Kentucky, Day 4: Bardstown

I started writing this post a few days ago, and now I'm completing it on a day when many of my coworkers and friends were laid off. And I'm doing so without a drink in hand. The optimism of the first half of the post is genuine, but no promises about the second half.

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Downtown Bardstown won me over instantly. It's so cute! A bunch of restaurants, independent shops, coffee houses, bars, and at least one good liquor store. It all closes up very early though.

Thousands of acres of bright green not-quite-bluegrass surrounds the town. And upon that land stands a number of distilleries and their warehouses. Thus I booked two nights in Bardstown.

My original goal was to wake up early and walk a few miles of Bernheim Forest. I did neither. And in a rare moment of insanity, I arrived at my first facility early.

Though I have no pictures of the Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience, there are plenty of notes staring back at me right now. Heaven Hill's actual distillery operates in Louisville, but their offsite Experience offers more whiskey stuff than Evan Williams in River City (more on that in a few days). At the Experience I chose the "Grain to Glass Tasting Experience" experience.

That Heaven Hill had partnered with independent farmers to make spirit-forward whiskies I had known, but not much more than that. The Grain to Glass range offers a bourbon, wheated bourbon, and rye. With the corn (strain Becks 6198) and wheat grown at Peterson Farms. The event lets tourists try each of the three, get all the supply chain details, and receive a Heaven Hill history lesson.

While the wheated bourbon and rye rumble in at barrel strength, the rye-d bourbon is bottled at a lower strength, 52%abv. Each has a 6-year age statement. And, yes, they are spirit-forward, but in a calmer fashion than Craft whiskey. For what it's worth, I enjoyed all three, but the straight rye won (surprise!), it also took to water much better than American whiskey usually does.

Heaven Hill stats: The founding family, the Shapiras, still owns the company with Kate Shapira running the show. (Yes you read that correctly, a woman of Jewish lineage oversees a massive American whiskey company. 🩷)  Within their 83 warehouses, in seven different locations, Heaven Hill has the second-highest volume of aging whiskey in the country; 2.6 million barrels, with Beam edging them out at 2.8 million. The current distillery produces 450K barrels per year, while a new smaller distillery in the works.

If you have not seen any of the footage of the 1996 Heaven Hill fire, I strongly recommend you do so. The images may be triggering for some of my California readers, specifically the size and intensity of the conflagration's flames. As the company rebuilt its facilities in the late '90s, many of the other major distilleries provided whisky for Heaven Hill to bottle so that business wouldn't stop completely. One wonders if the industry would be so united today.

On a final note, I may have discovered why I find HH's whiskies so much more palatable than most of the other distilleries' products. The majority of major bourbon distilleries use a #4 or #5 char inside their barrels, while Heaven Hill uses #3 char. Could that lead more graceful aging, more spirit notes, and less bitterness? I think so.

And then I went to Willett...

I'll start with the positives. The tour guide, Ila, was EXCELLENT. The distillery has three cats, which gets three thumbs up from me. And there's a large black rooster that appeared on their grounds one day and then never left.

So that's pretty cool. The two guys behind me on the tour making B.B.C. jokes about it were not very cool.

On the tour I tried nine of their whiskies (all of them distilled on site), and liked none of them. The rye, of all things, was the most difficult to drink. The bourbons were all very bitter and acidic. The rye was such a shock because, after all the years of gorgeous MGP-sourced single barrels, the product with the same bottles and labels now contain unbalanced Craft rye. Expensive unbalanced Craft rye. Maybe it gets better after 4 years?

Here's the rundown of Willett info: They have seven five-story rickhouses, none of which are temperature controlled. They do not rotate their barrels (similar to Four Roses but with very different results). Their mash gets 2-3 days of fermentation (in their seven 10K fermenters) until the beer is 8-10%abv. Each whiskey comes from a small batch, 18-24 barrels (#4 char).

After buying a bottle of Noah's Mill — Why? I don't know. — I drove to downtown Bardstown for dinner at the Talbott Inn bar. Then I walked around until the sun set. This old body started feeling beaten up by all the booze. Weather reports said there'd be no rain the next day. So I tumbled into bed, setting my alarm so that I'd wake up early enough to get to Bernheim Forest before my lone distillery tour...

Willett Family Estate 8 year old rye, barrel 1433

MGP's 95%-rye recipe is the best rye whiskey in the world. FIGHT ME. Actually don't fight me, I'm kinda scrawny and have no rotator cuffs to speak of. That's right, I'll never grow up to be the ambidextrous knuckleball-flinging middle reliever I dreamt of becoming. So here I am, medicating drinking booze on a school night during baseball season.

Long-long-longtime readers may remember that I absolutely adore Willett's single barrels of MGP rye. I dip into the stuff once every other year to make sure the quality remains sharp. This time, I thought I'd bring you with me. Wish I could share the whiskey with you, my one reader! Instead, here's my first Willett rye review in nearly six years.

Distillery: MGP's own Ross & Squibb Distillery

Bottler: Willett Distilling Company
Range: Family Estate Single Barrel (WFE)

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 8 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Barrel: 1433

Alcohol by Volume: 57.4%
(from a bottle split)

NOTES

Sure there's rye bread aplenty in the nose, but it's snuggled within layers of fresh apricots and plums, anise, flower blossoms, sour apple candy, brown sugar, and brine (more ocean than pickle).

It's very, very drinkable at this strength, with the palate balancing sea salt, sweet plums, tangy chiles, bitter raw cocoa, and hints of butterscotch hard candies. It gains mint, blackberry juice, and a little bit of pipe tobacco after 30+ minutes in the glass.

The finish holds onto many of the palate notes. Tangy chile peppers, tangy berries, sweet plums, and lots of salt. A little bit of wood smoke and mint leaf in the background too.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

After this tasting, I feel very reassured that my senses haven't totally collapsed into cynicism. Willett's MGP rye still works wonders on my palate. Yum.

