Bourbon and Rye Day Friday: Old Charter 8 year old

When I picked up a 200mL bottle of the discontinued Old Charter 8 year old bourbon while on my drive across the country last summer, I was excited about what I thought was a high-quality sorta-dusty bourbon.

My guess as to it being from the 1990s was quashed quickly once I realized the label stated the whiskey was distilled in "Frankfort, KY". Actual dusty Old Charters list Louisville instead. Louisville was the location of the old Bernheim distillery. Frankfort is the location of the Buffalo Trace distillery. BT's owner, Sazerac, bought Old Charter in 1999 so, if I understand math correctly, the earliest my bottle would have been filled was 2007. Taking a look at this bottling code, I wonder if it was bottled in 2012 instead. Wiser bourbon people, please chime in if you think it's from a different date.

My "high-quality" expectation was even more roughly rebuffed. The bourbon was sour, bitterly oaked and formless in its 40%abv. In fact, I dumped almost half the bottle down the sink. Two ounces were stashed away for this review though. Let's see if I like it more now than I did a year ago...

Distillery: Buffalo Trace
Ownership: The Sazerac Company
Brand: Eagle Rare
Region: Frankfort, Kentucky

Type: Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Age: minimum 8 years
Mashbill: Buffalo Trace low-rye

Alcohol by Volume: 40%

NEAT
The nose starts off with paint fumes, banana candy, generic barrel char and turpentine. After 20 minutes in the glass, it starts releasing friendlier fumes: lavender, sage, dried berries and orange oil. The palate begins all bitter oak. Then some vanilla and sugar. Generic barrel char, dried cherries and something metallic (lead?). Like the nose, it gets more approachable with time. The finish has some length to it, though it's mostly lead/metal, oaky bitterness and generic barrel char. A little bit of sweetness in there. Vanilla and overripe bananas.

MANHATTAN
Light and inoffensive. The bourbon adds nothing to it,

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This reads as bottom shelf stuff when it first hits the glass, but give it some time and it's better than terrible. Almost satisfactory. Sorry, I'm running out of positive things to say about it, other than I'm glad I paid all of $5.99 for the 200mL bottle. While it'll do in case of an emergency or to apply to a quick cocktail, I have little doubt that earlier iterations were better than this bottling of the old 8yo.

Availability - Can still be found here and there
Pricing - I paid $5.99 for my 200mL
Rating - 73 (but it needs air; scores ten points lower before aired out)

Caperdonich 12 year old 1998 Heavily Peated, Single Malts of Scotland

On Monday I reviewed an ethyly (not a thing), bland Caperdonich. I tried that Cap right before today's Cap. The decision was made to forgo a side-by-side Taste Off after taking a whiff of this indeed heavily peated Caperdonich.

There was a fun discussion over at My Annoying Opinions about whether Caperdonich utilized peat to dry their malted barley. (I'm shocked to discover that conversation happened only 3.5 years ago. Feels more like 35 years.) Charlie MacLean's Whiskypedia book mentions that the distillery "once made" a peaty variety.

This Caperdonich is not an instance of an unpeated whisky maturing in a former Islay cask. Its big-assed peating is right in the spirit. Did they do some experimental batches that day in 1998? Or were they producing some peated malt for blenders? Those questions are half rhetorical and half not.

Distillery: Caperdonich
Bottler: Specialty Drinks Ltd
Series: Single Malts of Scotland
Region: Speyside (Rothes)
Age: 12 years (May 4, 1998 to May 27, 2010)
Maturation: bourbon barrel
Cask: 8712
Bottles: 242
Alcohol by Volume: 57%
Chillfiltered? No
Caramel Colorant? No
(Sample obtained via sample swap with MAO. Thanks, MAO!)

NEAT
It's another amber colored Caperdonich. Wooo, lots of horse stall on the nose, as in horses and hay. There's also plenty of seaweed and dried apricots. Vanilla cookies and rock candy. The peppery sweet palate is more straightforward with some fruity cinnamon, soil, peat and weed. A good bitterness rumbles up in the finish. Heath bar, jalapeño oil and farmy peat.

