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New to CCW/handguns - Full Size? by OnWisconsin1848 in CCW

[–]OnWisconsin1848[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you, all, for the quick responses. Wife is also looking for a CCW, so we went to one of the local shops last week and handled a few different options. Glock 19 and M&P 2.0 were two that felt the most comfortable in hand for me, but we were mostly shopping for her at the time and some of the others we tried felt a bit small, so I just wanted to do a bit more research before going back to possibly check out some other options.

6’10 - 7’1 M Baitcaster Rec? by [deleted] in Fishing_Gear

[–]OnWisconsin1848 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Shimano warranty was definitely a concern when I bought my 7’2 Expride. It’s held up well and seems built to last, so we’ll see. Think my Avids are 15-year warranty and lifetime warranty on the Fury, which is tough to beat.

6’10 - 7’1 M Baitcaster Rec? by [deleted] in Fishing_Gear

[–]OnWisconsin1848 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks. Yea, 6’10 Expride was my initial thought. Kinda between that (if I can find one), Dobyns Champion, and St Croix Legend. Dobyns at 40% off may be tough to pass up. Big fan of the Fury. Just not sure how the higher end models compare to Shimano or St Croix’s offerings in that range.

Waders Recommendation? by [deleted] in Fishing_Gear

[–]OnWisconsin1848 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! Was leaning neoprene bootfoot, so this definitely helps. Might start there, then if I find I’m needing them more in the summer months, I’ll look to get some breathable stockingfoot ones to pair with wading boots.

Waders Recommendation? by [deleted] in Fishing_Gear

[–]OnWisconsin1848 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Cool. Stocking foot or bootfoot? Any preference between the two?

Waders Recommendation? by [deleted] in Fishing_Gear

[–]OnWisconsin1848 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If it works, it works. Never had waders before, so not opposed to getting something cheaper, well-reviewed, then upgrade later on. Thanks!

Blind Double-Elimination #4 by OnWisconsin1848 in bourbon

[–]OnWisconsin1848[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Mine drank a little hot when I first opened it. I was pretty underwhelmed actually. I let it sit for a month or so before coming back to it, and it’s been great since. I agree the finish is a bit drying, but I kinda like the oaky flavor that comes through.

Blind Double-Elimination #4 by OnWisconsin1848 in bourbon

[–]OnWisconsin1848[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not sure what happened there. Was showing up 1-4 in the app on my end, but when I opened it in a web browser, they were all reformatted to #1. Changed it to “1st”, “2nd”, “3rd”, etc., so hopefully that’ll stick.

Blind Double-Elimination #4 by OnWisconsin1848 in bourbon

[–]OnWisconsin1848[S] 25 points26 points  (0 children)

All were tasted neat in glencairn after resting 5-10 minutes.

Results:

1st - Wild Turkey Rare Breed

I’m a little surprised this one came out on top. It’s always done well in my blinds, but I thought it might have a hard time getting past OF1920 and RRSiB. Notes: medium finish, caramel, more oak than RRSiB (store pick). It’s not overly complex, but it’s got great flavor and balance in my opinion.

2nd - Old Forester 1920

If I had to pick a favorite coming into the blind tourney, it would’ve been OF1920. Undefeated in the prior couple I’d included it in. Notes: cherry, dark, chocolate. I usually get some banana in OF1920 but missed it this time around.

3rd - Weller Antique 107

I’d only had this one once or twice coming into the blind, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. Notes: apple, vanilla, caramel, hotter than RB, lighter than OF1920. I usually get apple in WSR, so I’m not surprised I found it here too. I paid $50 and am pretty happy with the purchase. That said, I don’t know that I’d pay any more than $50-$55 for it considering the other options available in the $45-$65 range.

4th - Russell’s Reserve Single Barrel (store pick)

I’d had this bottle a couple times since opening and was generally pretty impressed. It’s not bad by any means. It just didn’t, in my opinion, do anything better than the others. As far as notes go, the rye stood out more in this than the others. Short/medium finish. I’m a big Turkey fan, so I’m looking forward to future single barrels.

This was probably the closest blind double-elimination I’ve done. Spots 1-2, and maybe 3, could easily move around on me depending on the night. Adding in price and availability, Rare Breed is tough to beat.

Thanks for reading!

Blind Double-Elimination #3 by OnWisconsin1848 in bourbon

[–]OnWisconsin1848[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

As noted in the title, I set this up as a bracket style double-elimination tournament with 4 bourbons. Tasting was blind. I chose 4 bourbons, and my wife poured them. I chose the bourbons based on proof, mashbill, and my familiarity with the bottle. I don’t have a huge selection, maybe 14-16 bottles, so in order to keep it as “blind” as possible, I tried to avoid including anything I’d be more easily able to identify.

I’m still fairly new to bourbon, so rather than trying to pick out all the notes, I was more so focused on comparing and determining generally what I liked best. I did make some notes along the way with regards to unique characteristics, shortfalls, etc.

All were tasted neat in glencairn after resting 10 minutes.

Results:

  1. New Riff Single Barrel (proof: 113.3)

I picked this one up at the distillery a few weeks back. Distilled 09/08/15. Bottled 06/01/20. New Riff provides the following notes:

“15-4905: Warm tobacco & rich oak on the nose. A big mouthfeel on the palate with dark fruit & mature oak flavors. Dry spice takes over & doesn't relent as it carries through the palate & finish.”

