Finished Bourbon Archives - First Pour Cocktails

Taconic Double Barrel Maple Bourbon

Posted on August 9, 2023August 7, 2023 by Nick

Sometimes the hype train gets you going. People review things that they can find in their local area, that you have no way to obtain where you live, and you think, ‘I have to try that’. A few years back, when I was falling down the Bourbon rabbit hole, that same thing happened to me, and when I saw a bottle of Taconic Double Barrel Maple Bourbon, I just had to buy it! So did I make a good decision on this New York maple finished bourbon?

Taconic Double Barrel Maple Bourbon

Made from Duchess Private Reserve Bourbon, this bourbon starts life in new oak barrels. The Duchess is aged, then removed. The barrel is then filled with maple syrup and aged. The maple syrup is then removed, and the Duchess is finished again. No age statement is provided.

Age: No Age Statement
Finish: Maple Syrup Barrels
Batch: 7
Proof: 90 (45% A.B.V.)

Sight: Russet Muscat

Smell: Maple and pecans / peanuts waft out with notes of evergreens. An earthiness runs through the giving a forest floor, fresh softwood, and a subtle caramelization. Fruits hang around toward the background, but are light and a hint of alcohol follows.

Sip: The start is sweet and soft with a moderate weight. The maple notes are in full effect to lead off, while a nuttiness and earthiness joins in. The evergreen notes and slight resin character is prevalent but not overwhelming. There’s a little spice, and plenty of wood toward the end. Characteristic vanilla like notes are present, but not powerful. A little heat is present.

Savor: The ending is more earthy and peppery, with forest floor and evergreen notes. Little maple sweetness helps accentuate with a little nuttiness.

Taconic Double Barrel Maple Bourbon is maple and forest fresh with a bit of nuttiness. Overall, the flavor profile is kind of one dimensional, slightly sweet, and strongly earthy. These notes are also intriguing if you’re feeling the need to try something that isn’t quite a standard offering. While it’s fun, it also is definitely more of a targeted bourbon, and not everyone will want to crush a glass.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Taconic Double Barrel Maple Bourbon works surprisingly well, although again leads to a floral / earthy undertoned Manhattan. The start is sweet, rich, and the maple-walnut notes come out in spades. These give way to an evergreen herbal mix that’s subtle with some berry notes and spice. The finish is slightly evergreen with a dry maple character. As a Manhattan goes, it’s tasty if unusual, and devilishly complex as it keeps opening. This gives an intriguing prospect as an ingredient for extended bars.

In Review – Taconic Double Barrel Maple Bourbon

Taconic Double Barrel Maple Bourbon is unusual, but has some flavors to expand your perception of how finished bourbon can land. The flavors are similar when drinking neat, and can like they need another dimension. In cocktails, it feels incredibly entertaining, and seems to work better than it would drink straight. Overall, the uniqueness here make it a try it before you buy it, and not a recommendation for stocking in your bar unless you have a love of the flavor or a drink that requires it.

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.

Barrell Whiskey Private Barrel – r/Bourbon German Ice Wine Finish

Posted on February 5, 2023February 5, 2023 by Nick

As some of you might remember, my last experience with an r/Bourbon pick was a bit, well, unaligned with my palate. Since then, I enjoyed their Old Elk Wheat pick (“Bullwinkle” as my father calls it) but also had received a subsequent sample of a pick from a high profile brand that I was left unimpressed by. All that said, this doesn’t mean they’re bad picks. In fact, realizing you don’t share a palate with someone is one of the most useful things you can learn while tasting any spirit or beverage. So I figured I’d give it one more go with one of their most recent picks, Barrell Whiskey Private Barrel – r/Bourbon German Ice Wine Finish

Disclosure: This pick was purchased by a friend who provide me a 2 oz sample to enjoy. The photo was provided by t8ke, who is nothing short of wonderful to communicate with.

