Whiskey Archives - Page 5 of 8 - First Pour Cocktails

Old Overholt Straight Rye

Posted on June 24, 2022June 1, 2022 by Nick

Few whiskeys have the prevalence or brand lineage of Old Overholt Straight Rye. Take a close look at the rail of almost any bar, and you’re likely to see a bottle of Old Overholt hiding somewhere. The reasons for the prominence are multiple, including it being one of the oldest rye brands in the country. Not only did it survive prohibition, but it also managed to endure the decline of whiskey in the U.S. post World War II. The easiest reasons to note today are the price (typically at under $20 a bottle) and the ownership by Beam Suntory since 1987. The rye in the bottle is young, aged only 3 years, but is non-chill filtered and comes in at 86 proof.

Old Overholt Straight Rye

Sight: A chestnut oloroso sherry – deeper than expected.

Smell: The nose starts off with some elements of cigar box and peppery spice. Peach blossoms and touches of baked cherry Danish join in. There’s a slight touch of mint and a healthy dose of orange marmalade round things out. There’s also a bit of a burn.

Sip: The mouthfeel is thin and it’s slightly hot. The flavors of pepper, oak, and orange zest come through sloppily. Other touches of burnt caramel and touches of floral elements hang around the edges.

Savor: The finish picks up a cracker / cereal like note laced with spice and a bit of heat. The ending grows increasingly oaky with touches of rye.

Old Overholt Straight Rye is more inviting in the nose than on the palate. The palate isn’t necessarily muddled, but it works harder than the nose implies it would. The finish is also slightly more one note than might be expected. The fact of the matter though, is that you don’t buy this bottle for sipping. So how does it do at making cocktails?

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Old Overholt Straight Rye produces a surprisingly balanced Manhattan. The oak and orange flavors join up with the spice notes from the vermouth and balance sweetly. There’s a good moderate weight to it, and just a hint of heat. The finish maintains that cereal linger note after showing just a few fruitier elements.

In Review – Old Overholt Straight Rye

Old Overholt Straight Rye is certainly serviceable if not the most interesting rye in the world. While not as complex as Rittenhouse Rye, it also doesn’t lean heavily into some of the green notes that rye can produce (like Elijah Craig). Given the price differential (typically sold around $15), it’s also significantly cheaper. If you’re only looking to add a rye to your bar, and really don’t want to want spend the extra, there’s nothing wrong with Old Overholt, but for a few dollars more, you can enjoy the wonderful flavors of Rittenhouse.

Pikesville Rye

Posted on June 10, 2022June 9, 2022 by Nick

Pikesville Rye was originally distilled in Maryland and is now owned by Heaven Hill. Despite this, it holds the distinction of being one of the last remaining Maryland rye brands. Reportedly, the mashbill reflects it’s new Kentucky origin, and sits at a required minimum 51% rye. Coming in at $50, it almost doubles Heaven Hill’s slightly younger Rittenhouse Rye (coming in at 4 years). So is it worth it?

Pikesville Rye

Age: 6 Years
Proof: 110
Mashbill (Unverified): 51% Rye, 39% Corn, 10% Malted Barley

Sight: Between amber and tawny.

Smell: Buckwheat honey and caramelized sugar come through with deep baking spices and notes of dark chocolate. Mint, slight herb, malt, and touches of graham cracker join in. Undertones of forest floor and a robust nuttiness join in. There’s also just a touch of floral. The overall nose is sweet and relatively complicated with lots of earthy and baking notes – especially chocolate and nutty notes.

Sip: The body starts off with a moderate to heavy weight and is smooth. It quickly opens up with a barrage of caramel laden rye spices echoing things from clove to burnt cinnamon. Earthy notes make an underlayer here, giving a forest floor, cocoa, and slight dried mushroom underpinning. Buckwheat honey and slight blackberry notes come in. There’s also some mint and cereal. Hold it too long, and the smoothness gives way to alcohol.

Savor: The ending carries forward notes of cocoa, caramel, rye, and a hint of earthiness. The finish lingers – giving way to more rye spices and 100% cocoa as it lingers.

