Spirits Archives - Page 3 of 16 - First Pour Cocktails

Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Barrel Proof

Posted on March 18, 2023March 13, 2023 by Nick

While there’s debate about Jack Daniel’s designation as bourbon, there’s no denying amongst the bourbon community that Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Barrel Proof tends to be fantastic. Similar to Wild Turkey Rare Breed, this offering appeals to both high proof hunters and those looking for an amped up flavor experience compared to their normal day to day bottle. Unlike Rare Breed, which comes in at 116.8 proof, Jack Daniel’s Barrel Proof comes in between 125 and a whopping 140 proof. With all that proof, can you even taste the whiskey?

Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Barrel Proof

Rick #: L-20
Barrel #: 21-07548
Bottled Date: 8-23-21
Proof: 132.4 (66.2%)
Secondary Acronym: JDSBBP / JDSiBBP

Sight: A rich mahogany.

Smell: Spicy caramel and toasted oak start things off, while a bit of heat always seems to flirt around the edges. Brown sugar and maple roll around. Hits of cedar, cherries, banana, and caramelized stone fruits join in. Baking spices and yeasty notes pile in.

Sip: Unsurprisingly, it’s warm, but not burning. The evaporative qualities come quickly, but they give off beautiful notes of cigar, walnut wood, maple, cherries, and spice. So much spice. There’s a pile of cloves and dark chocolate powder. Toasted nuts and creamy pastry get involved. The flavors are deep, complicated, heavily skewed into desserts, wood, and spice. Make no mistake, the heat is always around the edges.

Savor: The ending leaves a prickly finish that slowly dissipates into a mix of spice, dried cherries, and hardwood. The finish lingers with a good amount of tannin.

Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Barrel Proof is spicy, chocolate, and complicated. While it is hot, the flavor profile is exceedingly complex and layered. More importantly, the flavors are discernable through the heat, and allow it to be sipped (if slowly). While this isn’t a starter bottle, it’s an amazing choice if you’re a fan of barrel proofers.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan it’s unsurprisingly massive. The woody notes come through with lots of walnut, but also dark chocolate and almond. Spice joins in and barrels through with lots of caramel, maple, toffee nuts, and nougat. There’s amazing notes of dried banana, preserved cherry, and intense tobacco / cigar. There’s a spice blend and dark tea going on as well. The flavor profile is incredibly bombastic. The heaviness of the Manhattan makes it feel rich. Overall, this is a delicious Manhattan.

In Review – Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Barrel Proof

Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Barrel Proof is simply fantastic at $65. For the price point it delivers incredibly massive flavors neat, and then explodes with more in cocktails. Interestingly, this is not the first bottle of JDSBBP that I’ve had and felt this way about. While visiting the Cleveland Cavaliers last year, I had an opportunity to enjoy a different bottle, which was equally exquisite, with more maple, banana bread, banana’s foster, caramelized walnut notes. This is to say that you can expect typical single barrel variation, but that the quality remains high.

While this isn’t a bottle to start your bar with, it is an amazing choice as an expansion bottle for a relatively available barrel proof offering. Absolutely give it a try if you get a chance.

Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey

Posted on March 15, 2023March 13, 2023 by Nick

Teeling’s history ultimately ends up with it being the first new distillery built in Dublin in nearly 125 years. To get to this point, you have to start back in 1782 when Walter Teeling starts his Teeling distillery. According to From Barley to Blarney*, it went for over a century before being bought by Jameson and then all be disappears. In 1989, John Teeling (a distant relative), opens the Cooley Distillery in County Louth, reviving brands Tyrconnell and Kilbeggan before being acquired by Beam Suntory in 2011. As part of the sale, 16,000 casks are negotiated, becoming the foundation stock for Teeling. With an established brand, the new distiller was opened with 3 pot stills in 2015, and Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey is just one of the products to come out of this distillery.

Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey

Mash Bill: 3:1 Grain to Malt
Aging: Ex-Bourbon Casks
Finishing: Up to 12 Months in Central American Rum Casks
Filtration: Non-Chill Filtered
Proof: 92 (46% A.B.V.)

