Author: whiskeyfortheages

Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch Review

Posted on by whiskeyfortheages

Brian’s Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch Review:

written and posted on 15-December-2019

WYOMING WHISKEY SMALL BATCH REVIEW:

Overall, Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch is a nice addition to most anyone’s bunker. It is not likely to “wow,” but its aromas and flavors are quite nice. I would buy it again and have a pour when I would like something simple after an easy day of easy toil.

WYOMING WHISKEY SMALL BATCH VITAL STATS:
Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch Review

– Category: Wyoming Straight Bourbon Whiskey – Small Batch
– Region: Kirby, WY, USA Distillery: Wyoming Whiskey, Inc.
– Mash Bill: 68% Corn, 20% Wheat, 12% Malt Barley
– Yeast: Two (proprietary) strains (one said to add slight fruity notes)
– Barrel Char: unpublished
– Barrel entry proof: unpublished
– Batch: 39
– Age*: Aged a minimum of 5 years in one of three Kirby, Wyoming rickhouses
– Bottling Date: 27-October-2016
– ABV: 44% (88 Proof)
– Price: $39.95 USD in Idaho

*see more at https://www.wyomingwhiskey.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 bourbon here!

NOSE:

What a wonderful nose! I could breath this in all night long. It is fresh, clean and pleasant with no alcohol burn. There are faint wafts of fruit trees and wheat fields in the wind. Prolonged nosing adds fresh apples, lemon citrus and a hint of sweet maraschino cherries. There are subtle spices of ginger, nutmeg, white pepper and rich vanilla. Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch’s sweetness comes in as a surprising essence of yellow cake batter, caramelized light brown sugar, and pecan toffee. Any wood I detect fades in and out as notes of light cedar.

PALATE:

Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch has the typically warm bite of a low ABV bourbon, but its taste is a bit disjointed from the aromas sensed on the nose. Gone are the sweeter elements of fruit and cake, replaced by roasted corn and wheat, and a strange essence of grassy, ground oregano and citrus zest. Its spices are of ginger and black pepper and present as savory browned butter in a slightly burnt pie crust. What sweetness there is comes in as light vanilla, simple syrup, and of faint burnt malt and fire roasted marshmallow. Wyoming Whiskey is also an earthy dram, with a little leather mixed with the woody char of strong, seasoned and spicy oak.

Balance, Body, Feel and Look:
This is an unusual whiskey as its aroma and taste are so different. It is silken in the mouth and there is a slight and unexpected, but not unpleasant, coppery aftertaste. In the Glencairn, little clinging droplets greet the eye between sips and form a nice inverted crown. As the dram is downed, a liquid curtain coats the inside of the glass, giving way to fat, medium-slow dropping legs which return to the tawny pool.

FINISH:

Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch finishes short on flavors but with similar but greatly subdued tastes detected on the palate. It is warming in the throat, but not as much as other whiskeys, likely owing to its lower alcohol content. The empty Glencairn is full of oak accompanied by a faint and disappearing aroma of brown buttered sugar, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla.

MY RATING: 86/100

Will I seek out this whiskey in the future? Yes
But it won’t be a must have in the bunker.
Click to read Brian’s scoring process.

Click 86/100 to access other whiskies with this score.
To access other whiskies by this parent company, click Edrington.

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Maker’s Mark Private Select ID Director’s Cut Batch #3 Review

Posted on by whiskeyfortheages

Hannah’s Maker’s Mark Private Select ID Director’s Cut Batch #3 Review

Original review written December 10, 2019

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

On its own, it’s a very good bourbon, but pitted against the other Idaho batches (4, 5, 6 and 7), this one falls a little short, but it is not my least favorite of the bunch. But if you find it, I still think it’s worth the purchase. Read my Maker’s Mark Private Select ID Director’s Cut Batch #3 Review here! 87/100

VITALS:
Maker's Mark Private Select ID Director's Cut Batch #3 Review

– Made In: Kentucky, USA
– Distiller: Maker’s Mark Distillery
– Classification: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey; Private Select
– Age: 8 yrs. 9 weeks
– Mash Bill: Corn=70%; Soft Red Winter Wheat=16%; Malted Barley=14%
– Casks: Char #3
– Barrel Entry Proof: 110
– ABV: 54.5% (108.8 proof)
– Maker’s Mark Private Select Idaho Director’s Cut Batch #3 (MMPS-ID-IDB3) finishing staves:
4 Seared French Cuvée (Cu) to provide toasty oak and caramel
2 Baked American Pure (Pu) to provide brown sugar, vanilla, caramel and spice
2 Maker’s Mark 46 (46) to provide dried fruit, vanilla and spice
2 Roasted French Mocha (Mo) to provide char, maple and cacao
0 Toasted French Spice
– Stave Selectors: The Idaho State Liquor Division and Chris Bailey of “The Whiskey Bar” – Boise, ID, USA
– Price: $69.95 USD in Idaho

Visit makersmark.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 bourbon here!

SETTING:

It’s a warm, summer morning in a hot air balloon floating above the world, but making your descent to the ground for a morning picnic. As long as you’re not the pilot, feel free to start sipping early ;).