Pikesville Rye is delightfully complex and doesn’t impart quite as much wood as you might expect for a minimum 6 year release. The flavors are deep, complex, and layered. The earthiness bumping up against the chocolate notes with a hint of minty herbs is a beautiful combination. It invites the imbiber to continue to seek out new flavors in each sip. On it’s own, it’s a wonderfully layered and complex rye.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan the earthy flavors manage to pull off this interesting background note where notes of dark cocoa powder, forest floor, and a slight grilled portabella mushroom umami play background. In the forefront is a great amount of caramel and latent rye spice. The more minty and buckwheat notes are present, but more minimal, subdued by some of the vermouth notes. The bitterness on the finish is more prominent, as the background note of unsweetened chocolate and forest floor come more to the fore with hints of burnt marshmallow.

In Review – Pikesville Rye

Pikesville Rye has incredibly deep and complex earthy notes. It’s important to note here that those looking for sweet flavors are going to find this more on the savory side. It does these savory flavors really well, giving depth and robust character to each sip. As a result, drinks made with Pikesville end up more taught and brooding than some younger more herbal – fruity ryes. There’s a ton of things to love here though, and at around $50, this is good value that you might want to try before you buy.

Old Forester 1897

Posted on June 3, 2022April 18, 2022 by Nick

Old Forester 1897 is a bottled-in-bond offering from Old Forester / Brown Forman. This means it’s held in a government warehouse for 4 years and is distilled in one season. The end result is a 100 proof offering that comes in at about $50. If this sounds like there’s not a lot of info, that’s because there isn’t. For a product that comes in double the price of their Signature offering, and at the same proof, the basic difference appears to be the bonding and label (and minimum 4 year age). So is it worth over double?

Old Forester 1897

Sight: Chestnut / Oloroso Sherry

Smell: There’s a softness to the nose that gives way to a caramelized brown sugar and maple syrup nose. Notes of bananas and fresh cherries creep in before a dose of spices pop in. There’s a surprising amount of heat to the nose, and the fruit gradually grows in strength with just a hint of acetone or floral elements.

Sip: The palate is warm and full of brown sugar and spices. Clove and cinnamon jump out with a bit of cigar box and charred oak. Roasted banana and cherry jam come in, before giving up a bit of tobacco. There’s a slight mocha cream going on as well. It is a touch hot.

Savor: The finish is more of the light brown sugar and charred oak. It lingers with a hint of burnt marshmallow.

Old Forester 1897 is fine, with a nice nose and pleasant palate. The nose is rich, if slightly on the easier side, but it doesn’t ever quite elevate to captivating. The taste follows suit. It has a lot of nice elements, and it seems to fringe into refined, but then falls short. It almost seems like it misses a little bit of a punch, but it certainly isn’t bad.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan, Old Forester 1897 is balanced and inviting. It lets loose some of it’s tobacco, spice, and brown sugar while giving the vermouth space to work. Then it adds in some brown sugar before it works into the background. The overall drink is actually quite bright. Overall it’s nice, but doesn’t seem like a $50 bottle Manhattan.

In Review – Old Forester 1897

Old Forester 1897 is underwhelming for $50. There are better options in the same price point that offer more complexity, more flavor, and more versatility. That might be the worst of it, until you consider that Old Forester already makes a 100 proof offering at less than half the price. In a side by side there’s an increase in heat, especially on the finish, but the flavors are more defined on the palate, and the noses are comparable. This is a problem, because Old Forester Signature 100 Proof Bourbon is within easy striking distance of it’s bigger cousin. For the purposes of your bar, this one is a hard pass, and Old Forester Signature 100 Proof Bourbon should get the nod instead.

Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength

Posted on May 27, 2022May 25, 2022 by Nick

Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength originally started its life as a distillery only release back in 2015. This release was designed to celebrate the 5th anniversary of Maker’s Mark 46. The limited release proved success, and for the 10th Anniversary, Maker’s decided to release it again in 2020 in a slight broader release. In 2021, they expanded the release even further, and I knew based on the solid offerings of their standard Maker’s, Maker’s 46, and their limited releases, this would be a must try. So was it worth the hunt?

Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength

Sight: A robust tawny.

Smell: Spiced honey and baklava lead. Stewed cherries and a perfumed vanilla note express themselves. Fresh cherries mix with spicy oak notes and there’s a bit of heat. A milk chocolate element joins in toward the end.

Sip: There’s a sizable amount of weight to start things off, but it’s still smooth despite a hint of heat. An immediate explosion of baking spices come forward and are toned down by the appearance of vanilla sugar and dried cherries. Caramel drizzles out, but is reigned in by brandied Bing cherries. A slight nuttiness and preserved figs show up with a little stone fruit.