Sight: Old Gold to Amber

Smell: The nose is soft with a nice amount of grain and subtle oak notes. Apple, pear, lemon, and marzipan all jump in. There’s a subtle vanilla here with a little bit of pineapple or tropical fruit. A subtle pastry and spice exists in the background with a bit of wet slate. There’s a heat that comes and goes here.

Sip: The palate is smooth and has this amazing cinnamon, vanilla, brown sugar, and raisin that wraps around the tongue from the word go. The spice has a bit of gum drop / banana and dried stone fruit. The slight yeasty notes are still here and a little candied nutty flavor is there. There’s a nice dessert like cinnamon spice sweetness here that runs through out.

Savor: The ending gets a briefly peppery hit but then is smooth again, with a toned down version of the spice, a good vanillin like character, and subtle woody note with a hint of fruit.

Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey is a little hard to read on the nose, but really shows out on the palate. The spicy, sweet flavors are fun, deep enough to savor, and easy going. The subtle bready elements really work well here to add some dimension. The ending is a little pedestrian, but the fact that it doesn’t beg for attention might also be beneficial depending on what you’re doing.

In Cocktails

In a Cameron’s Kick Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey really stands up to the orgeat, scotch, and lemon. The dark brown sugar notes and hints of spice play well against the nuttiness of the orgeat. The vanilla and the stone fruit push up against the brightness of lemon. There are some underlying tropical fruit notes here, like banana and pineapple. The result is a complex and layered Cameron’s Kick that plays well throughout.

In Review – Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey

Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey is a really solid and amped up Irish Whiskey with a rum finish. While the flavors are very consistent for Irish Whiskey, they do get that extra little darkness of flavor from the rum. This might sound gimmicky, but thanks to the underlying whiskey being well made it feels robust and well crafted. While it isn’t the smoothest or complex whiskey, it is relatively good value at under $40.

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Redbreast 15 Year Old Irish Whiskey

Posted on March 10, 2023February 20, 2023 by Nick

We started at the entry level with Redbreast 12, before slightly escalating things to their Lustau edition. While three more years are only a quarter of the age of Redbreast 12, they represent a near 100% increase in price when going from the 12 to the Redbreast 15 Year Old Irish Whiskey. Made from exclusively pot still distillate and aged in a mix of first fill and refill casks, can it justify this huge price increase?

Redbreast 15 Year Old Irish Whiskey

Sight: Burnished

Smell: The nose is somewhat subdued, with laces with spices and slight heat. The oak meets pressed apples, with tangy candied notes, and vintage leather. Nuttiness joins in with grapes, preach, touches of floral, and candied plums. The nose has a complex spicing and creaminess to it that under pins things.

Sip: The sip is soft, smooth, and almost lanolin in it’s thickness and character. A soft, ripe apple comes out with plenty of citrus oils. Stone fruits and vintage leather join in. Plum skin and toasted oak come out as well, and the whole thing wraps up with a creamy richness.

Savor: The ending has a beautiful creaminess and light tannic nature. The nuttiness and spice are the primary drivers with plum and peach skins over floral notes.

Redbreast 15 Year Old Irish Whiskey is complex and creamy. The flavors are varied, a bit hard to pin down, but all delicious. As a result, some sips feel malleable and there’s a slight feeling of inconsistency with the variety of fruits, spices, and floral elements. For all these reasons, it’s a thoroughly enjoyable sipper.

In Cocktails

In a Cameron’s Kick the bright apple and plum skin come forward off the bat, and are followed with a nice round citrus mid-palate with an almost fresh nectarine pop. The nuttiness and leather come in toward the backend. There are also good grape notes and touches of floral. It’s well rounded, but doesn’t quite get anywhere near the neat presentation of Redbreast 15 Year Old Irish Whiskey. Basically, don’t put this in a cocktail.

In Review – Redbreast 15 Year Old Irish Whiskey

Redbreast 15 Year Old Irish Whiskey is tasty on it’s own, and does fine in a cocktail. The flavors are on point, rich, and weighty. The question is if they’re twice is good? The answer is unfortunately not quite. At $130 a bottle, Redbreast 15 is more complex than the 12, but doesn’t seem to add enough power to the equation to show where that value is. That said, you might still find a reason if your really going to enjoy each dram neat. For those that want to enjoy a dram, and not over think it, I recommend sticking with the 12 for just past half the price.

Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7

Posted on March 8, 2023February 20, 2023 by Nick

r/Bourbon loves to get locked into a existential argument when the topic of Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7 comes up. While Jack Daniel’s is a whiskey, it isn’t bourbon mostly because of an extra step (they actually meet all the criteria to technically be bourbon), charcoal mellowing. Once distilled, their whiskey is passed through maple charcoal for roughly 3-5 days. This process imparts additional flavors that Jack suggests are similar to a couple years in the barrel. Regardless of if this is true, they do have a loyal following, and it’s almost ubiquitously available the world over. So what’s it taste like?

Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7

Filtration – Maple Charcoal Filtered at distillation
Age – No Age Statement (N.A.S.)
Proof – 80 (40% A.B.V.)

Sight: Amontillado Sherry to Deep Copper

Smell: The nose is soft with a nice amount of cinnamon, smokey wood, and vanilla. There’s a nice amount of caramelized sugar, Christmas spiced orange, and maple wood mixing in the nose as well. Beneath all of it is a little minerality.

Sip: The mouthfeel is light to moderate. Notes of charcoal, maple, wood, orange marmalade, and caramel come forward. The light mouthfeel leaves a bit of minerality and spice. A slightly fruity, almost cantaloupe or honeydew note occurs.

Savor: The ending has a slightly green wood and spice note.

Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7 is light, slightly spicy, and decently mixed between sweet and earthy notes. There are nice occasional bumps of fruit. All those things combine to make a relatively pedestrian sipper that won’t really inspire much interest beyond mindless sipping.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan there’s a lot of sweetness present from the caramel and vanilla notes. There’s a good amount of oak and maple (wood) going on here, with a slight amount of bitterness. Fruit is sort of present, but perhaps it’s more so the vermouth. The ending picks up the minerality. The flavor is distinctly a Manhattan, but with middling weight and relatively one note flavor.

In Review – Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7

Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7 is a thoroughly average feeling whiskey. The flavor is pleasant if earthy and slightly more sweets forward. There’s nothing particularly deep here, but it also manages to avoid the overlap and cliché profiles of the broader bourbon market. If you like these flavors, then they deliver clearly in spades. Overall, the price point and availability place this right in the correct spot if you find you prefer Tennessee Whiskey to Kentucky Bourbon.

Redbreast Lustau Edition

Posted on March 3, 2023February 20, 2023 by Nick

Redbreast 12 led us off, and to follow it up, we’re heading to their Redbreast Lustau Edition. Similar to their Redbreast 12, it starts life being made using a mash of malted and unmalted barley that is triple distilled in copper pot stills. It’s then matured in bourbon seasoned American Oak and Oloroso Sherry seasoned Spanish oak butts for 9-11 years. At that point, the whiskey is aged in used Lustau sherry bottles from Jerez, Spain. The result is a finished Irish whiskey with one of the most prominent producers for sherry for only $10 more than Redbreast 12.

Redbreast Lustau Edition

Sight: Chestnut Oloroso Sherry

Smell: The nose has some heat at the front, but gives way to deep caramel, red apples (both fresh and baked), and plenty of nutty notes. Deep vinous sherry notes come through, and a tangy agrodolce caramel comes out. A toasted sugar and oak mingle with hints of white grape.

Sip: Dark leather, roasted almond, walnut, and slightly burnt creme brulee top comes through. A bitter cocoa powder slides in, before deep white floral notes edge in. The fruits are toned down here, with more dried expressions of stone fruit and plum skin.

Savor: The ending carries forward the vinous sherry notes forward, but gives way to heavy doses of white flowers and floral notes. Almonds and walnuts with some prune join in as well.

Redbreast Lustau Edition is heavily sherried and tastes like it. If you love nutty, floral notes, then there’s things to love in spades here. The nuttiness and creaminess of the body give a lot of depth. The fruit expressions are more preserved and fermented here, but the underlying character maintains the original Redbreast notes. A wonderful little sipper, if heavily sherried.