The word "balance" gets overused on this blog, but I rarely wield it when reviewing American whiskies, as those spirits tend to be almost entirely about oak extraction. And the enormity of rye spirit doesn't really offer symmetry as one of its features. But, damn, this 8 year old rye barrel's got it, from the nose to the palate to the finish. Grand spirit and stellar cask management meet again. And to think I complained when this stuff was $80.

Availability - Secondary market
Pricing - *looks, sighs, shrugs*
Rating - 90

Willett Family Estate 24 year old 1984 Single Barrel Rye, barrel 637

This is one of my Apocalypse Pours. My family is safe and healthy but I know of other families that are not. So what the hell.

Here's one of the old Willett gems some American fellows speak of in whispers or flip for thousands of bones. This barrel was selected by Bonili, a Japanese distributor, during Willett's early wax top years. I've heard it referred to as 24/110. It may have been distilled at Old Bardstown Distillery, or perhaps on the surface of Ganymede. In either case, this stuff ain't bein' distilled no more.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers, Ltd. (a.k.a. Willett)
Range: Family Estate Single Barrel (WFE)
Distillery: Old Bardstown?
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 24 years

Maturation: White Oak

Region: Kentucky
Barrel: 637
Outturn: 264
Selected by: Bonili Japan Co., Ltid.

Alcohol by Volume: 55%
(888 thank yous to Secret Agent Man for sharing!)

The nose begins with rye bread, Irish soda bread, fennel seed, cherry shisha and antique shop (the big furniture room). A caramel sauce-laden ice cream sundae. Old armagnac spilled on old newspapers. It reads very dusty, as if it were from the '50s or '60s rather than the '80s.

On the palate, the oak has travelled far beyond the boring bitterness of Diageo's 15-25 year old Orphan Barrels, and into a dense medicinal realm. Eucalyptus, mint and arugula leaves. Its earthiness is balanced by a Dr. Brown's cherry soda sweetness. After 45 minutes it tilts savory and picks up some curry-like spices.

The finish ditches the sweetness for medicine and earth. More eucalyptus and mint leaves. Hints of cigarette smoke in the back ground.

There's always a sparring whisky on hand for every tasting here. But this time I had nothing to compare this to. I pulled wee pours of 8 and 12 year old Willett single bourbon casks, but those knelt sheepishly in the shadow of this 24yo. As per notes above, this had such a romantic dusty edge that it felt like it was distilled one or two generations earlier than it actually was. Its syrup-thick concentrated texture may have been the rye's loveliest element. If one could hold time in a glass...

Availability - ???
Pricing - ???

Rating - 91

Willett Week Two: 8 year old rye, barrel 1408

On Monday, there was a dazzling 6yo rye.
On Wednesday, there was a curious but very good 7yo rye.
Today, it's an 8 year old rye.

All three of these were tasted during one long evening...

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (also known as Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett
Range: Family Estate Single Barrel (WFE)
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 8 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Barrel: 1408

Alcohol by Volume: 58.8%
(From a purchased sample)

Cocoa, tobacco and smoky toffee register loudest in the nose. Then cherry medicine, saline, apricot jam and mint. There's also a considerable phenolic/medicinal/bandage note floating around. The palate leads with toffee, citrus, pine sap and a crisp rye zing. The citrus and sweetness grow with time, but are kept in check by a burly pepperiness. The looooong finish is boldy tangy and earthy. Full of cloves and brown sugar.

This is a grand warm winter rye. Reading-by-the-fireplace stuff. Willett emptied this barrel right on time. At 8 years, the spirit has matured well, picking up depth and darkness (if I may be esoteric) without even a whisper of vanilla, butter or sawdust to be found. It's highly recommended, though I doubt a single bottle of this barrel remains on any primary market.

*  *  *  *  *

All three of these ryes are recommended, and they bested all three of last week's Willett bourbons. Because the American secondary market remains an illegal operation, I cannot publicly suggest you purchase these bottles secondhand. But as far as I can tell that's the only way to buy Willett single barrel MGP ryes, unless the distillery still puts them on their gift shop shelves. Good luck hunting one down!

Availability - Secondary market?
Pricing - ???

Rating - 89

Willett Week Two: 7 year old rye, barrel 56

On Monday, I reviewed a powerful scrumptious MGP-distilled Willett rye. It was 6 years old. Today, it's a 7 year old. And, it's my bottle!

I brought it along to the recent whiskey tasting that I've referenced a few times on this blog. From what I gathered no one there had ever tried something like this before. It elicited lots of Whoas. No one hated it. But I gathered that it was more respected than loved.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (also known as Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett
Range: Family Estate Single Barrel (WFE)
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 7 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Barrel: 56

Alcohol by Volume: 57.2%
(From my bottle)

The nose has a layer of orange, cherry and lime hard candies. Some bubblegum too. But it also has a dirty, salty, candle wax layer which reminds me, oddly, of Clynelish. Some ham. After a while it flashes moments of cherry blossoms (I'm an asshole for that one). While those nose notes are often quite quiet, the palate is much louder. Tart citrus, mint and tart cherries. Mellower spirit action than in the 6yo. A mild bitterness. A medicinal note and seaweed saltiness. Citrus and cherries in the finish too, though it's never sweet. A little bitter and tart. More rye spirit. Grows saltier with time.

Fascinating. Its sniffer was silent for almost ten minutes, and didn't really open up for nearly a half hour. I wasn't worried about oxidation because I sealed off samples as soon as I'd opened the bottle. Meanwhile the palate was just as rockin' as any MGP rye. Then there are all the (good, but weird) coastal single malt Scotch notes. They're not the whole show, in fact they're sort of tertiary. But they're there. The finish was very solid and the palate never tumbles into sweetness or oakiness. It's very good overall, but no match for the 6yo.