Savor: The nuts and spices are accompanied by a tingly finish and lots of lingering tannins.

Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength is packed with flavor, almost to the point of being super saturated. The flavor complexity is delicious, but almost overwhelms at moments. The flavors kind of supersize the normal Maker’s Mark Cask Strength / Maker’s Mark. Where it gets a little lost is the French Oak finish. Somehow it loses some of the smoothness and finesse of it’s proofed down relative. Water teases this smoothness out, but it’s much more layered – almost like two different whiskey’s.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength continues it’s single handed push for every spice it can grab out of the pantry. It only reaches for these after it runs through a quick wall of vanilla and a series of preserved cherries. The weight is incredible, and it kind of gets into syrupy territory. The finish grabs more oak and wood notes, and the whole experience lingers dramatically. As it warms up, it picks up more warm vanilla notes, and hints of brown sugar.

In Review – Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength

Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength is an enjoyable offering, but the extra horsepower of cask strength doesn’t necessarily add to the fun. This offering is a bit of a mystery to me, as it seems to combine the strength of Maker’s Mark Cask Strength without the finesse of the finishing for Maker’s Mark 46. The result is like pushing a V8 engine into a Miata. Sure, it’s bonkers and entertaining, but it doesn’t necessarily make it any better for daily driving or track use. The biggest issue is at $60, this puts it at almost $20 more than Maker’s Mark Cask Strength and $25 dollars more than Maker’s Mark 46. For a sipper, this might make sense, but as a cocktail whiskey, this is a hard pass.

Maker’s Mark

Posted on May 6, 2022May 6, 2022 by Nick

Among bourbon’s featuring wheat, there are few as readily available and recognized as Maker’s Mark. Made with soft red wheat, the intention of Maker’s is to be easy to drink without the bite of rye. This recipe is rumored to have at one point in its history share roots with Pappy Van Winkle’s Old Fitzgerald recipe. Factor in a couple of Beam boys and their yeast, and you have a recipe with more than a couple twists and turns. Figure that distilleries have sold, distillers have been replaced, and that recipes have been tweaked for modern palates; and you basically have the wax on the bottle as the best guess as to what to think.

So let’s throw all the history and tater baiting out the window, and start with a much more basic question. Is Maker’s Mark good bourbon?

Maker’s Mark

Sight: Between deep copper and burnished.

Smell: Chocolate, almonds, and cherries lead things off. Cocoa powder and touch of spice join in. Oak and a hint of ethanol finish things off.

Sip: Smooth and mild to start, with a medium body, Maker’s Mark is invitingly easy. Cherry, tobacco, oak lead, and hints of chocolate, spice, red licorice, and a brown sugars come into give a layer of complexity.

Savor: On the finish, oak leads and has touches of bing cherries with a slightly tannic nature and a bit of heat

Maker’s Mark is simple, well rounded, and built upon smooth, inviting flavors. While the body and the flavor profile isn’t the most complex, the texture makes up for it, and the wheat influence and fruity character makes it enjoyable and reasonably priced. As a result, it’s managed to find its way into most bars and is widely available. As a sipper, it’s perfectly fine on ice, but nothing to make you write home.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Maker’s Mark opens with maraschino cherries and touches of orange marmalade. Notes of almond and pecan come in, and there’s a good amount of clove and spice. Just prior to the finish, there’s a pop of dark brown sugar and caramelized stone fruit that then gets connected to an oaky finish.

In Review – Maker’s Mark

Maker’s Mark is a widely available wheated bourbon. The flavors are clear, clean, and strong. It provides good hints of nuts, spice, chocolate, and cherries, while not requiring a wait in line or bartering your left kidney. It’s well made and enjoyable, as well as well rounded. From this perspective, and around the mid $20 price point, there’s nothing here that’s not worth the time to experience. Maker’s is a foundation whiskey with good reason, and reportedly can trace it’s origins to Weller-Stitzel. We recommend you try it to see if you enjoy it, and potentially even keep it around your bar.

Suntory Whiskey Toki

Posted on March 25, 2022March 21, 2022 by Nick

Suntory Whisky Toki – more commonly referenced as Suntory Toki – is best known for its sterling reputation of making elevated Highballs. It’s made from a blend from Suntory’s three distilleries, Yamazaki, Hakushu, and Chita, primarily featuring the later two’s grain whiskeys. Suntory is specifically focused on blending with the whisky, aiming to show what can be done with each of the distilleries’ spirits. Unlike some of Suntory’s other highly sought after whiskies, you should be able to find Toki easily and at a price that won’t break the bank. So how is it?