In Cocktails

In a Cameron’s Kick the nuttiness really elevates – grabbing onto the orgeat right off the bat and adding sweet almond and marzipan notes. The fruitiness sort of pops with the lime, but there’s a bit of bruleed sugar and floral notes. The finish has some floral notes and sweetness toward the end, but the nuttiness lingers.

In Review – Redbreast Lustau Edition

Redbreast Lustau Edition is a nutty Irish whiskey that balanced with a nice amount of complex floral elements. The result is something that nicely balanced, creamy, and with decent depth. If you find you’re not a fan of nuttiness in your whiskey, or sherry finishes, than this one might not be your starting point. However, if you like what Redbreast 12 has to offer, you might find the $10 price difference is worth paying.

Buffalo Trace Bourbon

Posted on March 1, 2023February 20, 2023 by Nick

Thanks to explosion of popularity driven by Pappy Van Winkle, all things Buffalo Trace became scarce. This didn’t just impact rare and high end products like the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection, but also impacted everything from the under branded Hancocks to the dusty Weller Special Reserve on the bottom shelf. Not spared from this desire to taste the distillate was Buffalo Trace Bourbon. Lest you think this is just some trendy fad, Buffalo Trace Bourbon had fans like Death & Co recommending their product for your home cocktails well before the current hype.

Buffalo Trace Bourbon

Sight: A deep copper

Smell: Big notes of caramel and cherries come floating out from the op. Red strawberry licorice and notes of oak slowly waft out. Slight notes of ester or banana come in before getting big pops of brown sugar, molasses, and a touch of vanilla.

Sip: The sip starts out easy to drink and moderate bodied. There’s a good amount of brown sugar, vanilla, and caramel that lead things off. Cherries come in big and bold here, with a mix of preserved and fresh notes. There’s a lot of other nice fruity notes in here as well, ranging as light as strawberries to as dark plum. There’s a slight uptick toward tannin near the end and a little clove or tobacco note.

Savor: The ending is smooth, not particularly aggressive, instead lingering with nice caramel, spice, and red cherries.

Buffalo Trace Bourbon is iconic and easy going. The flavor profile is quintessential bourbon layering spice, sugar notes, and fruitiness. The result is a great bourbon that’s doesn’t make you work hard to find the fun in it. Experts will find it isn’t the most complex bourbon in the world, but the quality is exceptional in the mid $20 range, and is easily enjoyable on it’s own.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Buffalo Trace Bourbon is graceful, smooth, and elegant. The resulting Manhattan is caramel laden, fruit forward, and at times almost funky or full of banana notes. The vanilla of the vermouth and herbal notes balance this, giving it a sweet and creamy character. The angostura even gets space to shine, showing off clove and spices in spade. As Manhattans go, it’s beautiful and inviting if not the most complex or extreme.

In Review – Buffalo Trace Bourbon

Buffalo Trace Bourbon is easy going and perfectly priced at an MSRP of $25. While the availability can be low, it’s worth a pick up if you find a bottle on sale. The result is a bourbon that’s perfect for both enthusiasts and new drinkers. It also has an advantage of being both firm in cocktails, but elegant enough to allow other flavors through. Overall, this is an easy recommendation for starting your home bar or keeping around for guests.

Redbreast 12 Year Old Irish Whiskey

Posted on February 24, 2023February 13, 2023 by Nick

Welcome to the start of our Irish Whiskey Month! It’s no secret that the last whiskeys I’ve written about here have been less than thrilling to try, and so this year, we’re going up market starting with Redbreast 12 Year Old Irish Whiskey. Distilled by Middleton, Redbreast 12 is made using a mash of malted and unmalted barley that is triple distilled in copper pot stills. It’s then matured in bourbon seasoned American Oak and Oloroso Sherry seasoned Spanish oak butts. The result is a whiskey that retails for over double our previous bottles, so is it worth it?

Redbreast 12 Year Old Irish Whiskey

Sight: Deep Copper

Smell: Caramel, fresh green apples, marzipan, and red licorice come cascading out in droves. The nose is fruity, with candied raspberry coming forth, and then gets complimented with nuttiness, hints of spice, toasty oak, and a slight hint of alcohol.

