Weller Full Proof (for Melody Whisky Bar)

Weller Full Proof (for Melody Whisky Bar)

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Amber gold
57% ABV
Dram

Nose: Cranberry juice, fresh baked bread, orange peel, walnuts, raisins, hints of cooked rice. With water, cream, raisins, fresh baked bread. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, volatile. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Cranberry juice, orange peel, walnuts, raisins, sandalwood, brown sugar, hints of parchment paper. With water, brown sugar, raisins, blackcurrant cordial, cream. 
Finish: Medium. Raisins, fresh baked bread, salt caramel, orange peel, hints of strawberry jam. 

Comments: 

Rich, fruity, lots of feinty parchment notes that tickle the palate. Brown sugar sweetness vies with creamy, fragrant blackcurrants. Water brings out even more sweetness. Sticky and luscious.

Verdict:

I like this.

Colonel EH Taylor Straight Rye Whiskey

Colonel EH Taylor Straight Rye Whiskey

Official bottling 
Single rye - Kentucky
Amber red
50% ABV
Dram

Nose: Desiccated coconut, strawberries, raisins, black pepper, honey, rye bread. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, loosens, airy, hot. 

Tasting:  Salty sweet. Brown paper, butterscotch, rye bread, strawberry jam, black pepper, toffee. 
Finish: Medium. Brown paper, rye bread, desiccated coconut, hints of honey. 

Comments: 

Not too sweet, in fact it’s got a savoury edge to it, like desiccated coconut, lightly toasted with a pinch of salt. It’s got the standard black pepper and butterscotch, and it’s been bottled at a nice strength.  

Verdict:

I like this.

Eagle Rare 17yo Small Batch

Eagle Rare 17yo Small Batch

Official bottling 
Single bourbon - Kentucky

Red
50.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Strawberry laces, strawberry jam, brown paper, bananas, camphor, hay, hints of black pepper. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, volatile, loosens slightly. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Strawberry laces, black pepper, camphor, brown paper, hay, honey, green tea, hints of orange peel. 
Finish: Medium. Camphor, brown paper, hay, orange peel, cinnamon, hints of bananas. 

Comments: 

Complex, fruity, chockful of those alluring bourbon notes. There’s several layers to this - something grassy underneath the sweet, and something herbal as well. Delicious.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Buffalo Trace Kosher Rye Recipe

Buffalo Trace Kosher Rye Recipe

Official bottling 
Single rye - Kentucky
Amber red
47% ABV
Dram

Nose: Cherries, almonds, orange peel, roses, raisins, hints of black tea. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, astringent, tingly, mouth coating. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Cherries, cough mixture, orange peel, almonds, aluminium foil, black tea, hints of honey. 
Finish: Short. Aluminium foil, cough mixture, cinnamon, honey. 

Comments: 

Delicious rye, lots of spicy cherry flavours, with a metallic tang. Normally, that would be a detractor, but in this case it enhancing. Unusual and tasty whisky.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Pappy van Winkle Family Reserve Bourbon 20yo

Pappy van Winkle Family Reserve Bourbon 20yo

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Amber
45.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: White chocolate, walnuts, buttermilk, sea salt, damson jam. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, oily, thick, creamy. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Butterscotch, sea salt, white chocolate, damson jam, sugared almonds, hints of prunes. 
Finish: Long. Honeycomb, prunes, salted butter, white chocolate. 

Comments: 

Extremely buttery and creamy, with more than a hint of sea salt. This is like some magic combination of Armagnac, whisky and buttermilk liqueur (if such a thing exists). It's pretty amazing. Let's say it's the best bourbon I have ever had.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Old Rip Van Winkle 10yo

Old Rip Van Winkle 10yo

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Amber red
53.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Bananas, raisins, hazelnuts, strawberries, vanilla sponge, golden syrup. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, loosens, warm, slightly oily. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Iron filings, raisins, vanilla custard, sea salt, banana cake, fresh baked bread, hints of golden syrup. 
Finish: Long. Raisins, banana cake, vanilla, cinnamon. 

Comments: 

After many, many years, I've managed to get my grubby paws on another Pappy expression. Very reasonably priced. It was as rich and intense as I remembered it, plenty of cooked bananas and alluring cereally notes. Lovely.

Verdict:

I like this.

Pappy Van Winkle 23 yo Family Reserve

Pappy Van Winkle 23 yo Family Reserve

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Mahogany
47.8% ABV
Dram

Nose: Magic marker, ink, raisins, bananas, peaches, hints of cream. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, mouth coating, oily, syrupy. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Raisins, peaches, cream, red grapes, magic marker, hints of brown paper. 
Finish: Long. Brown paper, photocopy paper, magic marker, red grapes, hints of peaches. 