Suntory Whisky Toki

Sight: Pale straw fringing into corn.

Smell: Apple skins, malt, and spices open up with a hint of heat. A strong floral note comes in and touches of orange marmalade join in. Caramel and lemon have element notes in the background as well.

Sip: The flavor is gentle, malted, with hints of honey and caramel. Touches of wet slate, minerality, lemon pith, and flowers come in. The body is light, slightly warm. There are hints of spice, nut, and other elements toward the background.

Savor: The ending picks up a certain amount of aged wood and malt. There are elements of salinity and minerality, and caramel flavor. Specifically caramel flavor because it isn’t a sweet caramel.

Suntory Whisky Toki is fine. The flavor profile is gentle and subtle. The blending of the whiskey has a good impact on how the flavors layer, although they aren’t particularly interesting or enticing. As a neat whiskey, we’d recommend most other whiskeys. Toki also isn’t normally associated with drinking neat.

In Cocktails

Suntory Whisky Toki is frequently referenced as one of the best whiskeys for use in a Highball. In our experience, the highball brought out malt and cereal notes from the Suntory Toki. The apple notes become more subtle, while the floral elements are given more room to operate. Caramel and spice move into the background and work well with the minerality. The Toki actually helps the drink become an extension of itself. The subtle nature that helps it work in a highball is an indicator in this scenario that it plays better with other similarly gentle flavors.

In Review – Suntory Whisky Toki

Overall, Suntory Whisky Toki has a place in cocktails, but the rest of the value will be determined by the value you place on Japanese Whiskey. Most classic cocktails do not call for Japanese Whiskey, and it isn’t the most versatile ingredient, working well in more subtle, gentle cocktails. When served neat, it communicates much the same way, in an elegant and mild sort of way. The price point puts it right in line with most entry level Japanese Whiskeys and it’s widely available, making it the most common choice. All that said, we still recommend that try it before you buy it.

Knappogue Castle 12 Year Irish Whiskey

Posted on March 4, 2022February 13, 2023 by Nick

Our track record with Irish Whiskey has felt like a long and winding road. We started with Jameson, which was fine. Moved on the Dubliner, which felt like an improvement, before going to the Busker, which seemed debatably better. That said, none of them ever quite hit wow. So when the opportunity to try Knappogue Castle 12 Year Irish Whiskey came up, I was excited. Not only does it have a good reputation, but it was one of the original bottles in Death & Co’s book. So does it live up to the hype?

Knappogue Castle 12 Year Irish Whiskey

Knappogue Castle 12 Year Irish Whiskey is triple distilled using copper pot stills and aged 12 years in ex-bourbon casks. Unlike the other Irish whiskeys we’ve covered so far, it is a single malt instead of a blend.

Sight: 14k Gold to Hay.

Smell: The nose has a bit of heat to it, but pulls in vanilla, cream, touches of bourbon casks, and pears. The nose evolves into spice, apple blossoms, heather, and other floral notes. Caramel and cereal notes begin to crawl out with a bit of powdered sugar or cotton candy.

Sip: The palate starts off light and becomes slightly creamy. It opens up into apples, pears, banana, caramel, powdered sugar, butterscotch, and hints of oak with spice. The butterscotch leans toward caramel, and works well with some of the heather characteristics that hide in the background. There is also a hint of charred sugar as well (as though roasted over a campfire)

Savor: The ending instantly perks up into crisp green apples and cereal notes. Things shift into some of the oak spices and grain notes with a linger of charred marshmallow.

Knappogue Castle 12 is easy going and more fruity than it seems. The notes of green apples and pears really live throughout this whiskey, and provide it with a stable core to build butterscotch and sugar flavors over. Despite that it isn’t sweet, and it doesn’t try to overwhelm the imbiber. The biggest ding against it the slightly aggressive alcohol forward nose, but overall it’s a wonderfully simple and easy going Irish whiskey.

In Cocktails

Knappogue Castle 12 Year Irish Whiskey is gentle and add it’s delicate cereal notes, hints of heather, and apple elements to the background of Cameron’s Kick. The gentle character adds an underlying elegance that isn’t front and center, but steps in when it needs to. The middling alcohol content (A.B.V. 43%) allows it to also add some good weight and texture without adding heat. It almost adds that creaminess which is lovely.

