Brian Haara
Bourbon. Law. Author.
Sipp’n Corn Bourbon Review – Four Roses Single Barrel
Bourbon: Four Roses Single Barrel, 100 proof, NAS.
(GE-17-1P = Warehouse G (East side); 17th rack; tier 1; 16 barrels deep in the row)
Distillery: Four Roses Distillery, Lawrenceburg, Kentucky.
Cost: $33.99
Color:
Amber with deep orange tint.
Nose:
Spice balanced with sweetness of fruit and vanilla.
Taste:
Balanced honey, vanilla, toast and cinnamon, with heat – not just warmth. A splash of water or a single large ice cube (my preference) opens up new layers of fruit, grains and oak.
Finish:
Long, complex and satisfying.
Rating:
You can’t go wrong with Four Roses. One of the many unique facts about Four Roses (although this is old news for anyone who knows about Four Roses) is that they have two different mashbills and five yeast strains, which therefore allows Four Roses to make ten distinct bourbons under one roof. Four Roses “Yellow Label” uses all ten recipes, Four Roses Small Batch uses just a few, and because it’s “single barrel,” Four Roses Single Barrel is just one recipe.
Here’s how Four Roses describes its five yeast codes:
V – Delicate Fruitiness
K – Slight Spice
O – Rich Fruitiness
Q – Floral Essence
F – Herbal Essence
The standard Four Roses Single Barrel uses the “B” mashbill and the “V” yeast strain, but with a little bourbon hunting you can find and compare it with private selection single barrels that are cask strength and that often use different recipes.
Early this Fall I had the pleasure of participating in Four Roses Single Barrel Private Selection where, contrary to the standard OBSV Single Barrel, all ten barrels used the “E” mashbill (75% Corn – 20% Rye – 5% Malted Barley). We of course tasted these ten selections cask strength, and the bottling will be at cask strength. Whichever barrel we selected, it was guaranteed to be distinctive when compared to the standard Four Roses Single Barrel.
Here are my most memorable notes from each of the ten barrels:
OESV; 9 years, 5 months
- Big nose, great warmth, nice balance of spice and fruit.
OESV; 9 years, 5 months
- Hotter at first, spicy nose, really long finish, opened up nicely with a splash of water.
OESQ; 9 years, 6 months
- Spicy long finish.
OESQ; 9 years, 5 months
- Unexpected flavors. Sweeter than the others.
OESK; 9 years, 8 months
- Light nose but spicy, also a spicy finish.
OESK; 9 years, 8 months
- Best of the group. Started sweet, finished spicy and opened up great with a splash of water.
OESO; 11 years
- Similar nose and taste to #6, and I was surprised to see that it was a different yeast strain and different aging. Less sweet and longer finish that #6, however.
OESO; 11 years
- Spicy nose followed by great taste of spice and fruit. Opened up with a splash of water.
OESF; 10 years, 3 months
- Soft nose followed by heat on the front mellowing out to candy sweetness.
OESF; 10 years, 3 months
- Strong nose and really hot, spicy taste and finish.
All ten of these barrels had similarities to the standard Four Roses Single Barrel, but I was happy that we were limited to the “E” mashbill because I knew that we were trying something different. On the other hand, I can’t say enough good things about the standard Four Roses Single Barrel. It’s a bargain in the mid-$30 range (and I recently found it on sale under $30), and I prefer it over many $40-$50 bourbons out there. I’ll keep buying the OBSV Single Barrel, although I can’t wait for our OESK to be bottled, and I have another private barrel selection bottle of OBSF (10 years, 8 months and 117.4 Proof) that I’ll open and compare to the OBSV and OESK, and for good measure I’ll include the highly-praised 2013 Limited Edition Small Batch. I can’t wait…
In the meantime, my recommendation is that you look for private barrel selections and buy that along with a standard OBSV Single barrel, and compare the two. If you can’t find a private selection at your local store, I’d still recommend that you buy two bottles of OBSV, making sure that you get bottles from two different barrels. Open both and enjoy the subtle differences found from each barrel.
Score on The Sipp’n Corn Scale: 4.0
The Sipp’n Corn Scale:
1 – Wouldn’t even accept a free drink of it.
2 – Would gladly drink it if someone else was buying.
3 – Glad to include this in my bar.
