Tastes

Open 4.5 months Nose - Stewed berries, raisins, cinnamon, brown sugar, fresh bread, dark chocolate, mint candy, rich oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Plum and berry pie filling, hot cinnamon bun, Red Hots, green grapes, new leather, oak extract, roasted peanuts, and clove. Finish is long with dry, somewhat bitter oak, ground cinnamon, clove, white pepper, molasses, and medium ethanol. If I rated this when I first opened it, I would've given it a 4.75. I agreed with everyone on the internet claiming this is the best ECBP in years. Over time, I think it has gotten worse. The dryness and bitterness from the oak has come to the forefront and the fruits and sugars have faded. The other reason I don't rate it as highly as others. I've had two different 8 Year store picks open at the same time, and they're just as good. And they cost the same. ECBP store picks are the way to go in my opinion.

The Party Source pick Sourced - Linkwood Distillery Batch No. 11.0411.SC43.175 Barrel filled - 2011; Bottled on - 07-10-2023 Aged in ex-cognac barrels Age - 12 years 58.2% abv; 116.4 proof Open 2 months Nose - Red grapes, raisins, Maraschino cherries, sweet cereal grain, light brine, pine needles, light barrel char, and medium ethanol. Amazing nose. Palate - Fresh pop of grapes and cherries, plum, Fig Newton, malt syrup, salted caramel, and mint. Finish is long with raisins, figs, saltwater taffy, cocoa, grain, Red Hots, and medium ethanol. In 2022 shortly after I moved to Cincinnati, The Party Source released a Mossburn pick with Craigellachie 13Y aged n ruby port, which was fantastic. This is on another level entirely. They also co-released a Ben Nevis 10Y cask strength aged in ex-madeira casks. I've never heard of either. They had a seasonal even where they offering free tastings for a lot of whiskeys and other liquors, so I got to try both. The Ben Nevis was excellent, but the Linkwood was so unique with the cognac finish. I bought it immediately. Plus it helped that it was $10 cheaper than the Ben Nevis. When factoring in price, this is the best Scotch I've had. Even if I don't factor in price, it's still top 3. I've never had the base series of Mossburn blended malts, but these single barrels are phenomenal. I already bought 2 more, one for me and one as a gift. What puts it over the top is the unique finish. All of the cask strength Scotch I've had are Islay, Speyside with heavy sherry, or non-peated ex-bourbon. The cognac flavors work so damn well, I'm actually surprised I don't see more finishes like this. If you happen to see a Mossburn store pick in your area, I highly recommend buying it.

Batch No. 0008 52.6% abv; 105.2 proof Open 4 months Nose - Raisins, apricot, fruity candy, vanilla bean, caramel, fake Maraschino cherries, white pepper, medium barrel char, and light ethanol. Palate - Creamy cinnamon glaze, lemon custard, essential oils, golden raisins, Honey Nut Cheerios, and spicy oak. Velvety, viscous, and oily. The mouthfeel is fantastic for the proof. Finish is medium-long with slightly dry oak and char, fresh cracked peppercorns, caramel, cinnamon, medicinal cherries, lemon peel, and medium ethanol. I passed by this bottle for a couple of months. It certainly stands out, one of the most beautiful bottles on the shelves. I passed for multiple reasons. I did not know much about it, there were very few reviews online, typically the nicer the bottle the worse the product and haven't been impressed with the 1776 product line. Then I saw this made Fred Minnick's top 100 of 2023. Then it was highly rated by a few YouTube channels I follow. So I'm glad I was passively peer pressured into buying this because it is great. I can't believe James E. Pepper is getting these flavors out their own juice in purportedly 5-6 years. They must be doing a low abv barrel entry around 105-110 proof, which would explain the incredible mouthfeel. Do not sleep on this bottle. I'm almost out of it, and went ahead and picked up Batch 0022 last weekend. These are so much better than most products around $60.

The Party Source pick Barrel No. 23-0015 Warehouse TY-K; Floor 4 Distilled - 09-30-2014 Dumped - 10-24-2023 Bottled - 11-08-2023 Age - 9 years, 24 days Open 6 weeks Nose - Decadent creme brulee, spicy caramel, fresh cinnamon bun, cardamon, leather, rich oak, and medium ethanol. The nose is fantastic. Palate - Heavy toast flavors, toasted oak, toasted marshmallow, burnt caramel, etc. Also hints of clove, star anise, dense coffee cake, and pipe tobacco. Finish is long with sweet, slightly tannic oak, toasted marshmallow, cinnamon bun with a caramel glaze, rye bread, and medium ethanol. This is an outstanding pick. I'm only knocking it 0.25 stars because the price of these has crept up to $90 in most northern Kentucky stores. But, if they are remotely close to this good, I will keep buying them. For under $100, I do not think you can beat the consistency of Russell's or Elijah Craig picks.

Bull City Bourbon Club pick, "Apryecot Jam" 100% rye mashbill Barrel No. 8337 NAS 57.74% abv; 115.48 proof Open 15 months Nose - Stewed apricots, bright honey, cinnamon candy, caramel, dark cereal grain, cardamon, light oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Spiced apricot filling, sweet rye bread, clove, pine sap, white pepper, and dry cinnamon. Finish is medium with stale rye bread, dried apricot, My former bourbon club had the name spot on. This tastes overwhelmingly like an apricot cobbler, and little else. I don't know how many people reviewing whiskey have actually eaten fresh apricots. I have. At my friend's farm in Idaho which is covered in apricot trees. Let me tell you, they're not that great. There's a reason why they're not a standalone fruit in most desserts or grocery stores. I'd rather have a peach or nectarine any day of the week. It is pretty fascinating how different 100% ryes are in different regions of the country. Balcones, Dad's Hat, Alberta Premium, all wildly different. This has a unique flavor profile, but it's a one glass and move on type of drink.