Sip: Bright, explosive apple, peach, and creamy candies jump out. Plum, cinnamon, and bursts of spices aren’t far behind. The mouth feel is light, laced with vanilla, and loaded with nuanced creamy, fruity notes.

Savor: The ending has more baked apple, spice, and oak elements. A leather and apple skin note lingers.

Redbreast 12 Year Old Irish Whiskey is frankly nothing short of explosively lovely. The bursts of fruity flavors are clean, clear, and pop brightly. The creaminess of the underlying nectar is just as pleasant, making it smooth and enticing. While the finish isn’t the most complex, what it does, it does particularly clearly and with a robust character. Sipping it is simply a pleasure.

In Cocktails

In A Cameron’s Kick Redbreast 12 Year Old Irish Whiskey delivers the same creamy candy and apple notes. The bright lemon laces with vanilla and subtle peach and stone fruit notes. There’s a beautiful cinnamon and deep red plum skin element that runs over the finish. The subtle nuttiness compliments this all the way through, and there’s a light charred pineapple touch. Overall, it’s a delicious and robust Cameron’s Kick.

In Review – Redbreast 12 Year Old Irish Whiskey

Redbreast 12 Year Old Irish Whiskey is delightfully simple, yet thoroughly detailed in it’s approach. The result is an Irish whiskey that delivers a great neat experience while also simultaneously working well in a cocktail. That brings us to the price. Approaching $70 in some places, Redbreast 12 isn’t cheap, and it may cause you to think twice. That said, compared to all the of the more entry level Irish Whiskey’s I’ve tasted, there is more than double the value here. For that reason, if you have the means, I encourage you try to a bottle of Redbreast (especially at closer to $60 where it can show up from time to time).

If you want to try it without committing, consider trying their Family Collection pack, where you can get 3 50ml bottles representing the Redbreast 12, the Lustau Edition, and Redbreast 15.

Angel’s Envy Bourbon

Posted on February 22, 2023February 14, 2023 by Nick

While A Midwinter Night’s Dram (MWND) might be one of the most sought after whiskey releases that is finished with Port, it’s far from the only offerings on the market. The best part is, a fair number of them don’t cost anywhere near the exorbitant $130 a bottle that MWND commands. Now while they’re all not rye, that doesn’t mean they’re not reasonable bourbons for great prices. Amongst them is Angel’s Envy Bourbon which typically retails for under $50. So does it taste as good as the bottle looks?

Angel’s Envy Bourbon

Age: No Age Statement (NAS)
Proof: 86 (43% A.B.V.)
Finishing: Port Wine Barrels

Sight: A pretty burnished hue.

Smell: Vanilla, bright fresh cherries, nuts, toffee, and figs all jump out at the start of the nose. More notes of raspberries and other red fruit join in with a slightly vinous quality. A touch of oak and baked, jammy berries with vanilla pastry creme follow up. A touch of hard cut oak runs through.

Sip: Red cherries and vinous notes mixed with oak come out at the start too. There’s a bit of sweetness and creamy vanilla that kick up, before being slathered in red plums and jammy raspberries. Touches of baking spice coming in to with just a hint of wood char.

Savor: The ending has a nice vanilla and berry finish. A bit of tobacco and toasty oak comes through as it ends.

Angel’s Envy Bourbon is dessert like in it’s flavors, and pleasantly mixed between fruit and vanilla. The lower proof keeps it easy to drink, but it doesn’t slouch either. The flavors are decently layered too, and each sip reveals a little more of the effects of finishing. The result is an enjoyable, port finished bourbon that’s easy on the palate any time, but especially after dinner.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan the jammy sweetness and berry notes of both the Angel’s Envy Bourbon and the vermouth come to the forefront. The cherry notes really run the gamut from fresh to baked to dried. Caramel and vanilla notes come in with spice and cigar box, and give it another dimension with a light marshmallow char on the end. Overall, it’s a sweeter than average Manhattan, and it shows that the application of Angel’s Envy in other places may require some tempering to adjust for the sweetness.