4 – Excellent bourbon. Worth the price and I’m sure to always have it in my bar.
5 – Wow. I’ll search high and low to get another bottle of this.
Sipp’n Corn Bourbon Review – Corner Creek Reserve
Bourbon: Corner Creek Reserve Bourbon Whiskey. 88 Proof; NAS.
Distillery: Who knows? The label states “Corner Creek Distilling Co.,” but that’s just one of the many assumed names of Kentucky Bourbon Distillers, Ltd. Worse, this assumed name has been inactive since 2003. Does KBD have so many assumed names that it can’t keep track of them and renew the certificates as needed?
Cost: $25.99
Color:
Light amber.
Nose:
Not complex. Soft nut and vanilla flavors. It lost any discernable nose with a splash of water.
Taste:
No heat or bite, which I missed. Smooth and sweet, and no complexity. The lower proof was noticeable. Definitely drink Corner Creek neat; it’s already watered-down enough.
Finish:
A dry finish that was only slightly warm and pretty short. Oak flavors dominated, with a little medicinal flavors at the very end.
Rating:
While bourbon hunting I struck up a conversation with the owner of a small liquor store in LaGrange, Kentucky. Of course he didn’t have what I was looking for, but he went on and on about Corner Creek. He has family in from Pennsylvania every Thanksgiving and they make special requests for him to be sure to have Corner Creek. Then he told me a story about how Corner Creek was started by guys from the wine business who are now distilling in Bardstown. I hoped that he was just misinformed instead of lying to me, because I knew that Corner Creek was part of the KBD portfolio.
Maybe he was just relying on the label, which claims Corner Creek is produced “in the tradition of the great wine importers,” or maybe it was the wine-styled bottle (with the Bob Ross landscape art). Or maybe it was just a sales pitch. But he was extremely friendly so I didn’t challenge him. Not only that, I decided to buy a bottle.
My final recommendation is that Corner Creek is fine, but it’s under-powered and it left me wishing for more complexity and bite. Additionally, there are so many other options in this crowded price range (or lower) that you should try first, like Four Roses “Yellow Label” and Small Batch, Elijah Craig 12, anything in the Weller lineup, Maker’s Mark or Bulleit. As a bonus, we know where each of those are distilled and aged (even Bulleit, at least for the time being). I would prefer all of these over Corner Creek.
Score on The Sipp’n Corn Scale: 2.5
The Sipp’n Corn Scale:
1 – Wouldn’t even accept a free drink of it.
2 – Would gladly drink it if someone else was buying.
3 – Glad to include this in my bar.
4 – Excellent bourbon. Worth the price and I’m sure to always have it in my bar.
5 – Wow. I’ll search high and low to get another bottle of this.
Sipp’n Corn Bourbon Review – Eagle Rare vs. Bulleit vs. Michter’s: “The 10-Year Challenge”
For this Bourbon Review, I wanted to find three bourbons aged exactly the same number of years, all with rye as the secondary grain, and all with similar Proof, but priced very differently. Three bourbons meeting those criteria are Eagle Rare Single Barrel 10-Year, Bulleit Bourbon 10-Year Small Batch and Michter’s Single Barrel 10-Year, so “The 10-Year Challenge” was born. Would the hard-to-find, expensive bourbon come out on top? Or would the readily-available $30 bottle teach us all a valuable lesson?
Bourbons in order of blind tasting:
· Eagle Rare Single Barrel 10-Year (90 proof; $29.99);
· Bulleit Bourbon 10-Year Small Batch (91.2 proof; $39.99);
· Michter’s Single Barrel 10-Year (94.4 proof; $85.99).
1st Glass (Eagle Rare):
The first glass was a favorite of many of our tasters right away. The nose was light and not particularly complex, but pleasant. Common tasting notes included a nice balance of oaky and sweet flavors. The finish was dry and short to medium.
2nd Glass (Bulleit):
Two of the tasters had an immediate negative reaction to the second glass. But overall, reviews were good (ultimately just not better that the first and third glasses). The second glass had a much more fragrant nose than the first, which was followed by a bolder taste and more complex and longer finish. Caramel, vanilla, oaky, citrus and aggressive spice were all common tasting notes.
