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BOTM 9/08: Festival Bourbons


jeff
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With apologies for the late start this month, I thought we should use the last 10 days or so of September to discuss new bourbons that appeared on the scene during the Bourbon Festival this year. One of note was the Mariage from Four Roses.

What new releases did you have the opportunity to taste/purchase, and what do you think of the latest crop of premium bourbons?

:893drillsergeant-thSound off:893drillsergeant-th

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Mariage is good. It IS sweet, but it's rounded, and balanced, and luxurious. It reflects 4R's brand positioning approach well.

The William Heavenhill bottling (Bourbon Heritage Center only) is luxuriant, soft, and complex. $500? Of course not by any rational judgment, but there are widely-distributed scotches and cognacs out there that are not as enjoyable.

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Oh...there were new bourbons? I guess I should have spent some time with those, but older bourbons and ryes, newer ryes and occasional "other" spirits tended to capture my attention.

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Another great bourbon released during the KBF was Willett 12 y/o Single Barrel Proof Non chill filtered. 114.8 proof. Absolutely outstanding and one of the best whiskies I tasted all week. Thanks Fricky for sharing.

Joe :usflag:

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Prior to tasting the Willett 7yo bottled for Toddys and Liquor World, I picked up a bottle on the recommendation of Dougdog. After tasting it at the Tuesday evening gazebo, I picked up two more to take home. :cool:

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I tried both the Willett 7yo sold at Toddy's and the 12yo from Party Source and liked them both. Attention Roger........the 7yo is very similar to the 4yo you and the East Bay Study Group did recently. Think of your 4yo slightly attenuated with the additional time in wood. I only had a small taste of the 12yo but need to revisit it again...hopefully at the next Gazebo table.

Regarding the number of Willett expressions out there, I can think of 15 different ones without trying very hard. From fiery 4yo's to 22yo (maybe older) ryes.

Randy

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Personally I didn't see enough difference between the Willet 4 and 7 to warrant buying a bottle of the 7. The 12 is a totally different story! I tried to find a bottle but couldn't. I'll call around and maybe locate one on my next trip to Kentucky.

To me, the Mariage burst with chocolate on the nose along with a hint of berries. The chocolate exploded on the pallet and remained through the finish. The finish was long and the chocolate got more bitter the longer it was in my mouth. An excellent dessert bourbon. Deeper reflection brought out a hint of mint. I had some with some 85% cocoa chocolate. WOW!

Just the way it hit my weird taste buds.

Stu

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Personally I didn't see enough difference between the Willet 4 and 7 to warrant buying a bottle of the 7. The 12 is a totally different story! I tried to find a bottle but couldn't. I'll call around and maybe locate one on my next trip to Kentucky.

To me, the Mariage burst with chocolate on the nose along with a hint of berries. The chocolate exploded on the pallet and remained through the finish. The finish was long and the chocolate got more bitter the longer it was in my mouth. An excellent dessert bourbon. Deeper reflection brought out a hint of mint. I had some with some 85% cocoa chocolate. WOW!

Just the way it hit my weird taste buds.

Stu

For me, the 12 is the best of the bunch. Just the right balance of maturity and oak.

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Gee it's tasting soft to me, I've had it a few times now; "resting" some years on Doug's property clearly did it no harm. :)

Gary

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