Louisville Archives - First Pour Cocktails

Old Forester Single Barrel – Barrel Strength Bourbon – Baytowne Spirits

Posted on March 29, 2023February 14, 2023 by Nick

If you just want to have your Old Forester with a bit more power, then you should consider Old Forester Single Barrel – Barrel Strength Bourbon. As the name implies, these bottles are made up of single barrels, and barreled at barrel strength. Unsurprisingly, they’re quite high in proof, and suggest that they might also be quite strong in flavors. This pick comes from Baytowne Spirits in Rochester, NY – where in addition to an amazing selection of single barrels, they have an outstanding selection of rums.

Old Forester Single Barrel – Barrel Strength Bourbon

This barrel has the following stats:

Warehouse: K
Floor: 2
Proof: 130 pf
Common Abbreviations: OFSBBS / OFSiBBS

Sight: Solid Auburn

Smell: The nose starts with a blast of oak spice and cherry. Notes of more fruity elements come out, such as macerated strawberries and ripe banana. Brown sugar and caramel roll around over a layer of heat. The spiciness grows and builds in ways ranging from peppercorn to chili to clove and allspice.

Sip: The start is smooth and more moderate bodied. Cherries cooked in brandy and chewy caramel come sliding out in thick waves. There are more fruity elements like dried strawberry and banana. Walnut comes in with full force and give more pepper and brown sugar elements room to grow. Things get increasingly hot, not unsurprisingly – with a rip of oak in between.

Savor: The ending keeps plenty of oak, walnut, cherry jubilee, and caramelized sugar notes. The ending is dry, tannic, and maintains a bit of warmth throughout. It lingers for a longer period than you might expect, but maintains the oak flavor – adding some cigar box and dried cherry as it goes.

Old Forester Single Barrel – Barrel Strength Bourbon is both complicated and relatively straightforward at the same time. This seems like a contradiction, but what it delivers is consistency of flavor. In all of the tastings I’ve had of this particular bottle, it tends to pull a very consistent flavor profile, and the glass drinks the same at the start as the beginning. As neat drinking goes, this is a barrel proofer that’s quite good, especially for Old Forester fans.

In Cocktails:

In a Manhattan it immediately makes you aware of its prescience. The weight alone is probably in the top 5 of Manhattans I’ve ever made (unsurprising again, given the proof) and the finish reflects this further with a bit of a heat. In the middle are waves of oak spice, caramel, fire roasted cherries, and cigar spice box. The flavor profile doesn’t really ever relax, but instead either sends spice, bombastic fruit, or oaky notes. Drinking it as it warms up, begs for more heat, but lets a bit more of the vanilla and berry notes through. If you’ve been reading previous Manhattan notes, you might conclude (quite correctly) that this is a bruiser of a bottle in the drink – which might excite some hardcore bourbon enthusiasts.

In Review – Old Forester Single Barrel – Barrel Strength Bourbon

Old Forester Single Barrel – Barrel Strength Bourbon is a powerful, beast of a bourbon. The flavors match the strength, and it delivers a well rounded experience. Fans of Old Forester’s regular offerings should find a lot to like here, and it should be a stretch to grab a bottle. If you’re not a huge fan of Old Forester or barrel strength offerings, this is going to be a stretch – especially at $80, and more than double that on the secondary.

Old Forester Single Barrel – OHLQ Exclusive #6418

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

Old Forester offers three different bottlings at 100 proof. We’ve covered two of these, the Signature 100 and the 1897 Bottled-In-Bond, both of which can be found on the shelf easily. What’s less common is the highly sought after Old Forester Single Barrel. Barreled at 100 proof, this offering proposes flavors with less proof than their barrel strength offerings, but also is typically selected by a retailer. While this is priced close to 1897, is it worth the hunt?

Old Forester Single Barrel – OHLQ Exclusive #6418

Warehouse: H
Floor: 4
Proof: 100 (A.B.V. 50%)
Secondary Abbreviation(s): OFSiB, OFSB

Sight: Between Tawny and Russet Muscat

Smell: There’s a surprising amount of warmth coming out of this nose that gives way to caramelized peanut treacle and spicy oak. Caramel, vanilla icing, and powder sugar join in for a very dessert like character. A banana French toast gets in there with a slight red berry compote element. Like it’s on the whipped cream with the French toast.

Sip: The start is on the sweet side, and very approachable with plenty of caramel and vanilla cake notes. The nuttiness quickly catches up with a strong roasted peanut brittle character. There’s a nice amount of cinnamon spice here, and a bit of that caramelized banana again. There’s a build of cigar box and toasty oak that come in as well.

Savor: That sweet caramel and toasty oak spice roll through with a beautiful amount of vanilla icing. The banana foster notes lean in throughout the rest of the palate, but the oak also gets more spicy as it goes, giving off cigar box and clove with a certain sweetness.