In Review – Angel’s Envy Bourbon

Angel’s Envy Bourbon is polished and refined port wine finished bourbon. The flavors are clean, clear, and concise with a significant amount of both bourbon and port flavors. As a result, it works well in cocktails as well but may add some port wine notes that you might not want or expect them. Overall though, it is delicious and a bottle we recommend. While this bottle is a great offering to keep for guests after dinner, it might be a strange choice to be the only bourbon behind your home bar, so think of if as an expansion.

H by Hine VSOP Cognac

Posted on February 17, 2023February 1, 2023 by Nick

Hine provides one of the most over the top descriptions for H by Hine I’ve seen in nearly 15 years of writing about wine and liquor:

H by Hine is whimsical. If it were a young man, it would have the keen eye of Dick Diver in Fitzgerald’s Tender is the Night. Adventurous, lively and elegant, it is the ideal sidekick for daring cocktails and a flamboyant soloist when served neat with a dash of cold tonic. Expressive yet discreet, its notes of iris, fresh apricot, acacia and white pepper chime with its sprightly and joyful demeanour. Feels like Coachella in a bottle.

That’s a heck of billing to live up to, and we’ve already established our like of Lustau’s Brandy de Jerez as a budget offering and Pierre Ferrand’s 1840 as an entry cognac. So does it live up to it’s Coachella’s billing?

H by Hine VSOP Cognac

Sight: Chestnut Oloroso Sherry

Smell: There’s a slight heat to the nose that gives way to juicy, fermenting grapes. A raisin like sweetness laced with dates and figs comes to the forefront. It wraps in caramel and a bit of white pepper. Slight dried cranberry and fresh bright berries join in.

Sip: The body has a solid weight with a good amount of fig and caramel. The grape notes persist with a bit of raisining. There’s a rather consistent flavor throughout with a bit of oak. The slight oak gives a little white pepper, vanilla, and touch of ginger.

Savor: The ending carries forward the touches of spiced ginger and pepper with a nice hint of vanilla and pepper!

H by Hine VSOP is well balanced and gives off solid flavors of caramel, raisin, and fresh fig. As an easy sipper, it works nice as cognac, giving off the flavor profile you’d expect without paying a fortune for it. The subtleness is nice, and inviting, without being too soft to enjoy.

In Cocktails

In a Sidecar, vanilla and raisin come forward with a touch of oak before giving way to bright lemon and sweet orange. The vanilla and body are smooth and give a silkiness. There’s an interesting almost leather or cigar box note as well. Other stone fruit starts to emerge with dried apricot and peach preserves. There’s also something nice about the brightness and sweetness, which is well controlled by H by Hine VSOP and balances the drink.

In Review – H by Hine VSOP Cognac

H by Hine VSOP Cognac is well balanced and has all the right notes for cognac. While it isn’t the most exciting cognac, it also delivers all the flavors you’d expect at a very reasonable price point. As it works as both a sipper and a cocktail cognac, this is an easy recommendation around $40 for your home bar. Definitely check it out if you’re looking for something well made.

Ezra Brooks Distiller’s Collection Bourbon – OHLQ Selection #2

Posted on February 15, 2023February 15, 2023 by Nick

Late last year, we covered the first OHLQ pick of Ezra Brooks Distiller’s Collection Bourbon. We gave it high praise for the amazing caramel and vanilla backbone that was layered beautifully with spice, tea, and notes of fruit. At $35 it was nothing short of absolutely stellar. So can Ezra Brooks Distiller’s Collection Bourbon – OHLQ Selection #2 double down on the amazing path blazed by the first pick?

Ezra Brooks Distiller’s Collection Bourbon – OHLQ Selection #2

Ezra Brooks Distiller’s Collection Bourbon – OHLQ Selection #2 has a 53.5% A.B.V. (107 Proof). It’s barrel number was 7390043, and the barrel was filled 5/10/16. I purchased the bottle in October of 2021, shortly after it’s release. OHLQ provided a generic description of Ezra Brook Distiller’s Collection Bourbon, “…expect a taste profile consisting of notes of oak and black pepper, balanced with cinnamon, caramel, and vanilla.” They also provided next to zero information per barrel beyond the following description:

Description: Hints of pepper spice throughout with a long finish.