In Review – Knappogue Castle 12 Year Irish Whiskey

Knappogue Castle 12 Year Irish Whiskey is heading into a higher echelon of whiskey at $40, but provides a good amount of character for the price. The character of the creaminess is part of the standout nature of this whiskey. The fruitiness gives it a lot of flavor that doesn’t get overwhelmed by the bourbon aging either. Overall, there’s a lot to like here, and it currently represents our favorite Irish whiskey as of writing this.

Barrell Seagrass

Posted on February 25, 2022February 15, 2022 by Nick

Barrell Seagrass was one of those polarizing whiskeys that made a lot of noise from reviewers over the past year. Consistently ranking highly, this Rye Whiskey is finished in Martinique Rum, Madeira, and Apricot Brandy Barrels for a one of a kind flavor. The result of this finishing is a character nothing quite like the rye whiskeys most people are used to. People have ranged from gushing to confused as a result, but most admit that it’s more of a flavor choice and price point than any actual defect with the whiskey.

Professional whiskey enthusiast Fred Minnick agreed, naming one of Barrell Seagrass’ one of his top 2 American whiskey of 2021. As result, Barrell Seagrass has been flying off the shelves, so it is worth the chase?

Barrell Seagrass

Barrell Seagrass is a blend of American (distilled in KY, IN, and TN) and Canadian rye whiskeys. These sourced whiskeys are then finished in the Martinique rum, Madeira, and apricot brandy barrels before being blended to make the distinctive flavor of Barrell Seagrass. As a result, proof varies between batches. This batch comes in at 118.58 proof.

Sight: Deep copper

Smell: Apricot and bubblegum come floating out with a good waft of heat. The apricot is sort of malleable, giving way to an apricot compote with a spiced note. Grassy notes with a touch of mint come in. The nose fringes into candy, almost like gummy bears laced with elderflower. The nose is very perfumed.

Sip: The palate is smooth and slightly sweet. The flavor of candied and dried apricot starts things off, before opening into spiced oak notes and a touch of grass. There’s a bittersweet almond and cocoa note that hints at the fringe. Grapefruit and elderflower come toward the tail and leave the ending with a floral character.

Savor: The ending brings in a wet stone, fresh rain on wood notes, and laces with grassy element, nuts and spices. The finish continues on with touches of unripe apricots and grapefruit pith.

Barrell Seagrass is distinct and unique thanks to the finishing process. The flavors are very well layered and balance between sweet, floral, and earthy. Apricot standouts out here, giving a perfumed character that runs all the way through the whiskey. The floral and nutty notes, combined with citrus makes for an exciting mix of flavors that keeps each sip evolving. Martinique rum also lends the earthy and funky flavors that make it hard to pin down what flavor is leading. Overall, the finishing job is tremendous, and it’s excitingly well done.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan, the apricot sweetness comes through front and center. It mingles with the grassy rhum notes and slightly minty rye notes to vibe with the herbal notes in the vermouth. The juicy red berry and caramelized notes of the vermouth bring an additional level of fruitiness. Finally a crazy floral streak runs right through the middle to brighten and perfume the whole drink. Spice and apricot round things out for a long finish. Overall, it’s a wild Manhattan, but probably not the best use of a high end finished rye.

In Review – Barrell Seagrass

Barrell Seagrass is priced at $80 – $90. The price is undoubtedly high, but the quality of the product matches in this case. From a cocktail enthusiast’s perspective, Barrell Seagrass offers an opportunity to make supercharged, superstar unique cocktails – but the price is prohibitive to experiment with. For standard classic cocktails, you’ll want to go with something more traditional like Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye or Pikesville, or even Rittenhouse. However, none of those will be anywhere near the unique sipping experience that Barrell Seagrass offers. This is a must try (and perhaps a try before you buy for a full bottle.)

Little Book Chapter 5: The Invitation

Posted on February 18, 2022February 15, 2022 by Nick

Little Book Chapter 5: The Invitation is the fifth release in Jim Beam’s curated collection from Eighth Generation Beam Master Distiller Freddie Noe. “The Invitation” invites tasters to explore interesting blends, ages, and flavors in the evolving world of whiskey. The blend is meant to highlight the diverse influences that have influenced Freddie Noe’s journey and and shaped his style as a distiller. The results are nothing short of being fantastic, as the Little Book Chapter 5 has ranked number 3 on Fred Minnick’s Top 100 American Whiskeys of 2021.

