Lawrenceburg Archives - First Pour Cocktails

George Dickel Rye Whiskey

Posted on January 27, 2023January 15, 2023 by Nick

When someone told me that George Dickel Rye Whiskey was an amazing rye at $20, I was skeptical. I bold this, because most people associate Dickel with a particular flavor of minerality that is occasionally construed as ‘Flintstone’s Vitamins’. This doesn’t sound like the kind of thing you’d want in a Fancy Free or Manhattan. Yet, somehow, amazingly, George Dickel Rye became one of my breakout bottles of 2022, and possibly became the top rye we’d recommend for your bar.

George Dickel Rye Whiskey

Distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana at 95% Rye – 5% Malted Barley, George Dickel Rye Whiskey is an MGP product. It does however go through a charcoal mellowing process where it’s filtered through maple charcoal to finish it. The specifics of where the aging actually occurs is fairly vague, however it is aged in a char #4 barrel with a #2 head. The proof is 90 (45% A.B.V.)

Sight: Amber

Smell: Vanilla, minerality, and dill jump out from the start. There are notes like fresh plums and carrot juice. There’s a bit of caramel going on here as well and maybe some orange marmalade.

Sip: The palate is light with honeyed sweet, vanilla, and dill coming right out. There are pleasant notes of spice, oak, and tobacco. The palate isn’t incredibly complex, but it is warm and inviting in it’s spicing and has a telltale minerality and orange chalk candy note.

Savor: The ending pulls in more dill, vanilla, and a good amount of minerality. It lingers gently.

George Dickel Rye Whiskey is tasty if a little straightforward for drinking on it’s own. The flavors have a minerality that compliments the vanilla and dill characteristics. The other notes are more fleeting but not unpleasant. Overall, it’s tasty, but not the more in depth rye ever.

In Cocktails

George Dickel Rye Whiskey plays well in a Manhattan adding it’s vanilla and herbal notes with a bit of spice. The sweetness also works well with the fruitiness in the vermouth. The finish is spiced, honeyed, and with a little bit of minerality. Overall, it’s a decent Manhattan that won’t have anyone writing home about it. Combine this with the love it or hate it reputation of Dickel, and it’s a polarizing a choice if it’s the only rye in your bar.

It’s worth talking about the amazing depth that it adds in the right context. Where more brown sugar forward ryes don’t pop in the Fancy Free, Dickel is positively eye opening. The minerality, herbal notes, and spice burst beautifully with the orange and maraschino. Again, this is a particular application, so we don’t recommend this as an indicator of versatility.

In Review – George Dickel Rye Whiskey

George Dickel Rye Whiskey is a wonderful choice of rye whiskey with a characteristically Dickel slant. The Dickel characteristic is really the tipping point of the value of this. If you find you like charcoal mellowed whiskies, this could make for an amazing bar addition, and a rye we absolutely recommend you try once. If you’re not a fan of those flavors, this might be a struggle even at $20. All that said, we recommend you at least try it and consider stocking your bar with it.

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye

Posted on November 23, 2022November 21, 2022 by Nick

If you didn’t know, Wild Turkey also makes a rye. Similar to their bourbon, their rye comes in 86 proof and 101 proof offerings, as well as the barrel proof, Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye. This product is bottled at the slightly lower 112.2 proof, and is distilled by Wild Turkey (unlike some other producers who use MGP sourced ryes). Given how good the bourbon is, should you also look at enjoying the rye?

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye

Proof: 112.2
Age: No Age Statement (Reportedly a blend 4, 6, and 8 year old Kentucky straight ryes)
Filtration: Non-Chill Filtered

Sight: Burnished

Smell: The nose really shows a maturity here that’s rounded off some of the more obvious grain and cereal notes that can appear in younger rye. Pops of chocolate, coffee, oak, spice, and a bit of preserved cherry come out. More of the mint and herb rye notes being to emerge toward the edges, but the nose gives a dessert like caramel brown sugar character with a lot of fruitiness and chestnut.

Sip: The sip starts out a touch sweet and then opens up with preserved dark fruits, like cherries, plums, and prune. The rye spice picks up here bringing in brown sugar and massive chestnuts before pepper, spice, cigar box, tobacco, oak, and buckwheat. There’s a honey and resin flavor that sort of flits around and gives a little bit of a floral – herbal complexity. The body is quite big and smooth to start, but gets warm as it goes

Savor: The brown sugar and herbal notes carry over with touches of preserved dark fruit and plenty of rye spice. There’s a decent amount of tannin.