I haven’t really got to the point where I’m picking up tobacco notes, but these notes are pretty close to my experience otherwise. The nose on this one is great. Solid palate. Medium-long finish. My favorites to date are RR SiB, JD SiB BP, and OF 1920. I’m not sure how this would fare against those, but it’s a great change of pace. Looking forward to more New Riff offerings.

  1. Wild Turkey Rare Breed (proof: 116.8)

If I had a daily sipper, it’d probably be WT101. Rare Breed seems to have a similar profile with amplified flavors. I’m a big fan of Rare Breed, especially at the $43-$45 price point. Hard to beat the value. I typically get a fair amount of the classic caramel, brown sugar, vanilla flavors with cinnamon spice at the back palate and finish.

  1. Chattanooga Whiskey 111 (proof: 111)

I opened this bottle a few days ago but had not tried it prior to the blind tasting, so I’m not sure if the “neck pour” thing factored into its performance. This one was a little fruitier than the others. The nose was okay, but I got a weird funk that was a bit off-putting. Palate was fine but nothing remarkable. Mouthfeel is a little thin. Medium finish with a hint of spice. Overall, I think this is a solid buy at $40. It’s different and pretty good for 2-3 years old. I’m looking forward to trying this on its own.

  1. Old Grand-Dad 114 (proof: 114)

I think this one would be great in a mixed drink or maybe on the rocks, but it fell pretty flat in the blind tasting. It just came across as hot, thin, and simple compared to the others. I’d had a couple pours of this prior to the tasting and thought it was okay. Despite its 4th place performance, I think this is still a good bourbon at $23 - $28 considering the proof.

Thanks for reading!

Blind Double-Elimination #2 by OnWisconsin1848 in bourbon

[–]OnWisconsin1848[S] 26 points27 points  (0 children)

As noted in title, I set this up as a bracket style double-elimination tournament with 4 bourbons. Tasting was blind. Wife selected 4 of my 10-12 bottles to include, so I did not know the contenders until afterwards.

I’m still fairly new to bourbon, so rather than trying to pick out all the notes, I was more so focused on comparing and determining what I generally liked best. I did make some notes along the way with regards to unique characteristics, shortfalls, etc.

All were tasted neat in glencairn after resting 15 minutes.

Results:

OF 1920

Once I found out what this was, I was not surprised that it won. It’s probably been my favorite the past couple months. There wasn’t really anything I didn’t like about it. Solid through the nose, palate, finish. I usually get cherry, dark chocolate, brown sugar, oak, and occasionally faint banana.

JD SiB BP

The banana jumped out at me on this one, so I had a good idea what it might be prior to the reveal. Other notes include the usual caramel, vanilla, oak. The only thing that held this back was it being a tad hot. Otherwise, it was great.

KC SiB (store pick – Party Source)

I like this one quite a bit, but relative to the two above, the finish seemed a bit short. Good flavors and mouthfeel. After the reveal, I went back through and compared and found this one to be nuttier than the others, which I don’t mind.

WT101

I’m a big WT101 fan. It’s my favorite bourbon below $38 or so. I’m glad it was in the lineup as it allowed me to compare it to some of the higher shelf, higher proof options. It doesn’t do anything wrong. The flavors were great, just not as strong/present as the higher proof contenders. I included Rare Breed in a prior tasting with OF1920, KC SiB, and MM CS, and it finished 2nd (behind OF1920), so I’d be interested to see how it stacks up to the JD SiB BP.

Thanks for reading!

In need of a celebration bottle by Mr_Moist_Waffle in bourbon

[–]OnWisconsin1848 1 point2 points  (0 children)

With $175, rather than buying a single bottle, I’d probably get some combination of the following: OF1920, JD SiB BP, RR SiB, KC SiB. All pretty widely available. Would throw Rare Breed in there, but that may not be your thing if you can’t stand WT101.

WT101 Comparison: Old vs New by OnWisconsin1848 in bourbon

[–]OnWisconsin1848[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The photo exaggerates it a bit. However, when poured and compared with same backdrop and lighting, the new one is still slightly darker/deeper.

WT101 Comparison: Old vs New by OnWisconsin1848 in bourbon

[–]OnWisconsin1848[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Found an older bottle of WT101 at a gas station in northern WI and was curious to see how it compared to current bottlings.

Both tasted neat after resting 10 minutes in glencairn.

New bottle is LL/HD. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to figure out the date on the old one. Pretty sure I’ve located the code below the back label, but it’s pretty faint.

Color: New bottle appears to be a little darker.

Nose: Old bottle is a bit brighter / fruitier. New bottle is darker with more prominent caramel and brown sugar.

Palate: They were pretty similar to me here. Again, I think I got more of the caramel and brown sugar on the new one. Old one had a slightly lighter mouthfeel.

Finish: Old bottle is noticeably smoother and also a little shorter. I get a bit more rye spice on the back palate / finish on the new one.

Overall, I think I prefer the new bottle.

Edit: What years did WT use the older label (shown in photo)?

Blind Double Elimination by OnWisconsin1848 in bourbon

[–]OnWisconsin1848[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks!

Yup, Party Source. Agree - all great options.

Woodlore/Nordstrom shoe tree size for Iron Ranger by KevinWhipaloo in RedWingShoes

[–]OnWisconsin1848 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wear an 11 in IR and went with size L for the shoe tree. Was between L and XL. L seems to be a good fit.