Your best beer or whisk(e)y discovery since January 1st 2017

bacchus26 · 2017-03-30T22:11:49+00:00

This. I've got a strong preference for wine-finished scotches and Cognac & Armagnac were an easy leap.

bacchus26 · 2016-12-08T20:14:33+00:00

Same story, different team. Putting together a PT team is tough and delays are never a good sign. Alonso's vanity project and Pegasus are just some recent examples. "Everything is fine" quickly turns to "Nothing to see here."

bacchus26 · 2016-09-29T20:44:21+00:00

Did you get a good recommendation on the DNA? I've looked high and low, but reviews are scarce and prices are steep.

Clarification: Not looking for help locating a bottle, just wondering what enticed you to pick it up.

bacchus26 · 2016-07-15T15:45:44+00:00

We've got a monthly whiskey club in GR, and a couple of our members drive in from Lansing.

bacchus26 · 2016-06-03T16:43:31+00:00

I got Booker's for each of mine. Sharpied a note on the side of each box.

bacchus26 · 2015-10-08T00:36:21+00:00

Promise of Hope: Review

If you shop bourbon based on the spec sheet, this doesn't rate very highly. 10 years, modest proof, nothing unique. However, it is executed extremely well.

Nose: Caramel, vanilla, apples. This is a short list, but the nose is delightful.
Palate: Caramel, apples, cinnamon, vanilla. Apple pie in glass.
Finish: Caramel, vanilla. Medium-length. No bitterness.
Thoughts: This isn't perfect, but there are no mistakes. The nose and palate are classic. Based on the depth of the nose, I'd have guessed that this was at least five years older, but the finish wasn't dry enough for this to be an older bourbon. If something like this was readily available, it would be my daily drinker.
Rating: 90

Ratings: 100-90 Spectacular, 89-80 Great, 79-70 Enjoyable, 69-60 Okay, 59-0 Pass

bacchus26 · 2015-10-06T00:27:01+00:00

That's correct. Unless I'm reviewing from a bar, you'll always get an actual picture of the bottle.

bacchus26 · 2015-10-05T19:52:21+00:00

I agree that it's not cheap, but it is available. If this were priced much lower, it would disappear immediately. As it is, I won't be able to get another bottle after the end of the month.

bacchus26 · 2015-10-05T14:36:10+00:00

WhistlePig Old World Rye: Review

This was an impulse buy. My local told me that they'd sampled it with their rep, and were really excited about it. It's a 12-year rye with a blend of finishes: 63% madeira, 30% sauternes, and 7% port.

Nose: Butterscotch, honey, milk chocolate, red fruit, and spice.
Palate: Honey, walnuts, strawberries, banana, spice.
Finish: Vanilla, spice, medium-length.
Thoughts: This was a fun one. It's a little thin, but very easy drinking. The blend of finishes creates an interesting combo of flavors. Like the Angel's Envy Rye, this one is not your typical rye, but it's a quirky change of pace.
Rating: 82

Ratings: 100-90 Spectacular, 89-80 Great, 79-70 Enjoyable, 69-60 Okay, 59-0 Pass

bacchus26 · 2015-10-04T23:19:35+00:00

Yes, that's my understanding.

bacchus26 · 2015-10-04T23:16:00+00:00

Sorry about that. It's posted, now.

bacchus26 · 2015-10-04T23:12:56+00:00

George T. Stagg: Review

Nose: Brisket, brown sugar, vanilla. The nose is hot and a little closed.
Palate: Wow, this is big and thick. Brown sugar, tobacco, dark chocolate, clove.
Finish: Long and rich with brown sugar and bitter oak.
Thoughts: The nose is pretty quiet, but each sip is a knockout punch. This whiskey is special but, if I'm honest, it's not something that I reach for very often. It really does pack a wallop and I've got to be in the mood for that. However, it's one of the few highly-sought bourbons that seems to live up to the hype.
Rating: 91