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye is complex and refined in all the right ways. The balance of spice, fruit, oak, and delicate floral / herbal notes is well defined, and loaded with powerful flavors. The more important thing is it flows from floral to spicy to nutty to fruity to oaky. There’s no particular are it falls short in. It works neat and shows the restraint of maturity.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan it delivers on the sweetness of the dark preserved fruits with notes like blackberries and prune. These flavors are the amazingly powerful and defined. The rye spice joins with some chestnut notes and pulls out amazing flavors of buckwheat honey and complex tobacco notes. The oak builds on the finish, but almost becomes cabernet or port like. This flavor profile is distinct compared to what most individuals expect of a manhattan. Overall, the flavor profile that Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye brings is a bit unusual, but nothing short of spectacular.

In Review – Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye

At $45 – $60 Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye represents a fantastic combination of flavors that work both straight and in cocktails. The cost is high, but at the lower end this is a serious contender to be one of the best possible values you can buy. The flavors are balanced across a variety of different elements, ranging from delicate floral and fruit to robust oak and spice. This is highly recommended as a bottle to add as your primary rye, or to splurge on if you don’t have the means to regularly stock it.

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Bourbon

Posted on November 21, 2022November 20, 2022 by Nick

Our love of Wild Turkey 101 is something we have no shame about. At $20ish a bottle, it delivers enormously consistent and powerful flavors without breaking the bank. While there is the lower proof 86 offering, there up market bottle, Wild Turkey Rare Breed Bourbon is far more interesting. Coming in at 116.8 proof, this barrel proof offering is reportedly made of 6, 8, and 12 year offerings but states no age. As Wild Turkey reportedly enters the barrel at a lower proof than the normal 125, some drinkers may find this easier to handle than higher proof barrel proof offerings (like Elijah Craig or Jack Daniels who both frequently exceed 120 proof).

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Bourbon

Sight: Between Chestnut and Russet.

Smell: A healthy amount of spice and touches of bready notes leap out at first. Freshly baked rye and spices leap out, delivering massive hits of spice over the top of sweet caramel. Touches of cherry and plum come through, with a bit of jammy marmalade. There is some heat in the nose if you inhale deeply enough. The oak and vanilla is present, but more background.

Sip: The palate opens up with lots of spice and sweet jammy / dried fruits. The oak comes in here with plenty of caramel. The spices and fruit explode into plums, cherries, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and all sorts of various combinations. The mouthfeel is smooth despite the proof, and brings in some notes of baking pastries and toasted oak.

Savor: The ending carries over spice, caramel, light brown sugar, and touches of cherries.

Wild Turkey Rare Breed is complex and spicy. There’s a good balance between spice, oak, and fruity notes that keeps it sippable and engaging. The flavors are powerful, but the proof doesn’t overwhelm, allowing the spice and caramel to show off. The subtly also helps with some of the yeastier notes. Overall, there’s a lot of flavor and proof here for the price.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan, the spices come to the forefront, but the vermouth provides a great sweet and fruity foil. The result is that the sweet notes of sugar and caramel explode against jammy raspberries, baked cherry pie, and complex brown sugar with fresh baked fruit notes. The spices and oak explode on the ending, adding intensity and a slightly tannic nature to the finish. The body is rich as well, thanks to the proof. As Manhattan’s go, this one is an aggressive and balanced approach that expands for beautiful notes not present in lesser whiskey.

In Review – Wild Turkey Rare Breed Bourbon

Wild Turkey Rare Breed offers exceptional value and availability at a great price, especially compared to other barrel proof or cask strength offerings. Similar to Four Roses Single Barrel, there’s a massive amount of flavor here that doesn’t require waiting in line or breaking the bank. The key difference is that this is Wild Turkey spice kicked up to 12, and delivered in a cohesive package that doesn’t hurt the overall balance neat or in cocktails. It isn’t a delicate bourbon, but it is delicious, and we highly recommend adding a bottle to your bar after you’re had an intro bourbon or Wild Turkey 101.

OHLQ Russell’s Reserve Winter 2021

Posted on September 23, 2022August 13, 2022 by Nick

Over a year ago, when I picked up my bottle of OHLQ Russell’s Reserve Winter 2021, I walked into the store and found a whole collection of them. As of a a couple of months ago, the state managed to drop bottles around the state resulting in 2 – 3 hour lines in some locations (that wrapped around the building). It most likely goes without saying that the hype train has claimed another victim. While the secondary on these isn’t egregious, and you can find them on shelves from time to time, is it worth the hunt?

OHLQ Russell’s Reserve Winter 2021

The state described this pick as follows:

Creamy, smooth caramel up front with an extensive wood finish. Enjoy this one as you sit back and relax after a long day of working in the yard.