Little Book Chapter 5: The Invitation

Little Book Chapter 5: The Invitation is a blend of 2 year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 3 year-old Malted 100% Rye Whiskey, 5 year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 15 year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon. The final result comes in at 116.8 proof.

Sight: Chestnut – Oloroso Sherry

Smell: The nose is an evolutionary experience with Little Book, changing gradually over the time you leave it in the glass. On first pour, there was a heavy dose of peanut and charred oak. After opening, the nose explodes with juicy caramel, brown sugar, rich toffee, peanut brittle, and a jammy cherry. As the nose continues to open, there are elements of charred oak, cigar box, toasted spices, black tea, maple syrup, warm vanilla, and a touch of almonds. Despite the proof, there’s not a lot of heat.

Sip: The body opens smooth and then warms up slightly. The flavors of preserved cherries and warm vanilla laced caramel come through. Touches of brown sugar and molasses open the door to almond brittle and notes of grape. The oak influence kicks in, adding elements of cigar spicing, roasted sugar, baking spice, and tobacco. Elements of black tea and a slight fruit funk jump in and compliment the light spicy sweetness.

Savor: The finish pulls through the creamy brown sugar and caramel elements with a healthy dose of spice. Roasted oak and spice goes through with a hint of burnt marshmallows. The finish lingers beautiful, layering in more wood and sweet sugar notes.

Little Book Chapter 5: The Invitation is simply incredible. The flavors are layered, complex, and intricate. The sweetness of the caramelized notes is pervasive, but evolves constantly at Little Book continues to open. The fruit notes are present enough to give it variety, while the nuttiness and wood make up all the in between notes. The result is an incredible whiskey to simply savor over hours.

In Cocktails

Let’s start with the obvious, you’re not buying this bottle make cocktails. To a certain extent, there’s probably some group that would argue putting this in a Manhattan or Old Fashioned is sacrilege. All that said, if you own one, it’s your bottle, and you should enjoy it as you see fit. So here’s what I think of it in the one Manhattan I made.

Is it a good Manhattan? Oh god yes. Is it 3-4 times better than a $30 – $50 bottle of whiskey? No, not even remotely. You’d have to be out of mind to be making Manhattans or Old Fashioneds with it. The flavor is explosive with juicy cherries, spiced oak, and caramel. The notes of nuts and black tea are absolutely present, and it fights with some of the herbal character of the vermouth, explaining to pretty much every other element in the drink that is the superior element. The spicing and brown sugar flavors are so intense that it actually manages to pull off the same length of finish it does in the Glen Cairns glass.

To date, this is the most expensive Manhattan I’ve ever made, and was delicious. I do not however recommend you use Little Book for this purpose.

In Review – Little Book Chapter 5: The Invitation

Little Book Chapter 5: The Invitation is one of the best whiskeys I’ve ever encountered. This sort of bottle is obviously not a stock it and keep it around for making drinks sort of thing, but it is an incredible offering if you can manage to find it. One of those, words-fail-you sort of offerings that you keep for special occasions. Even at $125, there’s a lot of value here and you should try it if you get an opportunity.

Great King Street Artist’s Blend

Posted on February 11, 2022July 25, 2022 by Nick

Compass Box is well known for some of the more interesting blends in the past couple decades, including their Peat Monster and Hedonism. What some individuals don’t know is that Compass Box also offers a truly affordable daily drinking / cocktail scotch in their Great King Street Artist’s Blend.

Great King Street Artist’s Blend

Great King Street Artist’s Blend is a high malt (55%) blend that comes from a one-hundred year old recipe. It is non-chill filtered and has no added coloring. Like many scotches, over 70% of the blend is first fill bourbon barrels, but it also has influence from French oak and sherry barrels. A high amount of the blend is also single malts at 40% of the blend. All of this adds up to theoretical quality, but how does it taste?

Sight: A pale gold fringing into summer corn color.

Smell: The nose starts off with barrels of green apples and pears. Notes of caramel and sugar come through, giving a delightful candied note to the apples. There’s a bit of pie like cooked notes that come through, and are leaning into hints of baked oat crumble.

Sip: The start is smooth and rich as things start out. Warm notes of caramelized apples and baking spices come out off the bat. There’s a gradual lean into cereal notes and more green pears / apples. There’s a bit of nutty vinous note that comes in toward the start of the finish.

