The Rum Dummy drinks Amrut Indian Whisky, Jamaican Rum Cask Finish (Blackadder)

I like rum. When Mr. Diving for Pearls sent this whisky to me, I reminded him I only review rum. Then I smelled it and understood.

I don't like whisky for two reasons:
1. Online whisky people. Scotch fans make bad financial decisions, then brag about it online. Bourbon fans are angry. Do happy people drink whisky?
2. Whisky is not rum.

This label says whisky:

This stuff was released by that company that sprinkles mustache stubble into every bottle.

Why.

Diving for Pearls sent me two samples. One said "61.2%abv", the other "Diluted to 45%abv".

The only thing I like less than whisky is an adjective, so this review makes me, er, nervous.

"61.2%abv"
Nose - It's not whisky. It's Hampden. Olives, brown sugar, honey, orange oil and tire rubber. Vanilla.
Palate - Very sweet. Hot. Dunder and soot. Ginger. Wood, vanilla and jalapeños.
Finish - Very sweet. Lemons, olives, brown sugar and vanilla.

"Diluted to 45%abv"
Nose - Mt. Gay levels of sugar and caramel. Cinnamon bread, cardamom, orange oil and cloves. Disappears quickly.
Palate - Foursquare? Olives, molasses, vanilla, flowers and American oak.
Finish - Sweet, tingly, vanilla-infused rum.

This is good because this is rum.

This is not a complaint, but, um, Blackadder knows that the rum must be poured out of the barrel in order to call it an "ex Jamaican Rum cask", right?

If you like Hampden or Foursquare, then this w****y won't be the worst thing. But this cost $150. That's the worst thing.

NOT WHISKY RATING: B

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.

---

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