WITH WATER (~46%abv)
A graceful note of snuffed candles leads the nose. Then anise, molasses chews, rotting fruit, charred bee and an herbal and seaweed Islay-like peat. Earthy grungy peat dominates the palate. Some anise and tart citrus. Maybe a hint of sulphur. The finish is bitter, earthy and herbal, with a hint of lime.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
The peat on this thing is massive and filthy. ¡Me gusta! I hope there are more casks of this experimental(?) Caperdonich out there somewhere.  If it were still available, I'd recommend this whisky far ahead of Monday's Cap. Though this is younger than the 20yo and has a higher ABV, it's less hot, more drinkable and a little more complex. It will definitely appeal to fans of Islay's three Kildalton distilleries. But if you don't like peat, stay far away.

To conclude, I still don't know where I stand on Caperdonich. In my experience, its success rate remains 50%.

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - ???
Rating - 87

Caperdonich 20 year old 1992 First Editions

Don't base your entire opinion of a distillery from a single whisky. A person has to try a number of single malts from a distillery before declaring privately or publicly his or her opinion about that distillery. One shitty malt or a single dynamite whisky tells no broader story than that of the one whisky itself. I'm telling you this, because I made this mistake.

Four years ago, I bought my first Caperdonich and it was awesome. So I decided that Caperdonich was awesome. Then I heard tales from more experienced drinkers that 1970s Caperdonich was even dreamier. So I started window shopping every Caperdonich on the planet. Since then I've tried five more Caperdonichs, bringing my grand total to six. 3 were good or better, 3 were either bland or so-so. That's not a terrible ratio, but I'm much less motivated to buy a Caperdonich blindly.

It's time to try my seventh (today) and eighth (on Wednesday) from the distillery once known as Glen Grant 2. And we'll see what happens to that ratio.

Today's pour was from an 2015 OC Scotch Club event I'd led. It's a single cask by First Editions, a Scottish indie bottler who entered the US market a couple years ago.

Distillery: Caperdonich
Bottler: Edition Spirits
Series: First Editions
Region: Speyside (Rothes)
Age: 20 years (1992-2013)
Maturation: bourbon cask
Alcohol by Volume: 55.8%
Chillfiltered? No
Caramel Colorant? No

NEAT
Its amber color is nice and light considering the age. The nose begins with salty beach and overripe or bruised stone fruits. It's quite hot, though. I'm getting a little bit of barley and red Pixy Stix note. With time it develops a bit note of blooming roses. The palate is very very hot, feeling more like 65.8%abv (or 75.8%abv) than 55.8%abv. There's acidic citrus and plenty of malt. Strawberry bubblegum, cinnamon sticks and a moderate earthy note. That's it. It finishes tangy and hot, with a mild strawberry bubblegum note.

Maybe some dilution will help?

WITH WATER (~46%abv)
The nose is still beachy and has picked up the bubblegum thing. And there's an odd combination of gummi bears and fennel seed. The palate still has a sizable alcohol burn. There's a little bit of peach, malt and black peppercorns. Nothing else. The finish is hot, bitter and rooty.

Maybe some more dilution will help?

WITH WATER (~40%abv)
The nose has gotten more candied. Orange Pixy Stix and salted caramels. There's a little more character to the palate. More peach, maybe some lemons, a little bit of malt. But it also gets very mouth-drying. Its finish is malty and bitter. Again, very drying, like some sort of weird tannins have slipped in.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
In theory, some of this whisky's characteristics should have appealed to me. It has an earthy rooty side. It's low on oak, when neat. A little bit of fruit shows up here and there. Yet, I never once enjoyed the palate or finish. The violence of the heat is strange, as is the tannic crash when the whisky is diluted. Underneath that aggression, there's nearly nothing to speak of. The nose isn't bad, but its satisfactory qualities draw attention to the vacant palate. I'm glad I didn't commit to a whole bottle for myself.

Availability - USA only, but might be sold out
Pricing - $130?
Rating - 76

Killing Whisky History: Ep. 1 - White Horse (bottled 1963-1970)

Welcome to the very first episode of Killing Whisky History!

It's divided into three parts: 1. History of the brand; 2. Explanation of bottle date; 3. Drink (with brief notes tasting)!

I look forward to releasing a new episode on the first Friday of every month...

