Author: whiskeyfortheages

Hannah’s Tincup American Whiskey Review

Original review written January 16, 2020

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

I underestimated this one majorly. For around $30, it’s a steal if you like fresh and clean whiskies. Even though it’s not my favorite flavor profile, I will be repurchasing. Read my full Tincup American Whiskey Review here! 87/100

VITALS:

– Made In: Denver, Colorado, USA
– Distiller: Tincup founder, Jess Graber
– Classification: Blended whiskey; using sourced high rye bourbon distilled and aged in Indiana, USA as well as a single malt whiskey from Colorado with water from the Rocky Mountains*
– Age: Minimum 4 yrs.
– Mash Bill: Undisclosed
– Casks: Char #3
– Barrel Entry Proof: Undisclosed
– ABV: 42% (84 proof)
– Price: $29.95 USD in Idaho

*Visit tincupwhiskey.com/ for more information

ENJOYMENT METHOD:

I enjoyed the juice neat from a Glencairn glass with father and fellow Whiskey for the Ages reviewer, Brian.

Check out his review for this whiskey here!

SETTING:

This one has the classic vibe of a 1920’s speakeasy, renovated with industrial light bulbs hung from the ceiling to cast the hidden space in a warm, yellow glow. The air vibrates with booming laughs and mellow jazz as you sip this nostalgic spirit.

Photo by Martin Adams on Unsplash

NOSE:

Pleasantly surprised with this nose, which consists of both spice and sweet. I detect white pepper and a light, but somehow musky vanilla tang along with a hint of leather. I also smell ripe peach fuzz/skin, corn, mellow oak and maybe a twinge of something herbal or floral in nature. The flavors seems easy to tease apart, but that isn’t a bad thing. No alcohol burn whatsoever.

All in all, I’m impressed with the variety I find here in the nose from several classic flavor profiles.

PALATE:

– Mouth Feel: Very soft, like velvet. It has grit when rubbed the “wrong” way, but either way is enjoyable.
– Balance: Fair. Sweetness reigns supreme, but it’s light and easy to like.
– Visual: This whiskey is chestnut sherry in color (meaning to say, middle range), with a nice crown with clinging droplets. Not much for legs.

– Taste: Wow, I was not ready to be as instantly drawn to this one as I am. Still very little alcohol to speak of, but I can say that the herb and flower from the nose is mint and rose. The whiskey is exceptionally fresh and clean.

I still find peaches, decidedly white fleshed ones as opposed to yellow. There’s a mandarin orange quality here as well – not fresh, rather from a fruit cup and bathed in that simply fruit syrup.

I’ve lost the corn from the nose, but I can find sweet wheat instead. The spice is gone too, the mint carrying the seasoning burden alone. The oak is present, but my gosh, it’s subdued.

A Kentucky chew makes the flavors crisp, but the rose, peach, fruit syrup and some unexpected honeycomb kick in to make the mouth water.

I’d love to test this one out on a Mint Julep, but it’s pleasing neat too.

FINISH:

– Lasting Power: Medium. Not much warmth lingers long, but some of the other flavors remain.
– Between Sips: The rose petals stick to my tongue, and this leaves me with a fibrous sweetness. It’s not my favorite, but this fits with the feel of this whiskey, so I’m not upset or disappointed.

– No More: Some cherries peek out a bit more as I get further into the glass, but the freshness and cleanliness are still dominate. I’ve gotten used to the rose petals here in the finish, and I even like them.

The empty Glencairn is a syrupy oak, sweet and with minimal age detectable.

WORTH THE PRICE?

I will absolutely be buying this one again at the $30 and keeping it on the shelf in the bunker for when I’m in the mood for something light.

RATING: 87/100

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Brian’s Tincup Whiskey Review:

reviewed 16-January-2020

TINCUP WHISKEY REVIEW:

My daughter and fellow reviewer asked me about Tincup Whiskey sometime ago, but it just wasn’t on my radar. On a recent trip to the liquor store, a patron was asking the manager about it and he asked me if I had tried it. I told him I would post a review soon and bought a bottle. I am happy to report, if a bottle is found in your store, buy, Buy, BUY with confidence! This whiskey is one of the freshest drams I’ve ever enjoyed.

TINCUP WHISKEY VITAL STATS:

– Category: Blended Whiskey using sourced bourbon and single malt whiskey
– Region: Denver, CO, USA
– Distiller/Blender: Jess Graber, Tin Cup Founder
*“High rye” bourbon, distilled and aged in Indiana, is blended with a small amount of Colorado single malt whiskey then cut with Rocky Mountain water
– Mash Bill: unpublished percentages of corn, rye, and malted barley
– Barrel Char: #3
– Barrel entry proof: unpublished
– Age: Minimum 4 years
– ABV: 42% (84 Proof)
– No batch or bottle number identifiers
– Price: $29.95 USD in Idaho

*Learn more at https://tincupwhiskey.com/

ENJOYMENT METHOD:

For the evaluation, I shared the juice neat from Glencairn glasses with my daughter and fellow Whiskey for the Ages reviewer Hannah.

Check out her review for this whiskey here!

NOSE:

Tincup Whiskey has a pleasant aroma. It starts dry, with little to no alcohol, then sends light fruit blossoms and a mixture of new apples and the aroma of fresh picked ripe strawberries still in the pail to the nose. There is an element of fresh but undefined citrus and ripe pineapple rind in the dram as well. The only spices I sense are faint cinnamon and light sweet vanilla which allow wafts of apple pastry or pie drift in and out. Tincup’s sweetness is of simple syrup, buttery caramel, and orange blossom honey. There is no wood (maybe faint pecans) in the full Glencairn, but I really like its fresh, simple and gentle aromas.

PALATE:

When brought to the lips, Tincup Whiskey treats the mouth with a bite, and a little burn before it settles to warm the tongue and the throat between each sip. The potpourri of dried fruit blossoms sensed on the nose are enhanced with a bit of mint and fruits of dried plump Goji berries and canned Mandarin oranges add a fresh element of acidic citrus zest. Its spices of black and white pepper and rye are bold and nearly overshadow the sweetness of simple syrup and buttery caramel. Tincup is simple and yet intense as its toasted wood, barrel spice, and seasoned oak began to assert themselves.

Balance, Body, Feel and Look:
Tincup Whiskey is fresh and clean on the palate. When held in the the mouth, it is smooth and pleasant but when swished and swallowed it it has a gritty tickle. Still, it is well blended and balanced. In the Glencairn the juice provides a nice inverted crown of clinging droplets which fall quickly back into the chestnut sherry colored pool.

FINISH:

Tincup Whiskey has a long and lingering finish. It goes down warm on the tongue and throat and fades away with an essence of roasted corn mixed with citrus zest, pepper, rye and seasoned wood. As Glencairn is emptied, fresh cut old oak wafts to pacify the nose.

MY RATING: 88/100

Will I seek out this whiskey in the future? Yes
_{Click to read Brian’s scoring process.}

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