Availability - Secondary market?
Pricing - ???
Rating - 86

Willett Week Two: 6 year old rye, barrel 124

Willett's MGP-distilled rye is my favorite American whiskey. The single barrels vary, but they always deliver a tremendous and nuanced experience. Last week, I did a whole schpiel about the crazy pricing of Willett's single barrel bourbons. I won't do the same for the ryes because I already covered that territory here and here. Needless to say, they ain't selling for $40 a pop anymore.

Because they're scarce and because they ain't $40, we no longer open two Willett ryes each year here. Maybe one every two years at this rate. But I was able to align three samples of the current era of WFE single barrels to compare and contrast in one sitting. And, hey, it's even a verticale this time!

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (also known as Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett
Range: Family Estate Single Barrel (WFE)
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 6 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Barrel: 124

Alcohol by Volume: 58.7%
(From a purchased sample)

The nose begins with saline and candied fennel seed (which is a thing). Then black licorice and peach candy. It also has a dirtier side that moves to the forefront with time. It strikes of industrial grease and drywall dust. It's the most expressive nose of the three ryes. The happily not-hot palate is full of Luxardo cherries, clementines, smoked whole cloves (a thing?), mint leaves, brown sugar, and charred chiles. This runs along a bass rumble of rye power, a robust bundle of peppers and dry spices that almost reads smoky at times. It finishes with spicy cherries, chiles, molasses, salt and a burst of rye spirit. And it's so long...

I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel a burst of melancholy on the last sip. Of the three ryes, this one was most reminiscent of what once was.......those $40-$50 4-6yos we were much spoiled to have four years ago.

I'm going to set those romantic memories right over here, so I can continue this post.

This is an excellent rye. Each new characteristic, spun out by the grain, merges perfectly with every element that came before. The oak has done its subtle work without intruding. And then finish is right on pitch and unending. Damn.

Availability - Secondary market?
Pricing - ???
Rating - 90

Willett Week One: 11 year old bourbon, barrel 268

And here's the last of the three Willett Family Estate Single Barrel bourbons that we tried last weekend. The first bourbon (a 7yo for TPS) was fine, short on character but otherwise decent. The second (an 11yo for Wine & Cheese Place) was almost great. They were certainly different than each other. And this third bourbon follows suit, playing its own tune.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (also known as Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett
Range: Family Estate Single Barrel (WFE)
Type: Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Age: 11 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in/by ???)
Barrel: 268
Exclusive to: whomever bought a bottle

Alcohol by Volume: 62.6%
(Thanks to Florin for the sample, again.)

Okay... So, it's 62.6%abv. Kristen says it's "light". I say it's "kinda dead". It needs more than 20 minutes to arise. Before the nose opens, is just faint apples and honey. But then comes the orange peel, pumpkin pie spices and lots of vanilla bean. There is zero burn. Though the palate does open up with time, all I find are vague things. It's tangy, briny, peppery and a little savory. Some brown sugar. Picks up some verve with time, getting tarter and louder. The finish is mostly brine and lemon pepper. Tannic. Plenty of barrel char.

While none of these three bourbons were crap, this bourbon was the least good. If you're an impatient drinker, you may find yourself bored with the whiskey. But if you give it some time, at least the nose grows nicely. The palate is fine, no better, no worse. It's in this bourbon's finish where the oak factor overwhelms, for the lone time among the three whiskies.

Of the three bourbons, this one had the most rye character to it, but was probably still from a low-rye mashbill. Not that high-rye is must for me, but having more of that particular grain in play may have helped the first and third bourbons. The second bourbon, the 11yo for Wine and Cheese Place, would have been smashing if not for the questionable finish. Are any of these worth hundreds of dollars? No. But that's one man's opinion.

Availability - Secondary market
Pricing - Big bucks
Rating - 79

Willett Week One: 11 year old bourbon, barrel 2364 for Wine and Cheese Place

Since I spent two paragraphs musing on the secondary market prices of the Willett Family Estate single barrel bourbons on Monday, I shan't waste any words on it today. Instead, here are my notes on the second of the three WFE bourbons that my wife and I sampled this past weekend.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (also known as Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett
Range: Family Estate Single Barrel (WFE)
Type: Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Age: 11 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in/by ???)
Barrel: 2364
Exclusive to: Wine and Cheese Place

Alcohol by Volume: 58.55%
(Thanks to Florin for the sample!)

The nose is plum gorgeous. It mixes tropical fruit and flower notes, with raspberry jam and wood smoke. After 20+ minutes comes the vanilla and toffee. This sets up an expectation of a rich dessert whiskey on the palate. But that doesn't turn out to be the case. While there are some sweet tropical and salted caramel notes, it has some nuts, wood smoke and sharp limey citrus (Kristen went with lemon). It's also the hottest of the three bourbons. The finish is a little odd, with a fizzy, salty, tart burn to it. There's some smoke and mint too.

It smells fabulous and the palate has more complexity than the 7yo I reviewed on Monday. The only thing that keeps me from raving about this is the strange sensation left behind by the finish. Kristen experienced this same thing and found it to be a bit hot overall. Still, it's the most enjoyable of this week's three bourbons and dishes out less oaky violence than other bourbons its age.

Availability - Secondary market
Pricing - Big bucks
Rating - 85 (lost a few points on the finish)

Willett Week One: 7 year old bourbon, barrel 255 for The Party Source

There comes a time when we heed a certain call,
When the blogger must review
Two weeks worth of Willetts.

This week, I'll report on three Family Estate Single Barrel bourbons. Next week, it'll be the ryes.

Though I may not like secondary market prices on bourbons, I usually understand where the valuation comes from. The Van Winkle collection is well known even outside of whiskey circles. The Buffalo Trace Antique Collection is perpetually in demand and often delivers high quality. Defunct distillery whiskies are part of history and in limited supply.

But I don't understand why the Willett single barrel bourbons are pulling astronomical asking prices. I'm not talking about the 20+ year old stuff. I'm referring to the 6-12 year old wax top bourbons that sell for Van Winkle prices. The Willett Family Estate Single Barrel brand isn't known outside of whiskey geek circles, and the majority of barrels are sourced from existing distilleries. So the naive sexy/lusty factor is lower than the whiskies named in the above paragraph. And it's not like there were just a few barrels laid out. There have been hundreds. So I'm stumped.