Comments: 

Tastes delightfully Southern Gothic. There's the usual bananas, but this is overlaid with peaches and red grapes, even some bitter, chemical notes on the nose. This is NOT your usual bourbon. It's incredibly complex and sweet, and so fruity. Very, very good stuff, there's a reason why it's so hard to get.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Blanton's Single Barrel (Barrel 184)

Blanton's Single Barrel (Barrel 184)

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Amber
46.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Bananas, cream, vanilla, brown paper, dried leaves. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, turns watery, slightly fizzy, airy. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Bananas, butterscotch, cream, vanilla, sea salt, dried leaves, hints of earth. 
Finish: Long. Honeydew melon, bananas, vanilla, butterscotch. 

Comments: 

Barrel 184, warehouse H, rick 50, bottled 7 July 2014. Quite specific, the batch! This one is earthy, autumnal, with good sweet bourbony flavours underpinned by salty, musty notes. It's not unpleasant, and the contrast is appealing. One of the more complex bourbons - I enjoyed it very much for just this reason.

Verdict:

I like this.

Stagg Jr 8-9yo

Stagg Jr 8-9yo

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Amber red
67.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Cream, honey, vanilla, brown paper, caramel, plums, hints of roses. With water, sweeter, strawberries, roses, more plums. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, astringent, tingly, warm. 
Tasting: Sweet. Brown paper, caramel, butterscotch, black pepper, plums, hints of honey. With water, less spicy, more brown paper, bananas, strawberries. 
Finish: Long. Cream, honey, butterscotch, black pepper. 

Comments: 

Stagg Jr, son of George T. Stagg, one of the top 3 bourbons I've ever had. And it's strong too! Neat, it's hard to drink, but wonderfully sweet and fruity. Spicy as well, though that's probably just the alcohol. With water it opens up nicely, becoming even sweeter with delicious estery fruit notes. Good, good stuff.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Pappy Van Winkle 15 yo Family Reserve

Pappy Van Winkle 15 yo Family Reserve

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Amber
53.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Bananas, oats, popcorn, maple syrup, vanilla, hints of pears. With water, blackcurrants, raisins.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, mouth coating.
Tasting: Sweet. Oats, popcorn, ink, maple syrup, vanilla, pears, hints of magic marker. With water, sweeter, blackcurrants, strawberries.
Finish: Long. Chillies, popcorn, maple syrup, bananas, magic marker.

Comments:

This is expensive bourbon. The Pappy van Winkle brand seems to command a 100% markup in comparison to other bourbons, and people still order double shots. For me, I... well, I don't really see what the fuss is about. It's tasty stuff for sure, sweet and nutty, like Crunchy Nut cereal, with estery pears. But it's not overly complex and, while it's good bourbon, it's not fantastic.

Verdict:

I like this.

WL Weller 12 yo

WL Weller 12 yo

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Dark amber
45% ABV
Dram

Nose: Brown paper, vanilla, apples, bananas, cream, cornflakes, leather, hints of peaches.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, static, slightly foamy.
Tasting: Sweet. Brown paper, vanilla, apples, bananas, cornflakes, marzipan, caramel, leather, hints of peaches.
Finish: Short. Walnut skins, vanilla, photocopy paper, cream, cornflakes.

Comments:

Milky, rich, sweet bourbon. This is what I've come to expect from Buffalo Trace! It tastes just like before Christmas - at present wrapping time. Very celebratory.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Eagle Rare 17 yo

Eagle Rare 17 yo

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Bright amber
45% ABV
Dram

Nose: Bananas, brown paper, cinnamon, strawberries, kiwi fruit, hints of tobacco leaf.
Mouthfeel: Light body, watery, thickens quickly.
Tasting: Sweet sour. Bananas, orange juice, milk, strawberries, kiwi fruit, hints of almonds.
Finish: Short. Strawberries, brown paper, kiwi fruit.

Comments:

Excellent bourbon, thickens quickly in the mouth. Almost chewy! Pleasant fruity notes, particularly kiwi fruit, which I find very unusual in malt whisky, much less in banana-dominated bourbon. Great stuff, this.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

George T Stagg Bourbon

George T Stagg Bourbon

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Amber rose
72.4% ABV
Dram

Nose: Marshmallows, bananas, raisins, black tea, peat, caramel, cinnamon, hints of rose, hints of lychee.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, astringent, hot, volatile.
Tasting: Sweet. Lemons, raisins, leather, pear, magic marker, cinnamon, rose, hints of nutmeg.
Finish: Medium. Magic marker, rose, coconut.

Comments:

Despite the whopping ABV, no water is needed. This is an incredible bourbon, complex, alluring and fragrant. A little expensive, but worth every penny.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon

Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon

Official bottling
Single bourbon - Kentucky
Orange brown
45% ABV
Sampler

Nose: Honey, sour corn mash, molasses, cough mixture, hints of basil, hints of lavender.
Mouthfeel: Light body, thin and watery.
Tasting: Bitter. Brown paper, caster sugar, mashed potato, barley sugar sweets, hints of plum.
Finish: Medium. Barley sugar, banana, leaf mould.

Comments:

Great bourbon. It has that banana-ey, slightly brackish flavour that I really like in a bourbon. The latter even lasts through the finish, hence the interesting leaf mould flavour noted down above. Much more complex than I expected it to be.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.