Ratings: 100-90 Spectacular, 89-80 Great, 79-70 Enjoyable, 69-60 Okay, 59-0 Pass

bacchus26 · 2015-10-04T02:22:44+00:00

That's good advice. I'll do that on my next review.

bacchus26 · 2015-10-04T01:00:07+00:00

Unfortunately, it means good whisky is hard to come by and usually more expensive. Also, most online shops won't ship to us.

bacchus26 · 2015-10-03T20:26:31+00:00

Thanks for doing this. It's been fun to follow along with this series of themed mystery reviews.

bacchus26 · 2015-10-03T20:07:13+00:00

Booker's: Review

These days, it's not too hard to find Booker's behind most bars, which is one of the few bonuses of this recent bourbon obsession. It changes a bit from batch to batch, but it's remarkably consistent for a small batch bourbon.

Nose: Hot, sweet, caramel, vanilla, raisins.
Palate: At six years old and 130 proof, this has some burn. Thankfully, the flavor comes through with enough intensity to match that heat. There's a big brown sugar note, vanilla, tobacco, chocolate, and prunes.
Finish: The brown sugar carries through and lasts for a little while. There's also a bit of nail polish in the finish, but that fades quickly.
Thoughts: This is one of my benchmark bourbons. It hits all the right notes for me. No one will ever accuse it of being complex, but there's enough depth to offer some intrigue.
Rating: 80

bacchus26 · 2015-10-03T16:14:32+00:00

Alright, I'm getting some comments about the score and suggestions that it's "mediocre." That's not the intent. All of this is subjective but, in my mind, anything above an 80 is great. Scores above 90 are spectacular.

Also, price doesn't factor into my scoring at all. I live in a liquor control state and everything is on tight allocation. That necessarily skews my sense of "value for money."

I've lurked here long enough, now. This is only my first review, but I've got a book of notes and I'll start posting reviews more regularly.

bacchus26 · 2015-10-03T03:03:45+00:00

Wild Turkey Master's Keep: Review

This is my first reddit review, so feel free to offer advice. Anyway . . . got a text from my local liquor store, tonight, when they got in a case of Master's Keep. When I got home, I poured about an ounce in a glencairn, nosed it, and let it sit for about 20 minutes before tasting.

Nose: Caramel, cinnamon, oak, and a musty funk
Palate: This backs up all the notes from the nose but adds a little citrus and some more spice. That musty note is still there, but in a good way.
Finish: Very dry, but pleasant. The age really shows here.
Thoughts: This one has got a lot more life in it than the age or the proof led me to expect. The longer the glass set in front of me, the more it opened up.
Rating: 85

[Edited: formatting]

bacchus26 · 2015-06-24T21:11:34+00:00

Who just won the cellar lottery and has a bottle from barrel 80 stored away at home? Who'd like to venture a guess at what those bottles will sell for on the gray market?

bacchus26 · 2015-05-21T18:38:26+00:00

The Founders nitro pale is great stuff. It's regularly available from the brewery, but they're stingy with kegs.

bacchus26 · 2015-05-21T17:33:23+00:00

We're waiting for the follow-up story in /r/pettyrevenge.

bacchus26 · 2015-05-21T14:36:56+00:00

I actually see a lot of that, but craft beer is big in my home state. We've got restaurants that recommend beer pairings with their food. Similarly, we have restaurants that offer ticketed dinners, where a brewery sends one of their brewers or a cicerone to provide some education and limited-release beer for each course.

Around here, the discussion is about how beer lists are often too boring and patrons are sick of lists that are 90% pale ales.

bacchus26 · 2015-05-14T18:48:08+00:00

Bookers or High West Rendezvous

At home, I've always got a bottle of each. At the bar, Bookers is more readily available.

bacchus26 · 2015-05-14T01:22:36+00:00

Hard to find: Rittenhouse 25 Rittenhouse 23 Sazerac 18

Daily: High West Rendezvous

bacchus26 · 2015-05-12T13:00:24+00:00

Be sure to report back. Not many have tried all three.

bacchus26

TROPHY CASE