Musing complete. On to the review.

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I sampled all three of this week's whiskies together — yes it was one of those nights — in order to get some proper perspective. As an added bonus, Kristen joined the Taste Off! First up is a 7 year old single barrel that was sold exclusively through The Party Source several years ago.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (also known as Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett
Range: Family Estate Single Barrel (WFE)
Type: Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Age: 7 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in/by ???)
Barrel: 255
Bottle: 28 or 164
Exclusive to: The Party Source

Alcohol by Volume: 60.1%
(Thanks to Florin for the sample!)

This one has the most violent nose of the three, bringing heat and chlorine at first. But it opens up after 10-15 minutes, showing off cherry candy / marasca syrup, apricot jam, cocoa powder and flower blossoms. The heavy palate is full of sugar and salt, almond extract, and corn bread. There's a tiny bit of lemon zest and oranges. A complete lack of rye. The finish is sharper than the palate, with more barrel char and bitterness. But it also has a lightly sweet and aromatic layer beneath the noise.

Kristen immediately noticed the chlorine character too. But she also found more positive notes of vanilla and rosemary.

The first thing I noticed was how freaking heavy full-strength bourbon is when one has been drinking primarily "Japanese" whisky for a few weeks. So it took a while for my palate to adjust. Luckily, this one requires some time in the glass.

The nose is the highlight here. The palate is pretty straightforward, though I wish there had been more rye and/or fruit notes present. That goes for the finish as well. Overall, it probably has no major flaws, but it lacks the complexity of similarly aged WFE rye.

The next two bourbons are a little older...

As for this 7yo...

Availability - Secondary market
Pricing - A lot. And if this had a wax top then it's a lot a lot allot.
Rating - 83

NOT Single Malt Report: Noah's Mill Bourbon, batch 15-18

Upon the recommendation of one Bourbon Truth, I purchased a bottle of Noah's Mill, batch 15-18.  I'd drunk Noah's at bars before but never my own bottle.  Mr. Truth was so very ecstatic about this particular batch, and I found a bottle for such a good price while in Arizona, that I risked a blind buy.  After I bought the bottle, I found an emphatic negative review of this same batch by Reddit user XenonBloom, then a moderately positive one by user ShooterFlatch.  I handed out some samples from my bottle to get some feedback.  My friend Linda, who knows bourbon probably better than I, liked the whiskey a lot.  My Annoying Opinions has a sample and once his sniffer is back to 100% functioning power, you may see his review of this bottle.  (And I'll try to remember to post a link of his review when it's up.)

Though bottled by the Willett folks, Noah's Mill was distilled by the Midwest Grain Products WonderFactory™ another undisclosed Kentucky distillery.  It used to have a 15 year old age statement, but now it's NAS.  I've read online that it's now a mix of bourbons between 4 and 20 years old, but I don't know if that's just rumor.  What is curious about Noah's Mill is that nowhere on the bottle is the word "Straight".  As in "Straight Bourbon Whiskey".  Does this mean there are additives in the mix?  Or are they using whiskies younger than 4 years, and thus by not stating the <4yo age, they then can't call it "Straight"?  I know they're not required to use the Straight designation, but it just seems a little odd to me.  Anyway, on to the review!

Brand: Noah's Mill

Owner: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers Ltd, (aka Willett Distillery)
Distillery: unknown, other than that it's in Kentucky
Type: Bourbon

Mashbill: ???
Age: ??? (maybe 4 to 20 years, thus maybe 4 years)
Batch: 15-18
Alcohol by Volume: 57.15%

NEAT
Right up front, the nose shows furniture polish, lumberyard, roasted corn, and honey.  It opens up considerably with air, picking up flower blossoms and an orange meringue thing.  Burnt vanilla beans (if that's a thing).  A hint of mango juice and confectioner's sugar.  On the palate the heat reads as chili oil.  It's not too sweet, but rather leafy with some bitter chocolate and halvah.  With some breathing time it picks up some white fruit juices and almonds.  It has a BIG tannic finish.  Very spicy, almost rye-ish.  Lots of black pepper and burnt toast.  Caramel, vanilla, and barrel char.

WITH WATER (~50%abv)
The nose gets fruitier and reveals some nice green herbal notes.  Less oak, more old school Robotussin.  Melting sugar and rock candy.  Not much change in the palate.  Less heat, more sweet.  More black pepper than chili oil now.  A slight tart and bitter bite.  The finish is also sweeter.  Still drying and tannic with bitter wood notes.

COMMENTS:
I love the nose on this one, though it needs a lot of time to open up and adding some water won't hurt it either.  Two things I like about the palate: A.) it's not super sweet; and B.) the oak is the quietest here.  The palate doesn't take to water as well, so overall I'd recommend it neat, even with the high ABV.  Like the nose, the palate works best with a lot of breathing time.  The oak does roar back into the finish, so be prepared for that.  When it comes to big American oak, I think it works much better in American whiskies (appropriately) than in Scottish ones.  But here the finish's wood attack is a bit above my tolerances.  I will naively guess there's quite some old whiskey in this batch or else the barrels were extra active.  It still makes its way into the "B" range because the nose is so good.

If you can find this batch for less than $50 and you have a high oak tolerance, then I recommend it.  But if your retailer is selling it for $60+ and you're more of a Scotch fan, my recommendation would be much less emphatic.

Availability - Noah's is widely available at US specialty liquor retailers, look for the brown sticker on the side of the bottle (see above photo) for the batch number
Pricing - $45-$65
Rating - 84

NOT Single Malt Report: Willett 6 year old Family Estate Single Barrel #122

And then there was Willett.  Of course there was going to be a Willett.  This is Diving for Pearls, so you can be sure of three things when you visit this site.  One, I'll give Single Pot Still Irish whiskeys ridiculously high scores.  Two, I'll bitch about all prices all the time.  Three, there will be Willett.