Savor: The finish is nutty and laden with apples and cereal grains. The finish coats the palate and continues on, giving a little spice as it goes.

Great King Street Artist’s Blend is a beautiful, yet simple scotch. The flavors of fresh apples and spice compliment richly against the cereal grain elements. Combined with the balanced and lingering finish, it ends up being easy to drink but in no way boring. The final result is inviting and smooth enough to drink on its own, but also stands up to water, ice, or other flavors.

In Cocktails

In a Highball the apples and cereal notes wake up and bring out slight touches of orange. The carbonation and minerals bring forward some of the earthier notes in blend – possibly emphasizing some of the oak influence with a touch of vanilla and spice. The result is super drinkable, and easy going. In a Rusty Nail it keeps the apple and pear flavors at the forefront, while the touches of spice balance well against the herbs and sweetness of the Drambuie. Overall, it works fantastically in both applications, standing up to the strong flavors of the Drambuie while also showing it’s ability to be subtle in the highball.

In Review – Great King Street Artist’s Blend

Great King Street Artist Blend is one our favorite choices for a home cocktail bar due to its ability to work both in cocktails and on its own. The flavors are quintessential scotch, but also refined and elegant. At a price point between $30 and $40, it’s absolutely worth keeping on your shelf. If you haven’t tried Artist’s Blend yet, you’re missing out on a great scotch that’s also a great value.

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.

Mellow Corn

Posted on January 14, 2022January 2, 2022 by Nick

Perhaps the first thing to note about Mellow Corn is that it is not labeled as bourbon. The reason is that Mellow Corn is actually produced to the specifications required for a lesser known spirit classification, Straight Corn Whiskey. These whiskeys require that at least 80% of the mashbill be made of corn and can not exceed 160 proof at distillation. Straight corn whiskey is not required to be aged. For aged straight corn whiskey the barrels must be uncharred or previously used. A bottle may be labeled as Bottled In Bond if aged a minimum of 4 years, and meeting the other requirements as set forth by the U.S. Bottled In Bond act.

Mellow Corn

Mellow Corn is one of those quirky sorts of bottles that has an unshakable following. Supporters will extol the virtues of Heaven Hill’s bottom shelf dweller in poetic terms, before gushing about the price. At under $20 and a fairly decent level of availability, it’s not surprising that folks would look to find value in a steadily increasing world of bourbons priced in the $50 – $80 range.

Mash Bill:
- 80% Corn
- 8% Rye
- 12% Barley
Age: 4 Years+
Aging Vessel: Used Bourbon Barrels
A.B.V.: 50% (100 Proof)

Sight: Yellow Gold

Smell: Roasted popcorn and a hint of nuts leads things off with a bit of an ethanol hit. Warm, toasted caramel joins in with a healthy dose of spice, and there’s just a hint of fruitiness. There’s also a subtle corn hint. The heat is pretty prevalent throughout.

Sip: The body is light, and that unmistakable flavor of roasted corn and popcorn is prevalent throughout. Touches of spice flirt with the flavor and a hint of sweetness joins in. The heat is notable, if not oppressive.

Savor: The ending carries forward a good mix of oak spice and notes of a variety of corn (roasted, fresh, popcorn) with in a twinge of heat.

Mellow Corn is an enjoyable experience that keeps things straightforward and flavorful. If you didn’t realize this was a different product, you might even be inclined to mistake it for a bourbon. What it lacks in complexity, it makes up in straightforward whiskey flavors you’d expect. As a straight sipping whiskey, it’s interesting, but not something that would keep you investigating it over and over.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan the corn just vanishes. Thanks to the lighter flavor profile of the whiskey, the vermouth gets a free pass letting notes of fruity elements and spice fly freely. As the drink warms up, it begins to develop some notes of corn. On the finish a light caramel notes comes out.

In Review – Mellow Corn

Mellow Corn is an interesting and unique offering in Heaven Hill’s line up. It never quite crosses into amazing, but it definitely reaches interesting when on its own. As a sipper, this a fine way to not break the bank and trying something new / pass it around. As a cocktail whiskey – it poses something of a challenge. It clearly can’t hold it’s own against dominate flavors, but simultaneously brings in body. For these reasons, and the unusual classification, we recommend this bottle as a potential straight sipper, but not a bottle to stock in your bar.