Speyside 13 year old 2001 Blended Malt, Archives

Aiming for my week with the few pageviews as I report on another blended malt. This time, this one has been sold out for two years! On Monday I reviewed a Islay-only vatting, today I'm reviewing a Speyside-only vatting.

According to Whiskybase Shop's description, this whisky was blended, or left to marry, in a sherry butt in 2001. From what I gather from the description, two of the single malts were distilled well before 2001, while the third malt had been distilled in 2001. Thus the 2001 vintage. That makes sense so far. What's curious is the butt's final bottle outturn (of 180) is about 1/3rd of what one would expect after 13 years. And the abv is all of 44.7%. One answer to the second quandary is that the older malts, or rather "leftovers", were sub-40%abv malt spirit at the time of the marriage, and the new make lifted the % up into the legal category. As for the outturn, I dunno, unless it's a shared cask. If you have any ideas, please share in the comment section below.

We selected this whisky for an OCSC event once upon a time. This sample was pulled from this bottle.

Company: Whiskybase
Brand: Archives

Type: Blended (or Vatted) Malt

Distilleries: Three Speyside-only distilleries (perhaps Glenfarclas, Glenrothes and Tamdhu?)

Age: at least 13 years old (October 2001 - March 2015)
Maturation: sherry butt
Cask: 117
Bottles: 180
Alcohol by Volume: 44.7%
Chillfiltered? No
Color added? No

NEAT
Its color is copper. The nose starts with a simple nutty oloroso, then apples and pears. Hints of leather and plastic toys. Buttery. Watermelon rind. The palate has some broad American oak-style vanilla and more heat than I'd expected. Walnuts, tart berries and a hint of funky old cask. Slightly grassy. Slightly flat. It does have a curious finish though. It's slightly meaty, perfumy, inky and tannic.

WITH WATER (~40%abv)
Heavier sherry in the nose, with dried plums and figs. Walnuts, polyester and a hint of eucalyptus. The palate is perfectly fine to consume and ignore. Lightly bitter, lightly creamy. Some tannins, some florals. A wee bit of sherry. The mild finish finishes quickly, tannic and briefly stone fruity.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
I'm a little puzzled by Archives' choice here. Those fellows usually pick very good casks. This was their first, and (as of this post) only, blended malt selection. And it's not "very good" nor very good. The nose is decent, quirky, though not entirely of one piece. The neat finish is weird in a good way. The palate underwhelms when neat, then goes sub-Glenfiddich-12yo (and sub-Glenfarclas-12yo) when reduced to 40%abv.

My opinion sits at the low end of the scale for this whisky. Serge liked this better than I, though his notes don't seem to be leading to his score. Whiskynotes liked it a lot—though that doesn't surprise me since our palates are dissimilar—but his tasting notes make it look like he consumed something quite different than Serge and I.

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - £70
Rating - 79

The Big Smoke 60 Blended Malt, Duncan Taylor

Duncan Taylor has released a pair of The Big Smoke blended malts, one is bottled at 46%abv, the other is 60%abv. I have been told by a reputable source that the two vattings have different recipes, and the 60%abv one has a lot of Ardbeg in it. But both are made up of nothing but Islay malts.

I eyed the 60 many times in the past, especially when it was priced at $50. Couldn't think of too many super high strength peated whiskies at that price range. Alas, I never bought it. BUT, I was gifted a sample of the 60 by Brett of Riverside last year. Let's see how it do.

Company: Duncan Taylor
Brand: The Big Smoke

Type: Blended (or Vatted) Malt

Distilleries: Islay-only

Age: NAS
Maturation: probably American oak
Alcohol by Volume: 60%
Chillfiltered? No
Color added? Probably not

NEAT
The nose actually isn't that smoky. It's definitely peaty though. A stacking of seaweedy, salty, ocean smells. Butter and boat fumes. With time it picks up hints of vanilla, ginger powder and pears. The simple palate is hot, but young-60%abv hot. Peat, salt, barley, and ground pepper. Hints of fresh mint and dried oregano. A little bit of brown sugar. The finish has heat, peat and sweet(ness). Vanilla and peppercorns.

Gonna douse this one.