Once upon a time (as recently as two years ago), Willett Family Estate Single Barrel ryes were 4-6 years old, bottled at 55%abv, and were priced from $40-$55.  At the height of their popularity these regular releases were replaced by barrel proof versions, aged 6-8 years, and priced from $80-$200.  I remember the first time I saw a 7yo Willett selling for $129.99.  I came home and told my wife, "Willett has arrived."  It was now priced for "collectors", or rich dumb shits, or I don't know.  Now considered to be in the same realm as the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof, and Weller 12, these single barrel Willetts are priced far from the grasp of the original fans.  Much of this has to do with retailers bloating prices.  But it does seem as if the suggested retail prices are as follows: 6yo - $80; 7yo - $90; 8yo - $120.  I bought one six and two sevens, spending more than I ever have (and probably ever will) for an American whiskey, and then I bid Willett adieu.  I covered all of this better in a post last year.

This is my bottle of one of the 6 year old single barrels.  I opened it this winter because we were repeatedly told that El Niño was going to open up the skies and everyone in California needed to build an ark.  And nothing is better than sitting next to a crackling fireplace, sipping Willett with someone you love, while rain thrums against the roof.  So open the bottle we did!  And then it never rained.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (also known as Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 6 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Barrel: 122
Bottle: no info listed

Alcohol by Volume: 58.2%

The last of the four MGP ryes this week, this is the only one that actually came from my stash.  Specifically, this pour came from about the midpoint.  No water was added

The nose is remarkably fruity at first.  Lots of musty overripe tropical fruits and orange oil.  Toasted oak and toasted almonds arise from underneath eventually taking over, mingling with smaller notes of mint, caramel, and vanilla bean.  With 20+ minutes in the glass, the rye grows darker (if something can smell darker). Burnt bacon and wood smoke notes meet arugula and jalapeños.

Enormous pepper and dill notes are balanced out by brown sugar and dark cherry sweetness in the palate.  Sometimes there's a bright fresh note like lemon-cucumber water, but then that's swooped away by raspberry-syrup-filled dark chocolate.  With time the pepper note moves from black corns to cayenne.  Things get a little earthy and bitter, though again it's met with a fruity sweetness.

In the finish there's toffee and bubblegum, but also peppercorns and a slight herbal bitterness.  Some dark cherry syrup.  Marzipan and mint.  A rye seed or two.  Tremendous length.

COMMENTS:
You know, I'd prepared this whole screed about how this was not only not worth the $200 prices dumb retailers are selling it for, but that it wasn't even worth the $80 I'd paid for it.  But, it is worth the $80 I paid for it.  This whiskey, like a number of Willetts before it, has the It Factor.  It's in a different league than the other three ryes this week, though two of them were quite good.  Is it better than the the ol' $45 4 year olds?  Possibly not.  But if one takes quality into account, those 4yos were underpriced (gasp! I said it!).  Other than the BTAC Thomas H. Handy releases, there was no comparable rye on the market back then, and those THHs started at $80.  Is this whiskey worth $200?  NOPE.  That's not an insult.  This is the first time I've found a contemporary American whiskey to be worth nearly $100.

So, what is this It Factor?  It begins with the most exotic nose I've ever experienced on a rye, but then the nose progresses, developing into new angles, never drifting too oaky or spirity.  The palate also takes on different personalities, but also remains totally in balance throughout.  The finish brings in new characteristics and flexes plenty of stamina.  I have no idea how the Kulsveens do this, but they do it.

Tomorrow, I'll reveal what my wife though of these four ryes, and if we need the UN to help sort out the ensuing conflict.

Availability - This barrel may have sold out, but there are other 6yo Willet ryes out there
Pricing - I bought this one for $79.99, but have seen other 6s selling north of $100
Rating - 90

Whisky #401: Willett 2 year old Family Estate Small Batch Rye (54.05%abv batch)

Well, you knew this was coming...

Kristen and I tried this two year old rye right alongside the Willett MGP 4yo that I reviewed on Tuesday.  It gave us quite a perspective on this new thing.

As mentioned on Tuesday, this 2 year old was distilled at Willett's own distillery.  The rye it is replacing in the Family Estate series had been distilled by Midwest Grain Products.  That MGP rye was much beloved in my home.  I'm a little late to the game in reviewing this 2yo.  Hell, even MAO beat me to it by a week.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (also known as Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 2 years

Maturation: New American Oak
Mashbill Recipe: 80% high rye (74% rye, 11% corn, 15% malted barley) + 20% low rye (51% rye, 34% corn, 15% malted barley)

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky

Alcohol by Volume: 54.05%
(Thanks to smokeypeat for the sample!)

Once again my most special of guests, Kristen, contributes to this review.  Please see her notes in italics.

The color is similar to the MGP 4yo, though probably slightly lighter.  The nose begins like a piney cleaning fluid.  Rubber cement.  Elmer's glue.  Definitely an adhesive.  Thin, industrial.  Gradually some pear, rye seeds, and peanut brittle notes emerge.  Then comes those small sweet orange-ish lemons that gringos call Mexican lemons.  Sometimes it's kind of aquatic.  Chlorine.  It gets a little floral with a lot of air, but also gains a sharp cheese note.  The palate starts off sweet.  Sweeter than the nose lets on.  Vaguely fruity.  Red Hots candies, sort of reminiscent of The Rye Storm.  Cheddar cheese along with something green and herbal.  It's still fruity.  Just a hint of vanilla.  A simple sharp spice stab.  The finish is sweet as well.  There's a bit of lemon.  Also cinnamon, chlorine, and cheese.

Kristen's comments: Thinner than the 4 year old, and with less depth, it's okay on its own.  More alcohol in the palate and nose too.  The four year old is fuller, richer, with deeper vanilla and spice notes.