Old Forester Single Barrel – OHLQ Exclusive #6418 is complex, sweet, and enticingly layered. The nuttiness is well balanced with the caramelized notes, and the baked goods mixing with the banana tones is really a well balanced mix of flavors. While the influence of the oak is strong, it also doesn’t overwhelm the more delicate flavors. As a single barrel, this bottle is well balanced and enjoyable.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Old Forester Single Barrel – OHLQ Exclusive #6418 is smooth, caramelly, lightly banana oriented, and solidly spiced. There’s a good amount of sweetness here, and the general texture is rich. On the finish, it carries forward a blast of spice, ranging from cinnamon to clove to nutmeg, before picking up some notes of vanilla cake. As a Manhattan it’s good, if heavily spiced.

In Review – Old Forester Single Barrel – OHLQ Exclusive #6418

Old Forester Single Barrel – OHLQ Exclusive #6418 is a really a solid bourbon, especially at $50. Single barrel variation should thoroughly be expected to come into play with these, and as such you’re likely to have more success if you’re already an Old Forester fan. If you can’t find this, remember that Old Forester Signature 100 Bourbon comes in at the same proof point. Although in my experience the flavors won’t reach this level, the cost is less than half at $21.

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.

Henry McKenna Single Barrel

Posted on November 9, 2022November 8, 2022 by Nick

Perhaps few bottles suffer so greatly from both hype and barrel variation as Henry McKenna Single Barrel. Amongst the bourbon lovers, Mckenna is notorious for consumers greatly enjoying one bottle, and then being disappointed in the next. While there are a variety of possible reasons for this, including actual differences in production and what the consumer immediately ate prior to enjoying it, it doesn’t change that this bottle has won some significant awards and has a strong hype train surrounding it.

Henry McKenna Single Barrel

Henry McKenna Single Barrel is a Bottled-In-Bond whiskey aged ten years from Heaven Hill. This age statement makes it among the older available Bottled-In-Bond offerings.

Sight: A rich tawny.

Smell: Rich caramel and nuts float out of the opening salvo. Zesty spice, tobacco, and notes of oranges and peach pits join in. There’s a slightly fruity character that comes in, a bit of heat, and a pops of toasted oak and a cereal like note. Something akin to peanut brittle in a fudge shop occasionally comes through as well.

Sip: The flavors are complex and layered, starting with caramel and spice it evolves into peach pits, tobacco, charred oak, cigar box, and nuts. The flavors are somewhat random in their progression, but consistently show up. There’s a fair amount of stone fruit, from peach to plum that comes around the edges. There’s very little burn despite the 100 proof, and the texture is rich. A very occasional oversteeped black tea note also appears.

Savor: The ending maintains a stone fruit and toasted oak character with a moderate amount of oak. The flavor lingers in a balanced and inviting way.

Henry McKenna Single Barrel is quite nice as a sipper, displaying a good amount of complexity and depth. The continuing evolution of the flavors in the glass makes it inviting to come back to. The texture also helps in adding to the appeal. Overall, it’s far from a disappointing sipper.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan the wonderful texture and proof helps to create the lanolin texture of a great Manhattan. Caramels, brown sugar, toasted oak, and stone fruit pastry notes all explode forth. There are pleasant baking spices throughout. The finish ends up carrying forward some of the spice, stone fruit, and caramel with just a bit of oak. It’s a phenomenal Manhattan.

Single Barrel Side By Side

A friend happened to have a bottle of Henry McKenna Single Barrel, leading us having the bottles in a side by side. The bottle my friend had was 2 years newer than my bottle. The other bottle was significantly stronger in the vanilla realm, but added a dustiness and reduced the spice. There were also fruity notes, but a bit more orange marmalade sort of notes. The palate is significantly lighter, still maintaining the vanilla notes, but also bringing in more floral elements with subtle spice. The oak notes are also still prevalent, but it doesn’t achieve significant oak or fruit. The weight of both is also different, with the newer bottle feeling significantly lighter.

The comparison feels shocking given both are bottled in bond products with 10 year age statements. While some variation is to be expected, these almost stuck me like two different distilleries due to the spread of flavors and textures.

In Review – Henry McKenna Single Barrel

Henry McKenna’s hype has been real on driving it’s cost up. When this bottle was purchased, the cost per bottle was $10 less than it is today. Pushing $60, the flavor is quite good, but the availability and bottle variation remain problematic. While it’s amazing in cocktails and neat, these factors might be reasons to shy away and instead choice a lower cost single barrel such as Four Roses or Wild Turkey Rare Breed.

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.

Bulleit Bourbon

Posted on July 30, 2021July 19, 2021 by Nick

One of the most eye opening cocktails I had in my youth was the Clara Bow at Rye in New York City. Made with Bulleit Bourbon, grenadine, lemon, St. Germain, and mint, the cocktail was shaken and served in a coupe. The result was a bright, balanced, and complexly flavored cocktail that toed the line between dark spicy bourbon notes and bright fruity, floral ones. While Rye restaurant has since closed and Serious Eats removed the recipe for the cocktail from their site, Bulleit Bourbon still holds a special place in my heart, and I still believe it’s a good bourbon to add to your bar.