3rd Glass (Michter’s):
The third glass was noticeably darker in appearance, a rich caramel compared to the lighter amber of the first two glasses. Like the second glass, the nose was much more prominent and bold, but it differed from the second glass by having more of a smoky, earthy nose. Tasting notes were dominated by comments about its complexity. Licorice, oak, caramel, vanilla, sweet corn, buttery, and warm spices were all noticeable. The tasters liked the comparatively longer and warmer finish, too.
Winner:
Out of eight tasters, our results were all over the board. All three received 1st, 2nd and 3rd place votes, but Michter’s slightly nudged out Eagle Rare with one more 1st place vote. Michter’s also only received a single 3rd place vote, while Eagle Rare received two. Bulleit only received one 1st place vote, and received a stunning five 3rdplace votes. So Michter’s won by a nose, with Eagle Rare very close behind, and Bulleit a distant third.
Bottom Line:
I had some initial hesitancy about including two NDP (non-distiller producer) bourbons compared to just one bourbon, Eagle Rare, where the distillery, Buffalo Trace, is known. I even received some immediate Twitter feedback from my post on the night of this event for including two NDPs. But I got over this hesitancy pretty quickly because Bulleit and Michter’s fit the theme, popular belief is that this Bulleit is a Four Roses recipe, and good bourbon is good bourbon, no matter what liberties marketers take.
I was pleased to see that, despite their similarities, these three bourbons were all very different from each other and that no one bourbon stood out from the others. That lack of separation, however, requires consideration about price. The Eagle Rare is the clear price-performer of the three, and given its results at the tasting, Eagle Rare 10-Year is a no-brainer to add to your shelf.
But personally, I scored the Bulleit higher than anyone else (then again, I’m also a big fan of Four Roses). I think that the tasters who preferred Eagle Rare would probably prefer Bulleit in a cocktail because its bolder flavors don’t get lost, so depending on how you plan to drink these bourbons, my recommendation would change.
Finally, even though it was the overall winner and even though I really liked it, I expected the Michter’s to completely wow me (it didn’t). For anyone else who expects an almost $90 bourbon to wow them, then you may be better off sticking with Eagle Rare and Bulleit, which are readily available everywhere. Still, Michter’s won The 10-Year Challenge, and its profile is very different than the other two options, so if you’re splurging and can find it, it’s worth a look.
My final recommendation is that while Eagle Rare 10-Year, Bulleit 10-Year and Michter’s 10-Year may be better than each other on different occasions, all three are great buys that deserve room on your shelf.
Scores on The Sipp’n Corn Scale
Eagle Rare Single Barrel 10-Year: 4.0
Bulleit 10-Year Small Batch: 3.0
Michter’s Single Barrel 10-Year: 4.0
The Sipp’n Corn Scale:
1 – Wouldn’t even accept a free drink of it.
2 – Would gladly drink it if someone else was buying.
3 – Glad to include this in my bar.
4 – Excellent bourbon. Worth the price and I’m sure to always have it in my bar.
5 – Wow. I’ll search high and low to get another bottle of this.
Sipp’n Corn Bourbon Review – Willett Pot Still Reserve Single Barrel
Update: in 2015 Willett quietly transitioned
Willett Pot Still Reserve from Single
Barrel to Small Batch
The Willett Distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky is an assumed name adopted by Kentucky Bourbon Distillers, Ltd. (“KBD”) in 2005 (The Willett Distilling Company was originally incorporated in September 1936). Well-known for bottling many different brands, its most recognizable brand on the shelf is its namesake Post Still Reserve, due in part to its unique bottle.
Willett Pot Still Reserve Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Distillery: Undisclosed
Age: NAS
Proof: 94 proof
Cost: $37.99
Bottle No. 212 of 280 from Barrel No. 6477
Color:
Brown side of amber.
Nose:
Not hot. Woody, toffee, citrus, caramel, and plum flavors, and not particularly complex. The caramel increased with air or a splash of water.
Taste:
The flavors focused on the front of the tongue. There wasn’t any real heat at all, but there was certainly very nice warmth. Similarly, there was none of the common spicy pepper; and while it was very smooth, I wish that it showed me some bite.
Finish:
Incredibly warm (not hot) and medium finish. Flavors of oak and caramel dominated.