I'm not going to disagree with my wife on that.  It's a much different rye than the ol' 4.  Kristen quickly picked out which was which when trying the two blindly.

This 2yo has been reviewed by Sku, MAO, and Bourbon Truth, three heavy hitters who tell it like it is, shoot straight, and some other cliché.  If they don't like something, they state as much.  Yet, I think they all like this rye better than I do.  Though (and this may be important) they appear to have had a different (54.7%abv) batch.  Smokeypeat, also a swell whisky fellow, from whom I obtained this sample, did like this batch a lot so please see his review for another take.

To me this seems like a work in progress (WIP), an early prototype.  With American whiskey enthusiasm being what it is and the desire for companies to get something on offer while people are throwing their money around, it seems like this is another whiskey that needs some more time to bake before it's solid.  (Sorry for the mess of metaphors.)  It's not bad, but it is thin, a little flat, feels heavy on white dog, and lean on the finish.  I'm the last guy to shout for More Oak, but this needs more time in the barrel.

I really want Willett to succeed, but I just can't recommend this rye to anyone at its $50 price tag.  Had they labelled it as a WIP and priced it at $25-$30, I'd be happy to buy a bottle to support them.  But not this, not yet.

Availability - Most specialty retailers

Pricing - $40-$60

Rating - 78

Whisky #400: R.I.P. Willett 4 year old Family Estate Single Barrel MGP Rye

The bottle! It's disappearing!

If I had to pick my favorite American whiskey right off the top of my head it would be Willett's Single Barrel MGP-distilled rye.  It was the first rye I drank neatly, and it was luff at first sight.  It's also the only whisk(e)y that my wife requests by name; it's the only one that we drink together; it's the only one that we speak of when it's not around.

The last four year old Willett MGP rye I bought was found at a good source in Los Angeles.  One bottle remained (thank you to whomever bought the previous bottle and left one behind), I bought it not realizing it would be my last.  But before I delve into my thoughts on this brand, let me deliver the review for those who clicked over here for it.

---

THE REVIEW

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (also known as Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 4 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Barrel: 98
Bottle: 159/204

Alcohol by Volume: 55%

For today's review, I have special guest.  Kristen!  As mentioned above she is also a Willett fan, so please see her notes in italics.

The color is grade A maple syrup.  The nose leads with both cassia and ceylon cinnamon sticks.  Caramel sauce on vanilla ice cream.  Cumin, black pepper.  Cloves, vanilla, holiday baking.  It's as if someone went overboard with the spices in a carrot cake.  Maybe a hint of wood smoke.  Orange peel.  Ah she beat me to it, orange peel.  The palate, mmmmm.  Atomic fireball candy.  A balance of sweets and spices.  Lots of brown sugar.  Chili powder in limoncello.  Sticky cinnamon syrup, cloves.  Grilled pear.  Pumpkin pie.  The finish is all of the warming baking spices.  Okay, I'll try to list 'em...clove, pepper, cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg.  Cinnamon, oranges.  Something reminiscent of mulled wine, perhaps its the spices.  Rich toffee.

I wouldn't say it's the most complex of the Willetts we've had, but it's really really tasty.  We didn't find any of the dill (or pickle juice) notes here; it's just all sweets and spice.  It's a whiskey winter hug.  There are other very good MGP ryes out there, but something about the Kulsveen/Willett warehouses really pulls these Family Estaters up above the rest.

Availability - Here and there, but not really here anymore

Pricing - See the shpiel below

Rating - 89

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THE SHPIEL!

For a number of years, the Willett Distilling Company was an NDP (non-distilling producer), thus bottling and releasing bourbons and ryes that had been distilled at other distilleries.  One of their highly esteemed brands was the "Family Estate" single barrels.  Some of these Family Estate whiskies were grand oldies from Stitzel-Weller or Old Bernheim, but many were younger whiskies from the Midwest Grain Products (formerly Lawrenceburg Distillers Indiana) facility.  All the while, the Willett folks were building up revenue and investment capital in order to refurbish and reopen their own distillery which had closed in the '80s.  And, as of 2012, they were again distilling their own spirit.

While the Family Estate bourbons are very good, it's the Family Estate MGP rye that I adore.  There were some 3 year old bottlings floating around several years ago, and the occasional 5 and 6 year old.  But most of the Family Estate ryes were labelled as 4 years of age.  Though they were all from different individual barrels, the ryes were always of substantial quality.  By late 2013, these ryes were becoming more difficult to find and in 2014 they were almost gone.  The same year (2014), Willett began releasing the rye they had distilled themselves, a 2 year old, under the Family Estate label.  There were secondhand and thirdhand reports that their MGP rye's popularity had put a serious drain on that particular stock in the Willett warehouses, but at the same time the company had its own product (with a different mashbill and source), didn't want to create brand confusion, and likely wanted to avoid competing with itself.

While Willett's MGP rye holds a lot of sentimental value for me, I'm not going to pretend that I've been drinking it for my whole life.  It's really only been 3+ years.  But over those 3+ years I watched the price of the 4yo go from $35 to $40 to $45 to $50.  The few remaining bottles I've spied recently were $55.  And that was at the same retailer that had it at $35 three years ago (a 57% price jump).  Because the whiskey's quality is reliably high, I had no problem paying $40-$45 for 4 year old.  Then, I paused for a moment before paying $50.  When I saw a bunch for $55, I walked away with my wallet in my pocket.  Of course all of those ryes were gone a month later when I had reconsidered.  Now the Willett-distilled 2 year old can be found everywhere at the 4yo's $50ish pricetag.  Meanwhile, now there are 6, 7, and 8 year old Willett MGP ryes hitting the shelves at $80-$140.  Clearly these are earmarked as the higher end of the brand and at the lower segment of that price range, they are flying off the shelves.

