Category: Hall of Fame

This is our FIRST EVER SINGLE BARREL of Sazerac Rye. While we normally LOVE this everyday rye for its versatility in cocktails or just sipping neat, what we found at Buffalo Trace has a rye that exceeded all of our expectations. Exceptionally sweet, with a sugar floss and tropical fruit entry which only gets lighter, more ethereal, and flavorful on the finish. Thank candied apple, but instead of an acidic bite to go with the caramelly goodness it’s replaced with a deeply sweet spice note that just lingers.

This started out as an experiment. We were going to take 3 year old Canadian Whiskey and age it in Taxman Belgian Style Dubbel barrels for 6 months. Well, projects and schedules intervened and we never quite got around to bottling it. Fast Forward 3 YEARS, and what we have today might be the most perfectly engineered flavor-forward Canadian whiskey we’ve ever tasted. For starters it spent 3 years in Taxman freshly dumped Belgian Dubbel barrels. Secondly, we bottled it at 100 proof, not very common for a Canadian whiskey, and third, it’s completely unfiltered, so what you’re getting is a masterclass in Canadian and local craft beer barrel ageing. Bottom line, it’s damn good with sweet caramels and vanilla dominating the nose, then exploding with juicy Canadian rye flavor complimented perfectly by the rich sweet maltiness from the dubbel casks. This stuff is LEGIT, and once it’s gone, it’s gone!

Finally a straight forward release. It’s basically just Wild Turkey 101 with an 8 year age statement to celebrate the longest serving Master Distiller in the bourbon industry. Sure, it’s pretty high priced compared to regular Wild Turkey, but I think it’s instructive in the sense that REGULAR Wild Turkey is such a great deal and punches WAY above its weight. Fruit, oak, and honey in perfect harmony on the nose. On the palate, woodsy and sweet with a spicy kick on the mid-palate and finish. It’s straight forward, not finished, not over-aged, perfect whiskey, just the way Jimmy likes it.

I think I’ve been begging for an age stated OGD for the better part of a decade which is why I was so pleased to see a 16yr old Old Grand Dad at 100 proof just drop! Beam’s high rye mashbill is on full display in this allocated offering, serving up licorice, orange marmalade, oak spice, fine leather and an impeccably chewy finish. This is a big, spicy, yet elegant whiskey right at home on the TOP shelf in any collection.

In case you didn’t know, Coy Hill is the highest point on the Jack Daniel’s property, atop which sits Warehouse 8, from which issues the eponymous relesae of this much loved single barrel series. Drawn from middle cut warheouse floors and bottled at cask strength, this particular batch weighs in at 127.2 proof and is everything you’ve come to expect for Jack’s specialty releases in the last several years. It’s beyond rich with caramel, nougat, almond, leather, orange, lime, chocolate, and oak. The palate is a complete masterclass in leather wrapped oak with spice, fruit, and rich butterscotch. Jack makes world-class whiskey, period! And Coy Hill may be their best ever.

The 18th edition of the Parker’s Heritage Collection® consists of 14-year-old Malt Whiskey aged in the upper floors of Rickhouses O and Q. Then, barrels that previously held Cognac were reconstructed to include a handful of new heavy toast staves. The Malt Whiskey was then rebarreled in the reconstructed barrels and aged for almost four months. Bottled at 107 proof without chill filtration, the rebarreling transforms the Malt Whiskey’s earthy, herbal characteristics into complex notes of molasses, dark chocolate, and dried summer fruit.

If you ever wondered if Booker’s was capable of releasing a “next level” bourbon, you can wonder no more…this is it. It’s a blend of 8 different bourbons from 8 different warehouses ranging from 8yrs old to 14 years old, taken from the middle cut of the warehouse and bottled at cask strength, with no filtration. Brown sugar and dark cherry on the nose with the deepest, sweetest caramel and vanilla notes I’ve ever tasted in a Beam release…candy, candy, candy, with just a touch of spice on the finish. I thought the Birthday Bourbon and Russell’s Reserve 15 couldn’t be beat this year. I think this just beat it!

Some of the oldest Maker’s Mark barrels EVER to be bottled including 85% 13yr old whisky, the 2024 Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged pushes into the deepest darkest char notes I’ve ever tasted from this brand. These barrels have been sitting in a 47 degree cellar though since 2017, mitigating some of the effects of longer ageing on this relatively delicate and fruit forward distillate. The result is a flavor juggernaut with layers of nougat, brown sugar, and very intense oak leading into darker fruit territory throughout.

Freddie Noe’s latest Little Book, “The Infinite” contains casks laid down by three generations of Beams, including 20yr old made by Booker, 14yr old made by Fred, 7yr old made by Freddie and a dash of shared 8yr. The result, one of the best damn bourbons ever produced by the Beams. No foxy orange yeast note to be found here, just insanely rich fruit notes along with brown sugar, spice, and caramel. It’s the closest flavor to the experience of walking into a bourbon warehouse for the first time, just very finely rendered wood and sugar! Bottled at 119.3 proof.

This year’s Master’s Keep is a 104 proof 10+ year old non-chill filtered rye whiskey that’s not playing games. It’s big, bold, spicy, sweet, with extra char but enough rye spice to lighten things up JUST enough to keep it from falling over from the oak. A touch of citrus throughout both the nose and palate along with a very complex fruit note akin to grilled peaches. This doesn’t taste like ANYTHING else out that, and for once, that’s a good thing!