This barrel’s information is as follows:

Distilled: 12-12-11
Dumped: 08-08-20
Bottled: 10-27-20
Age: 8 years 8 months
Barrel # – 20-0464
Warehouse: B
Floor: 4

Sight: A solid tawny.

Smell: The nose is complex and weighty off the bat with a tobacco and red fruit like sweetness. Notes of ethanol, strawberry, jammy blackberry, and raspberry combine before giving way to caramel and vanillas. A pecan and peanut nuttiness comes in with some powdered sugar. Notes of coffee, tobacco, and oak with a subtle creaminess. There’s a solid amount of heat here as well.

Sip: The sip almost starts off sweet with light berry flavors before things get extremely hot with a wave of black tea and oak. Tones of caramel and vanilla run through the background, and there’s almost a tobacco or unripened stone fruit flavor to the body. The most interesting thing other than the brown sugar, nuts, and heavy spicing is the way that it seems to turn the flavors on and off like a light switch. The turn from sweet and lightly fruity to spice, tea, and sugars is the almost a vertical take off.

Savor: The finish is spicy, with plenty of rye, oak, ethanol, and black tea. There’s a medium to heavy amount of astringency from the tannins here.

OHLQ Russell’s Reserve Winter 2021 a spicy fire bomb with a slightly fruity edge. The roller-coaster of flavor is powerful, and not necessarily a good starting point for those who prefer more toned down spirits. While the heat is noticeable, the flavors are equally powerful. The heavy notes of herbal tea, caramel, nuts, spice, and sugars are the predominate notes. Expect a powerful hit on your first sip from this bourbon.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan It’s exemplary. The fruity characteristics show up interlaced with ribbons of sweet dulce de leche. The spices and oak join in, giving an amazing mix of sweet caramel, stone fruit, black tea, and vanilla laced oak. The body is smooth and rich, but the finish lets those spice, oak, and vanilla notes really shine with just a bit of silky smooth tannins. It’s a little hard to fully state how much the caramel, and the refinement of the caramel, really comes through in this application.

In Review – OHLQ Russell’s Reserve Winter 2021

OHLQ Russell’s Reserve Winter 2021 is nothing short of amazing, and another example of why these store picks are leaving the shelves faster than ever. So should you spend the time to hunt for one? That question depends more on what you find you enjoy in a bourbon. As a cocktail whiskey, it is delightful, but probably too expensive and time consuming to find and justify. If, however, you’re already a fan of Wild Turkey’s offerings, and enjoy sipping them straight, than these picks are worth the search.

Four Roses Single Barrel

Posted on October 15, 2021August 4, 2023 by Nick

Four Roses Single Barrel sits between their Small Batch and Small Batch Selects in their line up. If you factor in their highly sought after and extremely limited annual limited edition, then you can think of this as the middle of the road for their offerings. Our previous review of the Small Batch left us with the impression that Four Roses was making a solid, if slightly delicate bourbon that on occasions would slip out of the cocktail. This widely available single barrel is a high rye blend at 35%, and a higher proof point, so does it fare better?

Four Roses Single Barrel

Made using only the OBSV formulation, Four Roses Single Barrel comes in with the following characteristics:

Blend (B): 60% Corn | 35% Rye | 5% Malted Barley
Expected Characteristics:
- Straight Whiskey (S)
- Rich Fruit (O)
- Delicate Fruit (V)
Warehouse No: QN
Barrel: 11-4E
A.B.V.: 50%
Aged: 7-9 Years

Sight: A burnished deep copper

Smell: There’s a bit of heat in the lead, but it gives way to perfumed vanilla (almost floral) and hints of dried fruits. Touches of honey and poached pears join in. A very subtle hint of spice hangs around the edges.

Sip: The body is delicate but firm. It doesn’t quite give up it’s secrets right away, but rather slowly opens up. Delicate notes of flowers, plum skins, and a sweet vanilla express themselves. Further back, a honeyed note overlays a touch of oak and spice. Unripe nectarines join in toward the end.

Savor: The finish is more unripe nectarine, slight caramel, and a healthy amount of toasted oak and spice. It lingers pleasantly, waiting for another sip.

Four Roses Single Barrel is an interestingly delicate and powerful bourbon. On the one hand, the flavors come at you on each sip, begging to be recognized. On the other, the flavors are subtle, almost restrained. The net effect is a wonderfully sippable single barrel that’s both inviting and unique.

In Cocktails

Making a Manhattan with Four Roses Single Barrel emphasizes the beautiful honey and stone fruit characteristics that hide in the background. Hints of peach and honey overlap spiced caramel and cigar box. Hints of herbs and red fruit join in, and there’s a wonderful balance achieved between sweet and dry. On the finish, it’s marvelously tannic, while also gently suggesting coffee, clove, and burnt marshmallow notes. In a cocktail, it’s quite beautiful.