Sight: Tawny

Smell: Pops of cherry, caramel, and vanilla float out in a healthy burst. There’s a nuttiness between peanut and hazelnut that joins in and gives nice earthiness. Black pepper and spice join in with a hint of heat.

Sip: The start is more middling in it’s weight. The sweetness on the nose quickly dissipates on the palate, leaving caramel and pulling in notes of black tea, nuts, pepper, and spices. There are some elements of dried cherries, dark chocolate, and stone fruit skins. There is a decent pop of heat from time to time. By the end, things are quite dry.

Savor: The finish drives in more black pepper, bitter spicing, hints of oak, and just a touch of fruit. The finish lingers, leaning heavily into spice and

Ezra Brooks Distiller’s Collection – OHLQ Selection #2 is a decently complex bottle, especially for the price. The nose is significantly sweeter than the palate gives way to. The peppery notes are nice, and the oak is very prominent here. The nuttiness is also more in line with their Ezra Brooks 99. Overall, this represents a significant step up as a sipper from their 99 (being passable to good), but falls well short of the first selection.

In Cocktails

This sequel bottle of Ezra Brooks is quite good as a Manhattan. Somehow the caramel and vanilla really win out here, while the body provides a robust base. The cherry notes and a good amount of berry and plum elements manage to come to the forefront. Toward the backend, the pepper, tea, and oak really kick in and drive things forward. The finish is clean, with just a moderate amount of tannin and a hint of dark chocolate. Unlike enjoying it neat, it really shines again in a cocktail.

In Review – Ezra Brooks Distiller’s Collection Bourbon – OHLQ Selection #2

Ezra Brooks Distiller’s Collection Bourbon – OHLQ Selection #2 is not quite it’s predecessor, but it’s a darn good facsimile to it. The neat experience is still lacking, but where this bottle shines is in cocktails. Similar to the first pick, it somehow makes a drink more than the sum of its parts. As a result, these Distiller’s Collection bottles are a reasonable way to make a cocktail special, without paying a huge price.

Having had two Ezra Brooks Distiller’s Collection Bourbons, we recommend trying one of these if you see one for a price in the mid 30’s and enjoy drinking Manhattans or other bourbon based cocktails.

Hibiki Japanese Harmony

Posted on February 10, 2023 by Nick

Sometimes you get lured in by the concept or the bottle. When I first started my spirits journey, I admittedly started in scotch. My grandfather drank it, my father would drink it, and so I wanted to drink it as well. As a result, I started with Johnnie Walker Black, but this gave way to Lagavulin 16 and other smokier offerings. Exploring available options, I eventually went on to work with a professor as my college to develop a Whiskeys of the World independent study. Among the sections we created, was Japanese Whiskey, and where I first encountered Hibiki Japanese Harmony.

Hibiki Japanese Harmony

Sight: Deep Gold

Smell: The nose is laced with lighter wood tones (perhaps this is what they’re referencing as sandalwood) with elements of rose and lychee. There are touches of tangerine, rosemary, and light honey. That floral background goes with just a hint of vanillin, and a little bit of heat. That floralness almost gives off a bit of extra fruit.

Sip: The mouthfeel is smooth, soft, and round with a very silky texture. The flavors of lychee, rose, white chocolate, and a perfumed -incense like wood come through in spades. There’s a creaminess that almost has a little orange and honey in it.

Savor: The end carries forward the rose, some jasmine, honey, and a hint of oak. The finish lingers with an oaky, perfumy tone that’s delicately seductive.

Hibiki Japanese Harmony is subtle, soft, and gentle. It entices you with a beautiful delicacy, while still providing full flavor at a relatively low proof. The warmth of the wood and intricate floral tones are a winding trip across the palate. The touches of oak and honey on the finish make for something that lingers pleasantly without being aggressive. Overall, it’s a beautiful whiskey that wants you to muse about it’s beauty rather than pounce on it.

In Cocktails

In a highball the smoothness manages to persist with some lighter floral notes (still rose forward) and lots of gentle toasted wood notes. It loses a bit of the depth, but still manages some subtle candied orange people and white chocolate notes. The overall impression is an easy going drink, that has some complexity, but not a lot of depth.

