product that consumers are going to demand more consistency like the BTAC line. 

All that said, if I have the opportunity to purchase 2020 Birthday, I will pull the trigger. 

P.S.: Minnick hates OF 1910. Go figure. 

Edited by billfromlaketravis
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On 9/14/2020 at 8:56 PM, BigDHornfan said:

c1be7a4b20a6bb22a0c625a9c79903d8.jpg
Little Book ch 4 is interesting.
Brown rice bourbon is very unique tasting.
Neck pour was good, excited to see how this one opens up.
Belfour LE Rye for when the Stars win tonight and send fucking Vegas out the bubble.

I’m going to need a final ruling here on LittLe Book 4. I have a bottle in my cart. 

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c1be7a4b20a6bb22a0c625a9c79903d8.jpg
Little Book ch 4 is interesting.
Brown rice bourbon is very unique tasting.
Neck pour was good, excited to see how this one opens up.
Belfour LE Rye for when the Stars win tonight and send fucking Vegas out the bubble.

Talk to me about that Belfour LE Rye. Their standard Rye ain’t half bad, if not a bit overpriced. There is little to no info on the higher end Rye. How is it?
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6 hours ago, RichUT said:

Talk to me about that Belfour LE Rye. Their standard Rye ain’t half bad, if not a bit overpriced. There is little to no info on the higher end Rye. How is it?

If you think the standard is overpriced, well this one is about a 100 bucks over that one.  Retails for about 200 depending on where.

It's 100 proof aged 24 months and its the only one that Ed and his son did completely by themselves.  It's their first truly independent bottle.  Ed created the mashbill and his son distilled it himself.  There was only 12 barrels produced so it is limited.  I really like it, its young so it's more of a floral profile instead of a typical Rye spice.  It drinks remarkably smooth for 100 proof.  

One cool thing Ed did was give everyone on the 1999 Cup winning team a bottle with their name engraved on the cup.  That top is heavy as hell.  It doubles as a 1 oz jigger.

 

I‘ve met his son through one of the local whiskey clubs I am in and he’s really passionate about what they are doing and it seems they are doing it right and taking their time with everything.

They are in the process of building their own distillery in Kentucky.

 

I also got Ed to sign my backup LE Rye, he’s super nice in person.

313ead0882098831dee22705a12be0a4.jpg

Edited by BigDHornfan
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