Update – Comparing Barrels

Warehouse No: KE
Barrel: 72-5A

Last year, we picked up a bottle for the groomsmen during the wedding (it is great whiskey after all). People believe that the number in the right side of the barrel makes a large difference in flavor profile, with the higher numbers indicating better flavor. The idea is the warehouse’s high changes how the whiskey ages in that 7-9 year period. Below are some notes:

Sight: A burnished deep copper.

Smell: Light pears and apples come out with notes of delicate rose petal and honeysuckle. Vanilla and caramel notes come up with plenty of nice spice and touches of plum. The nose is slightly lighter, heading toward a more bright and peppy plum (or cran/raspberry). It’s lively and a little bright.

Sip: The palate is elegant and moderately weighted, pulling in a nice vanilla note off the start. There’s a subtle sweetness here that gives way to creamy caramel, black pepper, plum, and a bit of honey. Mild oak and spice come out, giving it a touch of backing warmth.

Savor: The ending is smooth, vanilla and honey with bits of plum and gently spiced oak. The ending lingers heading toward black pepper and fresh plums.

Overall, it’s a great example of the whiskey, with a very similar texture and flavor profile. That said, it’s definitely a single barrel, and equally good to the first, even if it’s different. The flavors are dynamic, evolving, and continues to drive home the value I originally experienced.

In Review – Four Roses Single Barrel

As with all single barrel bourbons, your mileage with Four Roses Single Barrel may vary. As sippers go, it’s inviting and complex enough to keep interest, while subtle enough to tease the imbiber. As a cocktail bourbon, there are benefits to knowing the formulation isn’t going to shift. That said, barrel variation may lead to drinks made with this shifting slightly.

Finally, there’s the price to consider. At $45, there’s a good amount of value here, but the returns are on a sliding scale when comparing to the Four Roses Small Batch. The main benefit is that it covers some of the weakness seen from a body and character standpoint in a mixed drink. While there’s no shame in using it in that application (quite the contrary, it’s delicious), it also may lead to underappreciating the whiskey itself depending on the drink you make. All in all, there is a corresponding bump in quality when making a cocktail with Four Roses Single Barrel, but for casual imbibers, you may struggle to taste the benefit over their Small Batch or other bourbons around the $30 price point.

Four Roses Small Batch

Posted on May 28, 2021May 16, 2021 by Nick

Four Roses Small Batch is a blend of 4 different blends of bourbons. Four Roses has two different mash bills (E and B), and 5 different yeast strains that allow them to make 10 different bourbon recipes. The mash bills are as follows:

B – 60% Corn | 35% Rye | 5% Malted Barley
E – 75% Corn | 20% Rye | 5% Malted Barley

For this blend, they utilize the slight spice yeast and rich fruit blends from both mash bills to create Four Roses Small Batch.

Four Roses Small Batch

Sight: A moderate gold, somewhere between deep copper and burnished.

Smell: The nose starts a little warm before resting, but opens up into a creamy caramel and spice. Oak begins to show itself prominently, and touches of dried apricot and cherries come through. The nose is inviting, if not complex.

Sip: The mouthfeel is lighter and more delicate than expected, but there’s plenty of caramelized sugars, oak, and spices. Fruits emerge gently, bringing forward touches of summer berries and stone fruits. It’s almost deliberately delicate.

Savor: The finish actually amps up slightly, delivering a punch of spice and browned sugar notes before relaxing back into a mix of ripe fruit, toasted oak, and almost cocoa nib like notes.

Four Roses Small Batch is really an interesting bourbon. Not only is it somewhat delicate on both the nose and palate, but it doesn’t fade on the savor. Instead, that amp up makes it even more satisfying since the flavors linger warmly. On its own it’s enjoyable, even if it’s a little straight foward.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan, it unsurprisingly creates a softer drink. The emphasis here ends up on some of the fruitier notes in the whiskey, combining with the vermouth to emphasize a very caramel like outcome. The oaked notes become more subtle, and the spice subsides, linger around the edges. The overall character is softer, allowing more of the wine’s sweetness to play the lead.

Four Roses Small Batch In Review

Four Roses Small Batch is delicate, yet inviting. It allows other elements to play in synchronicity, instead of trying to take over. The result is a bourbon that’s both at home neat and in cocktails. While it is good, and the value is fair in the low to mid $30 price point, it also isn’t quite as versatile as other bourbons. From that stand point, we suggest you try Four Roses Small Batch if you’re a fan of more delicate, subtle bourbons, but don’t necessarily stock it as your primary go to bourbon.

Four Roses Website