WITH WATER (~43%abv)
What an improvement! The nose is boldly fruity with more pungent peat. Also molasses, cocoa and figs. The palate has a silkier texture. Tart lemons and limes. Gritty peat and a horseradish bitterness. Some maltiness too. The finish holds tart candy, smokey reside and an effervescent bitterness.

How about a touch more dihydrogen monoxide?

WITH WATER (~40%abv)
The nose gets a little more candied and minty. Still plenty peaty. And the palate stays vibrant. Seaweed, salt, peat and a good herbal bitterness. The finish is leaner, with less sweetness. More focus on the peat and bitter.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
I've experienced very few whiskies that improved with dilution to the extent The Big Smoke 60 did. It becomes an entirely different whisky at 43%, and it still feels richer at 40% than it did at 60%. In fact, if I bought a bottle I'd dilute the whole damn thing to 43%abv, thus getting 1050mL of Big Smoke in the process!

So if you have a bottle of this open and you've grown bored of it, add water to see what it does. Gonna guess there's young Caol Ila, Bowmore and Ardbeg in the blend. I read somewhere that there's Bruichladdich in it; maybe baby PC then? I don't exactly know why the average US price has gone up 60% (Big 60!) in the past three years. But at $65, it's probably not the worst deal in the current market.

Availability - A few dozen specialty retailers around the world
Pricing - $65-$90 in the US, cheaper in Europe
Rating - 87 (with water only!)

Bourbon and Rye Day Friday: Old Rip Van Winkle 10 year old (2016)

Baller. That's right. That's me. I'm here to strengthen my reputation for reviewing whiskies that neither you or I can find or afford. This time I'm reviewing Old Rip Van Winkle ("Don't Call Me Pappy 10") 10 year old.

So about that "afford" issue. There's no actual defunct-distillery Stitzel-Weller juice berben in ORVW anymore. It's just wheated stuff from Buffalo Trace. And it's released every year. And Buffalo Trace never announces the actual bottle count. Thus the secondary market's price is based almost solely on demand.

But why is it in demand? There are other wheated bourbons, other 10 year old bourbons, other 107 proof bourbons, some of which are made very similarly to ORVW. But ORVW is part of the annual Pappiez release. In fact, it's sorta like cheap Pappy. One can proudly add the bottle to the Conspicuous Consumption Display dick pics one airs out on social media, I suppose.

There are still some people who actually open the bottle and drink Ol' Rip, good people like Ryan from New Jersey, from whom I recently received this sample in a swap. Thank you, Ryan.

Owner: Buffalo Trace (via Sazerac)
Brand: Old Rip Van Winkle
Distillery: Buffalo Trance Distillery
Location: Franklin, Kentucky
Mash Bill: BT's mystery wheated mash bill
Age: at least 10 years
Release year: 2016
ABV: 53.5% ABV

NEAT
The nose begins with a rich round mature corn whisky note. Aromatic oak (as opposed to generic char), marshmallows and toffee pudding. Hints of cherry candy, pine sap, salty meat and Old Spice. The palate has caramel sauce, dark cherries and black cherry soda. Very minerally. Jalapeño oil and a whisper of ginger beer. The finish has the essence of candy without too much of the sweetness. Fresh cherries and cherry popsicles. Mineral. Lots of heat.

Dare I add water to Van Winkle? Sure. I'll drop it to Buffalo Trace levels.

WITH WATER (~45%abv)
The nose shows cloves, caramel, cherry candy and almond extract. The palate is mintier, sweeter. Similar cherries, less caramel. The finish is shorter, simpler. Cherries and candy.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Without fail, the Van Winkle bourbons smell fabulous. Also without fail, the palates never reach the noses' heights. This edition of ORVW has an excellent nose. While I appreciate the palate's reserved nature, it's missing the sort of depth that rye may bring. Yes, I'm a rye and high-rye bourbon fan, so I'm partial. Whatever the culprit may be, the palate hits a wall it cannot ascend. Thankfully though, it's not an oakfest. And I liked it a little better than Weller 12. Old Rip Van Winkle's suggested retail price is probably representative of its quality. The secondary market prices are not.

Availability - Secondary market
Pricing - $60 suggested retail price, $350-$375 actual price
Rating - 84