So we, the consumers, have been paying the price the market has set.  We'll scramble after the $55 4yo until it's gone, and we'll pay twice that amount for a similar rye just a little older.  I bought one 6yo and two 7s when I found them at their lowest local prices.  The price I paid for the second 7yo was the most I've ever paid for an American whiskey.  While I love the product and am sure these will be lovely bottles, that's the last time I'm blindly dishing out that sort of money for an American whiskey.  Even a Willett.  The market says that's the price, thus once again I'm priced out of the market.

I might be convinced to buy one more 4yo at the current rate, if I find a bottle after my Whisky Freeze has ended.  But that'll be it for me.  The product I sought, the 4 year old, is scarce and now replaced.  It makes sense that Willett wants to sell Willett rye; hundreds of other NDPs would kill to be in their position.  For my own needs, I'll have to go elsewhere.

Willett Week: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel Rye 6 years old, Barrel #57

I love Willett rye.  I LOVE Willet rye.  But after five of them in one week, whew......I don't know how Serge does it with his 7-part Caol Ila verticals on a Tuesday, then 6-part Bowmore horizontals on a Wednesday.  Here's how I structured things:

Tasting #1, Sunday night:  4 year old from barrel 82 and 4 year old from barrel 85
Tasting #2, Tuesday night:  5 year old from barrel 38 and 5 year old from barrel 64
Tasting #3, Thursday night: leftovers from Tasting #2 and 6 year old from barrel 57

It's been a whole lotta...

This final Willett rye was from my own bottle that I'd opened this past winter.  I stashed away a sample at the halfway point.  I forgot to take a pic of the sample, but here's the original bottle:

You see that "Distilled in Indiana" at the bottom of the back label.  That's good news for me.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (formerly Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 6 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Barrel: 57
Bottle: 155/204

Alcohol by Volume: 55%

The color?  Let's just call it Willett brand maple syrup.  The nose holds all things for all people.  First, it's very desserty.  Caramel sauce, vanilla ice cream, and cherries.  A rye sundae!  Mango and dried cranberries in there too.  And Cow Tales, the candy.  It's got the spices going on: cloves and cardamom.  It's rocking the barbecue: wood smoke and charred meat.  And -- like most of the other Willetts from this week -- give it 20+ minutes to breathe and a maple syrup note wafts up.  The palate also hits many good spots.  It has the sweets, the sours, brine, and heat, all in balance.  It's a little bready, has lots of cloves, some bubblegum, mint, and cherry-flavored cough syrup.  The dense thick rich finish brings the caramel and sweet cream combo, as well as a lot of fresh fruits (peaches and berries, I think...).  Possibly some rye seeds in there too.

Kristen noted the big alcohol heat.  But she also said the nose reminds her of the cranberry quick bread her church used to set out on Sundays when she was a kid.

This was some good stuff.  There were a number of these 6yos in the stores during Spring 2012.  I haven't seen them since.  With all the good word of mouth the Willett ryes have gotten, KBD may not be able to keep the barrels aging for much longer than 4 years anymore in order to meet demand.  That's not too tragic.  I adore the three and four year old bottlings, but hopefully they have a chance to keep a few barrels going for the extra couple of years.

If I were to give recommendations (I can see your eyes rolling via your webcam), I'd say that the 4 year olds have been reliably awesome in my experience (3 for 3!).  But if you're a fan of big ryes and you see a 6 year old single barrel Willett rye sitting on the shelf for the same price as the 4 year olds, you'd best scoop that up.  And make sure you check out where the rye in that bottle was distilled before laying down the cash.

Best Autumn wishes to everyone!  May you have plenty of whisk(e)y weather.

Availability - Not sure who's still carrying the 6 year, either

Pricing - $35-$40 (East Coast, Midwest), $40-$45 (West Coast)

Rating - 91

Willett Week: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel Rye 5 years old, Barrel #64

Today, I'm covering a 5 year old Willett rye that was distilled in Kentucky (possibly at the Buffalo Trace or Brown-Forman distilleries) rather than the usual source at LDI/MGP in Indiana.  Meanwhile, it turns out that yesterday's 5 year old Willett rye was in fact distilled at LDI/MGP.  That leaves me with the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.

The Good: Having tasted the two 5 year olds side by side, I was (unknowingly) able to compare two Willetts sourced from two different distilleries.

The Bad: The similarities I'd thought I'd found in the distillate were either my imagination or, at best, the result of similar oak and maturation conditions.

The Ugly: I actually reviewed whiskey from this very bottle back in April 2012.  Not only are today's notes very different than those previous ones, but this whiskey went from being my favorite Willett to my least favorite Willett.

Of course, my least favorite Willett still ranks in the 80-percentile of all the whisk(e)y I've ever tried.  Here's the back of that original bottle, with the "Distilled in Kentucky" description at the bottom.

Our old cruddy countertops and old tacky backsplash are there in the background
from days of yore, before we tore them all out...

And here is the sample bottle, I had stashed away over a year ago.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (formerly Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 5 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky
Barrel: 64
Bottle: 190/192

Alcohol by Volume: 55%

The juice may be from a different source, but the color remains the same as the others: maple syrup.  The nose is the corniest of the Willetts so far.  Corny and creamy, creamed corn?  The paint-like fumes that I'd sniffed in yesterday's rye are here too but more subtle and arise later on.  Lots of green grains, fresh wood pulp, molasses, and hot hay.  It's a little toffee-ish too with some vanilla extract thrown in, and some Juicy Fruit gum.  There's the cinnamon, but maybe in bark or stick form.  With some more time in the glass, the rye releases notes of cilantro, turkey gravy, cloves, and notebook paper. The palate is where this one separates itself from the others.  The tree bark, cinnamon candy, and black peppercorn notes are not surprising.  But the lightly perfumed vegetal bitterness is.  And then something eggy; can there be sulfur in rye?  On the other hand there's still some nice sweetness going on.  The odder notes go away in the finish.  It's full of buttery oak, cinnamon, and mint.  It goes on and on, bringing with it some cocoa powder and cloves as well as a very mild bitterness.