Maker's Mark Private Select Idaho Director's Cut Batch #3 Review

Photo by Kashish Lamba on Unsplash

NOSE:

Dark fruits bloom on the first sips, mixed with vanilla and allspice, but the vanilla quickly becomes dominant. Very little alcohol burn, just something to be increasingly excited about sipping. Underneath these flavors, I find sweet caramel, candy corn, dusty grain and a sprinkling of oak sawdust. Very nice.

PALATE:

– Mouth Feel: Full and maybe a little coppery with a salt aspect.
– Balance: Unusual, but not disappointing. The flavors would be perfect without the salt.
– Visual: Burnt amber in color, this bourbon coats the glass, leaving only a crown present.

– Taste: I’m met with a briny quality paired with the dark fruit from the nose, likely blackberry as there is a slight freshness that lifts the flavors at the end of the sip. The corn grain sits underneath, along with seasoned oak. But the briny-ness, or should I say saltiness, makes the marriage of flavors a little challenging.

With a Kentucky chew, an additional layer of deep complexity comes out, employing a maraschino cherry to join in. There is also a nutty element to the Kentucky chew; I can’t say what nut exactly, but it isn’t bitter. No matter how much I provoke this one, it won’t bite back, but it will still confer a bourbon warmth that leaves me salivating for the next sip.

While I do like this, I wish it did not have the salty component, even though it seems to be more like a salted caramel as opposed to only grains of salt.

FINISH:

– Lasting Power: Long. The warmth just continues to stick around, even minutes after I’ve set my glass down.
– Between sips: Aside from the aforementioned warmth, the cherries stick out the most for me, with the dash of salt included. The cherry seems to be of the maraschino variety.

– No More: The saltiness mellows out the further I get into the glass, with the cherries taking a bigger role. But the blackberries are still present to munch on, which is nice. And while the saltiness has not completely disappeared, this is still very enjoyable.

The empty Glencairn is of seasoned, sawdust oak – nice and spicy with a bit of alcohol kick still fighting.

WORTH THE PRICE?

As stated, if you can find Batches 5, 6 or 7, those are a better investment, but this is still worth the try, and it is still very enjoyable, and is superior to the 4 (for me).

RATING: 87/100

Click to see Hannah’s rating process

Click 87/100 to access other whiskeys with this rating.
To access other whiskies from this distillery, click Maker’s Mark.

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Knob Creek 09 YR Small Batch Review

Posted on by whiskeyfortheages

Hannah’s Knob Creek 09 YR Small Batch Review

Original review written December 7, 2019

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

A Jim Beam product, I don’t know why this isn’t valued as a more premiere bourbon than it’s brother, Basil Hayden’s. If you like wood-forward bourbons, this is for you! 84/100

VITALS:
Knob Creek 09 YR Small Batch Review

– Made In: Kentucky, USA
– Distiller: Jim Beam Distillery
– Classification: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey; Small Batch
– Age: 9 yrs.
– Mash Bill: Corn=77%; Rye=13%; Malted Barley=10%
– Casks: New charred oak; Char #4
– Barrel Entry Proof: 125
– ABV: 50% (100 proof)
– Price: $29.95 USD in Idaho

Visit knobcreek.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 bourbon here!

SETTING:

It’s a misty, cloudy day in the Redwood National Forest of California, but the air somehow remains crisp. Trees tower over you and your smallness in the scope of the universe could not be more apparent, and this gives you a warm peace to anchor to.

Photo by Nina Luong on Unsplash

NOSE:

There is vanilla and dried cranberries that greet the nose that mix to an almost biscotti aroma. (YUM). The vanilla has an alcohol bite, lending itself to a fine richness that’s appropriate for the proof. Cloves and rye accompany the sweet for a pleasant balance. I can also find a toffee element on the deeper inhales, lightened up by a dash of vanilla. Mellow and sweet oak blend all of the flavors together in a very inviting way.

PALATE:
Knob Creek 09 YR Small Batch Review

– Mouth Feel: Gentle feel, but the proof kicks you back before you get used to it.
– Balance: This is a good blend, but I wish other flavors could bloom a little more.
– Visual: Tawny in color, many legs move quickly to coat the glass and create an uneven crown.

– Taste: Wood-forward on the first sip, coupled with the alcohol burn. However, it’s a soft wood – maybe pine? Other flavors include some rye and a barely-there bread at the back of the palate. Peanuts can be tasted with the bourbon resting in the middle of the tongue – almost to the point of becoming the peanut butter just under the surface of a coating of peanut oil in a fresh jar. It eventually fades back into the wood.

I’m hunting for the fruit component observed on the nose, but it is not distinguishable.

With a Kentucky chew, the wood is a commanding force and not much else can be identified. However, the chew does appear to be where the fruit resides, albeit subtle. If I had to pick a fruit, it could be currants, but not in their raw form.

FINISH:

– Lasting Power: Short. My main complaint of this bourbon.
– Between Sips: There’s maybe a hint of currant, but you’re left with the impression of wood more than anything else.

– No More: No matter how far I get in the glass, the wood stays dominant, and I’m not complaining. This is quite enjoyable.

The empty Glencairn is naturally an overwhelming oak, but there is an alcohol essence that makes a resurgence just at the end.

WORTH THE PRICE?

Definitely. It deserves a spot in the bunker.

RATING: 84/100

Click to see Hannah’s rating process

Click 84/100 to access other whiskeys with this rating.
To access other whiskies from this brand, click Knob Creek.

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