Barrell Whiskey Private Barrel – r/Bourbon German Ice Wine Finish

Sight: Deep copper

Smell: Sweet honeyed grape notes waft up with tinges of bright starfruit and green apples. There’s a pleasant cinnamon spice with hints of cloves that adds to a vanilla and caramelized sugar note. Light peaches and cream with a bit of oak joins in, but the warm honey notes are really a nice consistent backbone, with an almost fresh baked white cake element to it.

Sip: The body is smooth and nicely viscous, with a nice weight. The start has plenty of spice and honeyed notes, while roasted apples and poached pears pick up in the background. The oak notes play a nice baking spice background, and there’s an interesting char and vanilla notes in the background. A hint of sweetness keeps it all tied together.

Savor: The ending pops with this beautiful creamy, aromatic vanilla that laces with green apples, poached pear, baking spices, and honey. The finish has this lingering oak spice and char, but it has this pretty sort of vanilla cream that runs in the background. Despite some warmth, it really is mouthcoating and creamy in the best sort of ways.

Barrell Whiskey Private Barrel – r/Bourbon German Ice Wine Finish is fun, fruity, and creamy in all the right ways. It has a really intriguing aromatic, natural vanilla flavor that with the creaminess really brings it through. While this is an expensive bottle, it’s delivering complexity and dessert sweetness that really deliver on sip over sip. The flavors here are really great, and overall, it’s an enjoyable sipper.

In Cocktails:

Barrell Whiskey Private Barrel – r/Bourbon German Ice Wine Finish in a Manhattan creates a storm of caramel and honeyed notes. The initial burst of sweetness gives way to some of the poaching spices and honey, but the result is sweet and slightly muddled. While I lacked any additional bourbon to continue to experiment, I can’t help but feel this would make a really beautiful Old Fashioned base. Still this doesn’t really feel like a bourbon for making a cocktail out of, but rather one better enjoyed neat.

As a reminder, our testing procedure is to make Manhattans. If you buy a bottle of this, don’t make a Manhattan out of it. It clearly isn’t the best choice of drink. Rather I recommend thinking about a using a honey liqueur or Benedictine to make an old fashioned (which I would test for you if I had any more left). Simply put, avoid red wine / sweet vermouth here – it’s a poor fit.

In Review – Barrell Whiskey Private Barrel – r/Bourbon German Ice Wine Finish

Barrell Whiskey Private Barrel – r/Bourbon German Ice Wine Finish is so good neat. It pulls you in with a nose that drives home how tasty it’s going to be. Then it does one of the most important things that a whiskey can do, it delivers. Baking spices, honeyed notes, and plenty of pome fruit make this a ride worth taking. Now obviously, you’re not going to find this bottle (r/Bourbon sells out every week thanks to over 200,000 signups), but it should give you an idea about what Barrell can do with a German Ice Wine finish and a bit more confidence if you see one on the shelves of your local retailer.

While the quality is there, this brings us to the issue of price. While Barrell’s finishes whiskey clearly show great flavors even at the high price, this bottle comes in at close to $130 (after tax and shipping). That’s a lot, and is borderline starting range for Little Book / Midwinter Night’s Dram (if you can find them). This isn’t to say you shouldn’t consider buying an ice wine finished barrel product, but definitely check out your local retailer where you might be able to find one closer to $100 (thanks to avoiding shipping).

Want to Try r/Bourbon Picks for Yourself?

Maker’s Mark FAE-02 – Wood Finishing Series

Posted on October 26, 2022October 27, 2022 by Nick

While Maker’s Mark FAE-01 was all about the flavors involved in barrel extraction, Maker’s Mark FAE-02 focuses instead on texture. To do this, Maker’s Mark instead used French Oak (leading to more vanilla that is typically associated with French oak, compared to the banana and spice from American). Using new techniques, Maker’s double heat treated the staves with both infrared (to make caramel notes) and flame (aiming at making vanilla elements). This is markedly different than Maker’s Mark FAE-01 where only one side of the American oak stave was seared. So how does it compare?