Kristen says it smells of farm equipment and wet hay.  I wish I'd smelled that, too!

How do I account for the differences between my notes here and the ones from April 2012?  Maybe my palate changed.  Perhaps trying this rye side-by-side with another one allowed me to pick out different notes and get more specific.  Or maybe something changed in the bottle.  My review last year was from whiskey towards the top of the bottle.  This sample was poured four months later when the fill level was at the midpoint.

While I won't rave about it like most of the other Willetts from this week's reports, it's still a decent rye.  Ultimately the nose is nice, so is the finish.  While the good finale actually makes one forget about the palate's quirks, those oddities are still there.  I'm thinking this version of Willett's rye may appeal better to folks who aren't the biggest fans of LDI's 95% rye mashbill.  For the rest of us, keep an eye on the back of the label for "Distilled in Indiana", that may be the difference between good and great.

Availability - Not sure who's still carrying the 5 year

Pricing - $35-$40 (East Coast, Midwest), $40-$45 (West Coast)

Rating - 83

Willett Week: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel Rye 5 years old, Barrel #38

Local temperatures reached 90 again yesterday, so I'm going to keep on keepin' on with the Willett ryes.  Come on, Autumn, the welcome mat is out!

Today's and tomorrow's ryes will be 5 year olds.  One from a sample courtesy of Jordan (thank you!) and one from a bottle I'd actually reviewed some time ago, but had had a completely different experience upon tasting it again.

Both of these 5 year olds had a noticeably different spirit character than the 4 year olds.  I'm wondering if it was because many of the 5 yrs were not distilled by LDI/MGP, but instead by an unnamed Kentucky distillery.  This curiosity came up in a Straight Bourbon forum discussion a few months back.  The floated theory was that the rye came from either the Buffalo Trace or Brown Forman distilleries.

If anyone has thoughts about or experiences with this, please let me know!  [Note: Today's rye was distilled at LDI, tomorrow's rye was not.] Here's the label from my bottle, Barrel #64 (reviewed tomorrow):

The whiskies were still good, but of a different feel than the 4 yrs.  And, honestly, they were more difficult to figure out.

Let's start with Jordan's sample from Barrel #38.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (formerly Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel

Age: 5 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky
Barrel: 38

Alcohol by Volume: 55%

The color remains maple syrupy.  The nose on this one is the strongest so far.  Charred oak, almond paste, paint fumes, and prune juice lead the way.  It smells as if there's a little bit of corn (like corn chips) in here.  So, since LDI's mashbill has no corn, either this is from a distillery with corn in their rye mashbill or I'm just smellin' things.  Wouldn't be the first time.  I also sniff some ripe dates, coriander, and cloves.  There's a little bit of leather, a little vanilla, chicken stock, and a whiff of maple syrup at the end.  The palate has a cinnamon schnapps note that was entirely absent from the 4yrs, and sort of reminded me of my Rye Storm but better.  There are sweet and spicy notes like brown sugar, dates, and a minty effervescence.  Those balance well with green notes like grass, celery, and cucumber.  The spirit shouts the loudest on the finish.  Very cinnamony.  Some anise and figs, as opposed to the dates.  It's a bit drying, probably more from the big distillate than the oak tannins.

Kristen agreed that this was a strong sniffer.  She found this to have the least amount of vanilla, but with a dose of those paint fumes.

This is a big rye.  It's not for those who are looking for a mellow sipper nor those yearning for an oaky buttery caramel bomb.  It's a brash fighter and I'm glad the folks picking barrels for Willett went ahead with this one.  It took almost an hour for me to sort this one out, but in comparison with tomorrow's rye it balanced well in the end.

Availability - Not sure who's still carrying the 5 year

Pricing - $35-$40 (East Coast, Midwest), $40-$45 (West Coast)

Rating - 87

Willett Week: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel Rye 4 years old, Barrel #85

Continuing within Autumn's Willett Welcome Wagon, I present my current open bottle of Willett Rye, another four year old, this time from Barrel number 85.  I tried this one alongside yesterday's 4yo from Barrel 82, a silky oaky take on the LDI/MGP good stuff.

Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (formerly Willett Distilling Company)
Brand: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel

Age: 4 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (spirit distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Barrel: 85
Bottle: 160/228

Alcohol by Volume: 55%

The color is the same as yesterday's rye: maple syrup (pronounced "sih-ruhp", "sih-rip", or "surp" depending on where you're from).  Woo! the nose is peppy. Much more spirity than Barrel 82. Black pepper, cherries, and a slight yeasty pretzel-like note.  There's cantaloupe, toffee, mint chocolate chip ice cream, mint Listerine, and spicy basil. From the oak there's a little vanilla, a little salted caramel, and some pencils.  The heat does cool off with some time, revealing something that reminds me of the GlenDronach single casks, like dense chocolatey sherry.  The palate holds lots of spicy zip.  LOTS of anise. Cherry liqueur, mint leaves, baking chocolate, and sweet black licorice.  There's also something a little grassy in there, floating along in sweet brandy.  The finish gets a little salty and savory. Beyond that lies plenty of peppery spice, more anise and mint leaves.  It has that old Robotussin thing, like black cherry meets anise (again).  The finish seems slightly shorter than #82 without the sticky oak.

Kristen says this one is a little fruitier with more subtle vanilla, and a much hotter nose.

Yesterday's (#82) and today's (#85) barrels appeal in different ways to different temperaments and different moods.  The oak was much more reserved in #85, allowing the rye distillate to run loose.  The spirit isn't overbearing, but it does like to tussle.  I guess I'm comparing whiskey to dogs now.  While Barrel #82 is a heavy lapdog that'll chew through the couch from time to time, Barrel #85 will poop in the refrigerator and eat the whole wheel of cheese. "Actually, I’m not even mad. That’s amazing.”

Availability - Many US liquor specialists

Pricing - $35-$40 (East Coast, Midwest), $40-$45 (West Coast)

Rating - 92