In Review – Hibiki Japanese Harmony

Hibiki Japanese Harmony is a beautiful whiskey to enjoy neat that really shines with a softness and pleasant mix of floral flavors. It’s easy to like, has a good depth of flavor, and only really faulters at the price. Long ago, this whiskey used to be somewhere closer to the $80-90 price point. In the state of Ohio, at the time of writing this, it’s up to $125. This whiskey is really nice, but it’s not really $100+ a bottle nice. That said, it still can be found in that price point. If you find that you like lighter scotch or Japanese whiskey, than this is one that deserves some consideration.

Maker’s Mark: Marshmallow Krispy Treat – OHLQ Exclusive 2022

Posted on February 8, 2023January 25, 2023 by Nick

In addition to Maker’s Mark’s annual wood finishing series bottles (FAE-01 / FAE-02), they also have a fairly substantial presence on the shelves as private selections (or store picks). The picks are made up of combinations of finishing staves to impart different flavors on 5 – 7 year old Maker’s Mark Cask Strength. The finished Maker’s Mark Cask Strength then aged for an additional 9 weeks in temperature controlled conditions. For this selection, the Ohio Liquor team has named the combination Maker’s Mark: Marshmallow Krispy Treat.

Be aware, these combinations get reused by other private selections with different names, so double check your stave profiles to avoid duplicates or find your favorites.

Maker’s Mark Marshmallow Krispy Treat

OHLQ described Maker’s Mark Marshmallow Krispy Treat as follows:

Aromas of vanilla and oak, with a confectionary profile of marshmallow, freshly-baked bread, candy, and hints of pear.

Stave Profile:
- 5 Baked American Pure
- 3 Seared French Cuvee
- 2 Maker’s Mark 46
Proof: 111.3 (ABV 55.65%)
Age: NAS

Sight: Chestnut Oloroso Sherry

Smell: Beautiful notes of a roasting campfire and vanilla start things off. The vanilla laces with a pleasant icing sugar / marshmallow interior. There’s a nice baked pie crust element, and a hint of bittersweet chocolate. There is a slight amount of poached pear.

Sip: The start is slightly hot, but picks up with plenty of roasted oak, vanilla, and toasted marshmallow notes. The heat has a little bit more of that pear note, and a bit of yeastiness. There’s a hint of red hot spice. That vanilla really is slightly drier but picks up a good amount of toasted marshmallow exterior and even more oak.

Savor: The ending has a yeasty, graham cracker like note laced with toasted marshmallow and roasted oak. The finish has a bit more heat and then carries forward with more icing sugar and hints of spice.

Maker’s Mark Marshmallow Krispy Treat is full of luxurious vanilla-marshmallow flavors and a touch of heat. This doesn’t quite ever break out of this lane from the smell through the body. Depending on how you interpret very consistent, clear flavors this is either really great, or really boring. As a sipper goes, it’s tasty, maybe better for after dinner or by the fire, and not overwhelmingly complex.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Maker’s Mark Marshmallow Krispy Treat is a decidedly dry despite the sweet aromas. The pear that showed up around the edges comes forward with a touch of the wine notes from the vermouth with plenty of spice from the bitters and oak. There are pleasant aromatic vanilla elements that come into play as well, with a bit of caramel. The finish is roasted marshmallow exterior mixed with vanilla extract. It’s an interesting, if slightly dry Manhattan.

In Review – Maker’s Mark Marshmallow Krispy Treat

In my experience Maker’s Mark picks have a very high floor and a generally low ceiling when it comes to impressiveness. This pick falls closer to that high floor than the low ceiling, showing a solid and enjoyable pick that delivers more in branding than complexity. That doesn’t make this a bad bottle of whiskey by any means, but it is sitting at $70, which is a fair amount of money. Like most picks, you won’t know unless you buy, and while I wouldn’t necessarily seek out this exact pick, Maker’s Mark picks remain a good buy for a dependable store pick for a unique taste of their product.

If you just want the power of the pick, than consider Maker’s Mark Cask Strength at less than half the cost, or their Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength for around the same price.