Maker’s Mark FAE-02 – Wood Finishing Series

Maker’s Mark FAE-02 is produced starting from fully matured Maker’s Mark Cask Strength. Once fully matured, 10 virgin toasted French Oak Staves were added.

Age: NAS
Proof: 109.1 (54.55% ABV)
Finishing: 10 Virgin Toasted French Oak Staves

Sight: Between Olosoro Sherry and Russet Muscat

Smell: The nose has a bit of heat to start things out, but presents with a healthy touch of vanilla and mocha out of the gate. The nose has a richness to it, and leans into a freshly roasted coffee beans and jammy cherry notes. The vanilla here is heavy, with a bean like aromatic quality and a pastry cream style richness. A light spicing and plum / roasted fig note join with some dried currants. Overall, the nose has a lot going on once you can pass the heat.

Sip: The body is smooth with heavy notes of oak, vanilla, cigar box, and touches of spice. The spices give a slight dryness to the body, and then opens up with a creaminess. The cherry and plum notes here are present, but well behind the vanilla cream notes that run throughout. The creaminess of the body really is the star here, with it being full, smooth, rich, and loaded with vanilla notes. A hint of coffee with cream and creme brulee can be found.

Savor: The vanilla and aromatics carry over onto the finish, and pull in a good amount of spices that linger. The finish gets more oaky with a bit of fire roasted marshmallows and charry sugar.

Maker’s Mark FAE-02 is richly textured and heavily vanilla laden. Those expecting caramel and fruit will find more oak forward flavors that are well balanced and textured. While there are layers, they’re variations on vanilla and coffee shop kind of notes. Overall, this is an enjoyable, easy going sipper that has a pleasing texture that’s worth exploring.

In Cocktails

Just like it’s sibling Maker’s Mark FAE-01, you’re unlikely to be reaching for Maker’s Mark FAE-02 to make a cocktail. Let’s say you were to make a Manhattan though. It turns out it’s rich, surprisingly spice forward, and has a nice French vanilla coffee undercurrent. The subtle sweetness of the vermouth comes out as well, with a good amount of cherry and plum. As it warms up, it becomes a complete vanilla bomb, ranging from extract to bean. While this is amazing and it is a good Manhattan, it might not be worth the price of admission if you’re trying to make drinks.

In Review – Maker’s Mark FAE-02 – Wood Finishing Series

Maker’s Mark FAE-02 is tasty on it’s own, and makes a reasonable cocktail. While this bottle is enjoyable, it doesn’t break a lot of new ground, and instead highlights the texture that Maker’s can achieve. If you happen to be a diehard Maker’s Mark fan, this might be worth $60 to you, but for most individuals, you’re going to want to find a pour of this in a bar or from a friend. Preferably next to FAE-01 so you can see what Maker’s was trying to show off (and would have been better selling me a 375ml twin pack).

Maker’s Mark FAE-01 – Wood Finishing Series

Posted on October 19, 2022October 18, 2022 by Nick

A part of Maker’s Mark’s Wood Finishing series, Maker’s Mark FAE-01 is their spring expression for 2021, and the latest in a line of annual releases focused on unique aspects about Maker’s Mark. Sometimes affectionately referred to as the “license plate” series due to their name, the 2021 releases chose to focus on unique elements that make Maker’s – Maker’s.

FAE-01 aims to highlight the barrel extraction flavors found in Maker’s Cask Strength
FAE-02 aims to highlight the textural notes and smooth mouthfeel elements of Maker’s Mark.

Maker’s Mark FAE-01

Maker’s Mark FAE-01 is produced starting from fully matured Maker’s Mark Cask Strength. Once fully matured, 10 virgin toasted American Oak Staves were added. Maker’s notes that these staves were only toasted on one side to help emphasize the smell of the barrel warehouse. They do not specify the additional aging time with these staves.