Rating:
I totally missed out on an epic tour and tasting last month because of work demands. So I knew that I had to try to make up for it with a bottle of Willett Pot Still Reserve Single Barrel. After a series of tastings, I realized that I should have bought this a long time ago.
This is also the second straight $37.99 bourbon that I’ve reviewed (see Rare Breed Review). So I feel compelled to compare this to Wild Turkey Rare Breed, although they are really two different styles of bourbon. Rare Breed packs more heat and has complex rye flavors which are missing in the Willett Pot Still Reserve, and in some respects I really missed the rye and the heat. But the Willett was so drinkable, and the warm finish really won me over. I rate both this Willett and the Rare Breed at 3.5 out of 5, but if I had to choose between the two, I’d choose Willett.
This is a great buy that I recommend drinking neat, but go elsewhere if you really want “the burn.”
Score on The Sipp’n Corn Scale: 3.5
The Sipp’n Corn Scale:
1 – Wouldn’t even accept a free drink of it.
2 – Would gladly drink it if someone else was buying.
3 – Glad to include this in my bar.
4 – Excellent bourbon. Worth the price and I’m sure to always have it in my bar.
5 – Wow. I’ll search high and low to get another bottle of this.
Sipp’n Corn Bourbon Review – Wild Turkey Rare Breed
* Update: This batch (WT-03RB) ended in spring 2014. The new Rare Breed batch is unnumbered and 112.8 proof.
Bourbon: Wild Turkey Rare Breed, 108.2 proof (barrel proof); a blend of Wild Turkey 6-, 8- and 12-year-old stocks. Batch No. WT-03RB.
Distillery: Wild Turkey, Lawrenceburg, Kentucky.
Cost: $37.99
Color:
Amber with an orange tint.
Nose:
Noticeable rye, but also vanilla and caramel sweetness.
Taste:
Rare Breed is smoother than many other bourbons of similar proof. It has a hint of citrus and big kick of spice. A splash of water opened up sweeter flavors like caramel, but you have to be cautious about over-diluting because the spice was too quick to disappear. A single large ice cube did just as well at bringing out the sweetness without sacrificing the spice.
Finish:
Long finish, with nice lingering rye heat.
Rating:
I finally went on the Wild Turkey tour last August. Getting to go into Warehouse A – built in 1890 over the Kentucky River – was a highpoint for me, but the tour of the modern distillery was a little sterile. I’ll definitely go back for the new visitor’s center, but my tour still ended in the tiny tasting room of the cramped old house that served as the visitor’s center. We got to choose three out of five offerings, which unfortunately did not include Kentucky Spirit. Of the five available, the two that I was most interested in were Russell’s Reserve 10-year and Rare Breed. Between the two, Rare Breed was my clear favorite. The nose of Rare Breed was better and the spice in Russell’s Reserve was a little prickly. So I knew that I needed to do a little more research with my own bottle of Rare Breed.
I was pleased to find that it was even better than I had remembered from the tour. Rare Breed has the heat, the flavor complexities and the finish that we’re all looking for. I tend to prefer some more fruit flavors to balance the spice, but I didn’t really miss those flavors here. Occasionally, however, there was some harshness and bitterness. That was usually tamed by a splash of water or a single large ice cube, but as noted above, there’s not much room for error before you over-dilute.
Maybe that’s why they say that Jimmy Russell recommends serving Rare Breed chilled from the freezer. He certainly knows more about bourbon than I’ll ever hope to know, but after several tastings, I still prefer my Rare Breed with a large ice cube in order to open up the sweeter flavors.
As so many more bourbons fly past the $50 mark and beyond, $40 is quickly becoming the new $30 in bourbon, and Rare Breed is knocking on the $40 door. Fortunately, there are several excellent bourbons still priced in the high $20’s and low $30’s; I just wish that Rare Breed was one of them. While it may be on the verge of overpriced, I highly recommend that you include a bottle of Rare Breed in your home bar.
Score on The Sipp’n Corn Scale: 3.5
The Sipp’n Corn Scale:
1 – Wouldn’t even accept a free drink of it.
2 – Would gladly drink it if someone else was buying.
3 – Glad to include this in my bar.
4 – Excellent bourbon. Worth the price and I’m sure to always have it in my bar.
5 – Wow. I’ll search high and low to get another bottle of this.
Brian Haara 