Open 14 months Nose - Ash, iodine, wet hay, barnyard dust, white pepper, no oak notes, and strong ethanol. Palate - Bitter medicinal ash, brine, very light honeysuckle, and big ethanol bite. Finish is medium-long with dry malt, sawdust, light baking spices, and medium ethanol. This is a waste of money. I thought I'd be cute and try this over the prohibitively expensive Springbank offerings. Big mistake. It takes all of the worst qualities of Islay cask strengths into a younger, ashier, medicinal version. It's probably the most similar to a Laphroaig 10Y Cask Strength, but inferior on every level. Do not spend $100 on this. Honestly it's probably closer to the McClelland's Islay I bought years ago for $27, but much harsher due to the high abv. It also reminds me of a cheaper mezcal. I'm skeptical of Glengyle products now, but maybe their older stuff is better.

Liquor City Uncorked pick, "Gallenstein's Selection #2" MGP mashbill 70% corn / 21% rye / 9% malted barley Barrel No. DC-340 Barrel filled July 2016; Bottled December 2022 Age - 6 years 59.7% abv, 119.4 proof Open 6.5 months Nose - Shiny, sharp, cereal grain, fake vanilla, caramel, red hot cinnamon, and strong ethanol. Palate - Grain and artificial sweetener forward, Red Hots, vanilla extract, and cheap rum. Finish is medium with dry grain, fake flavors galore, Aristocrat rum, and strong ethanol. I had high hopes for this one after the Copper & Cask Bourbon Toasted Finish I bought from the same store really surprised me. NOPE! This marries everything wrong with cheaper MGP bourbon and young cheap rum. What I imagine happened is this. Latitude Beverage Company received this terrible, unredeemable barrel of MGP bourbon, and they tried to salvage it with a barrel finish. And then they got a crappy rum barrel and made it worse. It tastes like a 3 year old MGP bourbon or craft bourbon that was finished in bottom shelf rum casks, combining the dry cereal grain of MGP with the shiniest, sharpest aged rum you've mistakenly taken a shot of. I am not a fan of finished bourbons to begin with, and this hammers home my opinion that most MGP finished bourbons are mediocre products with a dab of sweet from wine or rum to mask the mediocrity.

On The Rocks pick, "Bruce Russell for Buddy's" Barrel No. 22-0715 Warehouse T; Floor 4 Barrel filled 12-10-2013 Bottled on 10-20-2022 Age - 8 years, 10 months, 20 days Open 4 months Nose - Caramel, butterscotch, funnel cake, cinnamon, clove, shortbread, light oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Fresh cinnamon bun that forgot to add enough brown sugar and frosting, rye bread, dill, chair leather, chewy caramel, medicinal cherry, and cereal grain. Finish is medium with sweet oak, baking spices, burnt marshmallow, unripe stone fruit, and light ethanol. This one started mediocre, but got much better after a week or two of being open. I'm at the point where if I see a Russell's store pick at a reasonable price, I buy it no questions asked. Even a lesser version of Russell's is better than 90% of what's available. But there is an obvious price creep with these store picks in a privatized state. You will almost always see these for $80-90, which is marked up $10-20 over the standard Russell's SiB. You're only paying extra for information, which Wild Turkey annoyingly obfuscates from their standard release. I think they're still worth it, but when they inevitably hit $100 I will have to be more scrupulous.

Liquor City Uncorked pick, "Gallenstein Selection #17" Warehouse 1; Floor 5 65.8% abv; 131.6 proof Open 4 months Nose - Spicy cinnamon and caramel, nutmeg, cardamon, overbaked bread, sweet hay, medium oak, and strong ethanol. Palate - Red hot cinnamon, caramel, toffee, rye bread, wet grass, harsh grain, and fresh leather. Finish is medium-long with dry, bitter oak, dry cinnamon, fake sugar, powdery baking spices, and harsh ethanol. I think this will be my last Old Forester SBBS for a while, at least until I can taste a sample first. I just don't think there's much value here, the OF 1920 is more refined and simply better. This is either my 4th or 5th bottle of OFSBBS and I've never been impressed. My problem is it sits squarely in between two superior barrel proofs that are the same or cheaper. I've said this before in my reviews, but I think depending on which end of the spectrum you want with the Old Forester profile, Jack Daniel's and Elijah Craig barrel proofs are both better buys. If you're looking for sweet maple, go with Jack Daniel's. If you're looking for an older, refined oak and vanilla profile, go with Elijah Craig. To me, these bottles are too hot, too young, and not sweet enough.

Liquor City Uncorked pick, "Gallenstein Selection #9" Barrel No. 6807165 Age - 8 years 63.5% abv; 127.0 proof Open 2.5 months Nose - Rich caramel, toasted vanilla, sweet tobacco, black cherry, plum, sweet oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Oak spice up front, toffee, brown sugar, pipe tobacco, burnt marshmallow, dry cinnamon, and clove. Finish is medium-long with dry, tannic oak, clove, tobacco smoke, pine sap, caramel, vanilla bean, and medium ethanol. Not a showstopper, but another solid single barrel offering. I dislike the price creep of ECBP and the single barrels, but I will still buy them sight unseen right now. If they get to $100, I may have to try them before I buy.