Age: NAS
Proof: 110.3 (55.15% ABV)
Finishing: 10 Virgin Toasted American Oak Staves

This is the third expression in their Wood Finishing series, which starts in 2019 with a single release (RC6), and was followed in 2020 with a second release (SE4xPR5). 2021 marked the first year with a spring and fall offering.

It also has the hardest cork to reinsert of any bottle I’ve ever owned. However, it definitely seals well.

Sight: A happy tawny.

Smell: Big bursts of cherries erupt, ranging the gamut from fresh and juicy to candied to dried. Elements of vanilla, caramel, and light oak charred wrap around them. Other notes of stone fruit, candied berries, and tobacco come through. There’s hints of heat and random pops of spice. The nose feels rich and thick despite the bursts of ethanol.

Sip: The mouthfeel is instantly thick and rich. The start has a nice sweetness and the preserved cherry notes, coffee, espresso, and caramels come out immediately. It evolves somewhat rapidly, building in levels of heat, but also extracting more roasted oak, tobacco, plenty of spice, and more stone fruit. There’s even a little hint of orange zest, banana, and clove. As it build, it maintains it’s richness, but gets aggressively heavy and hot.

Savor: The finish is oaky with a slight creaminess and plenty of cherries and fruit. One of the impressive things is the length. As it lingers, it brings in more roasted oak notes, plum skins, and cigar box. There’s even a bit of dark roast going on.

Maker’s Mark FAE-01 is rich, smooth, and more than a little high strung. The flavor profile is really delightful and Maker’s hits there goal of delivering additional mouthfeel. The richness on the palate is really unparalleled by their standard offering. The flavors really delight the fruitiness of the whiskey while giving a lot of room to the American oak. The only down side is the proof of 110.3 here really comes across in every last point of proof. Don’t take too big a sip or hold it too long, and this shouldn’t be a huge issue.

In Cocktails

In all likelihood, you aren’t using Maker’s Mark FAE-01 to make drinks. If you end up finding yourself so compelled though, you’ll find that FAE-01 works well enough, adding caramel and cherry bursts between notes of spice and oak. There’s a bit of char that pervades on the finish. While the flavors are pleasant, and the Manhattan is good, with a bit of a honeyed note, this clearly doesn’t feel like the best use of this whiskey.

In Review – Maker’s Mark FAE-01

Maker’s Mark FAE-01 is really quite good, and priced fairly at $60. The mouth feel is really the highlight here, and the value is in savoring on it’s own. While it doesn’t make a bad drink, you could make an equally good drink with a cheaper bottle – like their Maker’s Mark Cask Strength. Based on this, and the fact that this was a one time allocated release, we recommend this bottle for bourbon enthusiasts, but doesn’t need a place on your home shelf.

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

Posted on July 11, 2022July 14, 2022 by Nick

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel is a relatively new product from Heaven Hill. Starting with Elijah Craig Small Batch, the bourbon is then finished again in a new specially toasted oak barrel. Similar to their Small Batch, there’s no aged statement here, and the site doesn’t suggest how long it’s in the barrel. The idea is that the new finishing step will add chocolate and baking spice flavors to compliment the oakiness. It also adds another $20 to the price, so does it justify the cost?

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

Sight: Burnished Chestnut / Sherry

Smell: The nose is an explosion of freshly made caramel, butterscotch, and stewed cherries. Confectioner sugar, fresh candy store fudge, and almonds follow things up. Traditional notes of oak and spice come through with some additional fresh red fruit and plum (albeit slightly heading toward fermenting). There’s a hint of heat to the nose as well, and a little bit of corn or grain.

Sip: The body is on the light to medium side. There’s a strong influence of oak that leads things off with vanilla and caramel notes. Spice and plum skin start to pick up with a bit of dried cherry. There are touches of butterscotch, more oak, cigar box, and almost a confectioner sugar / artificial vanillin. There’s a touch of heat, but the flavor profile isn’t overly clear or aggressive.