Bulleit Bourbon

Sight: Between burnished and sherry in color with a hint of muscat.

Smell: The nose starts with a candied cherry and berry sweetness before picking up elements of black pepper, vanilla, and candied apricot. Spices pick up as it opens and builds with touches of oak and chocolate.

Sip: The body is on the thinner side, and the start is packed with spices, clove, almond, and touches of preserved cherries. Notes of chocolate and black pepper mingle with a light berry like note, and a hint of charred oak. There’s a hint of heat present.

Savor: The ending continues with a 100% dark chocolate, spice, and a touch of cherry and charred oak.

Bulleit Bourbon is spicy, slightly fruity, and very earthy. While not the smoothest bourbon to sip on, it does provide some nice nutty and woodsy notes. The fruity flavors give it a little extra personality, although nothing that’s overly standout. There are better whiskeys to sip on, and Bulleit has better applications in drinks.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan, the chocolate and spice notes shine and allow the fruity flavors of the vermouth to come forward. The result is a well balanced Manhattan that flows smoothly between the various aspects of bourbon and fruit. This same pattern continues in a Clara Bow, where the acidity of lemon accentuates the spice and woodsy elements while giving the grenadine space to flex. In a simpler preparation like an Old Fashioned, the spice is amplified and some of the caramel notes are free to join in with more clove notes.

In Review – Bulleit Bourbon

Bulleit Bourbon is marketed as a mixing whiskey, and it’s a wonderful whiskey for that application. Even though it’s designed for mixing, it’s not a bad sipper either. The result is a whiskey that’s priced toward the middle of the pack, and is a reasonable stand in for a bourbon to choose when starting your home bar.

Rittenhouse Rye Bottled-In-Bond

Posted on October 17, 2019 by Nick

Rittenhouse Rye Bottled-In-Bond was one of the first, and most affordable, liquors I was able to purchase after I got seriously into cocktails. This standby staple is a go to in our collection, and from a value for money perspective – it’s not particularly hard to see why. Rittenhouse sparkles with a nutty nose, laced with baked vanilla, warm brown sugar, and hints of esthery banana, baking spices, and cedar box. The palate is a lovely mix of cocoa, black tea, almond extract, pepper, and hints of wood. At 100 proof – it gets a touch hot on the palate, but delivers full flavor in spades.

What Does Bottled-In-Bond mean?

Bottled-In-Bond is connected to the 1897 Bottled-In-Bond Act which was designed to help with the widespread adulteration of liquors. The idea was that the government would be the guarantor of quality – and participants would be a tax advantage. To participate (and be labeled Bonded or Bottled-In-Bond) the following conditions must be met:

Produced in one distilling season (Jan-Jun, Jul-Dec) by one distiller at one distillery.
Aged in a federally bonded warehouse under U.S. Government Supervision for at least 4 years.
Bottled at 100 proof (50% A.B.V.)
The label must contain the distillery and where it was bottled.
Must be produced in the United States.

Do Bonded Whiskies Really Taste Better?

It’s a complicated question, and the answer is it depends. Governments have long sought to ensure quality, and the results are decidedly mixed. If you look at the wine world, you’ll see D.O.C., D.O.C.G., I.G.T., A.O.C., V.Q.A., A.V.A, and the list goes on and on. Does it mean the wine is better? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Sometimes a region with no standing produces something amazing. What it does do, is provide customers an assurance that spirits and wines produced in these regions meet certain quality requirements.

So How Does Rittenhouse Rye Bottled-In-Bond Play In Cocktails?

Going to the base choice of an Old Fashioned, we compared Rittenhouse to a competitor. The spicy notes came to the forefront and mingled well with the warm sugar and woodsy notes. The body holds up well thanks to the higher proof. When compared head to head, we agreed the Rittenhouse has more depth, and was more inviting thanks to the warm spice notes.

Final Thoughts

Rittenhouse Rye Bottled-In-Bond is a sturdy work horse of a rye that delivers a great amount of spice and warmth. At a value proposition typically around $25-30 a bottle, it’s hard to not argue that Rittenhouse deserves a spot in your home bar. This is a must buy.

Rittenhouse Rye Bottled-In-Bond Raw Tasting Notes:

A nutty nose – with baked vanilla and warm brown sugar – an esthery banana. There’s a spiciness present as well – hints of more baking spice – cedar box / wood. On the palate it gets warm, black tea – bitter almond / extract – pepper – and cedar come to the forefront. The flesh close to the pit of a peach’s nuttiness.

Distillery: Heaven Hill Distilleries – KY

Website: Heaven Hill – Rittenhouse Rye Bottled-In-Bond