Savor: The ending hits on a deep undercurrent of oak, with flavors of charred oak giving way to vanilla and unripe cherries. There’s a touch of nutty toffee and a little heat. The char begins to lean bitter over time.

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel packs a solid amount of oak into a turned up version of their standing offering. The result is something that gives the vanilla and oak a forefront, but doesn’t appear to give a lot of room to many other flavors. The result is a tasty bourbon with an extra step of finishing that doesn’t add a whole lot of extra complexity.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel brings a lot of oak and caramel to the party. The result is a spicy and caramel ladened sip with some peaks of red fruit, which is followed by a literal battering of oak. The oak is so strong it leads to bittering and tannic notes on the back end of the palate. Which is amazing, because Carpano Antica is one of the most aggressive vermouths on the market (to the point where some cocktail groups will even recommend avoiding it for certain bourbons). Elijah Craig Toasted just steamrolls it.

In Review – Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel is oaked. Really oaked. In the wine world, we’d complain when a wine was oaked to the point where the actual grape got lost in a mess of vanilla, wood notes, and caramel flavors. Toasted Barrel is fringing into this territory. If you happen to find the flavor of oak to be the thing you want to focus on, this is a potential winner for you. For everyone else, $55 plus territory is going to be expensive, chased after by bourbon lovers, and outshined by other more balanced bottles.

Maker’s Mark 46

Posted on January 28, 2022February 7, 2022 by Nick

To the unfamiliar observer Maker’s Mark 46 appears to just be the next step up the line in Maker’s line up of bourbons. While it does represent an increased cost to purchase, Maker’s 46 should be considered an extension of the standard Maker’s Mark line up, and their entry point into their wood finishing series. Instead of changing their base recipe, 46 takes fully matured Maker’s Mark and then continues to age it with 10 virgin French Oak staves added to the barrel. The result is Maker’s Mark, but with a French oak twist. So is it worth the extra price?

Maker’s Mark 46

Sight: A burnished chestnut color.

Smell: French vanilla coffee and fresh baked pastry leads off, followed by jammy cherries. There’s a certain amount of creaminess here that gets paired with caramelized brown sugar and notes of crème brulee. Hints of banana, leather, cigar box, and spicy oak play background.

Sip: The sip leads of smooth and silk, but quickly becomes firm and slightly warm. There’s a pop of smoked vanilla and latte that explodes out. The French vanilla combines with oak and baking spice. A lazy caramel drizzles its way through, lavishly coating things, while a slightly smoky preserved cherry hides in the background.

Savor: The ending preserves that smoked vanilla cherry note, while adding in some toasted oak and caramelized sugar (with just a hint of charred marshmallow)

Maker’s Mark 46 is beautifully French oak polished Maker’s Mark. There’s a lot going on here beyond the normal cherry, tobacco, and oak of ordinary Maker’s. Specifically, it pops with French vanilla, coffee notes, and other toasted wood elements. The addition of caramelized sugar notes bring a subtle sweetness. Maker’s 46 is lovely on it’s own, and reasonably priced for the additional complexity.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Maker’s Mark 46 adds a variety of vanilla and caramel notes immediately out of the gate. The vanilla almost becomes floral, like a vanilla bean. It then balances back out, allowing touches of cherries and baking spice to join in. Brown sugar and almond notes accentuate and have a hint of bitterness. Texturally it’s still rich, but more balanced throughout and the ending avoids being tannic.

In Review – Maker’s Mark 46

Maker’s Mark 46 is a clearly step up and departure from its sibling. While it does deliver additional flavor, the flavor is much more focused on the traditional vanilla notes associated with French oak influence than creating deeper version of the original Maker’s Mark. In doing so, they’ve created a separate but related product that maintains its quality and is both a very good bourbon and great finished bourbon. Its amazing flavor also plays well in classic cocktails and adds another dimension for crafting new items. While it isn’t a must have for a bar, it is a must try for any fan of French oak aged wines, vanilla fans, or Maker’s Mark fans. For only $8-10 more, it’s certainly worth a try.