danz Posted March 6, 2014 Share Posted March 6, 2014 I feel like Diageo has ruffled a lot of feathers with the marketing behind these releases. The Schwartz quote alone gives me a good reason to ignore everything from the Orphan Barrel project. If he had discussed building a legendary brand via quality instead of gouging the customer, things might have been different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garbanzobean Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 Hard to say. The marketing turns me off, but it does seem to reflect the same institutional mindset that brought us the Johnnie Walker line and its longtime pinnacle, Blue Label, and I think they sell that stuff by the tanker truck.Yeah, I'm not planning a complete Diageo boycott or anything (can't really afford to, given my affinity for a number of the Scottish distilleries they own). But it is pretty disheartening to see their American CEO publicly flaunt his lack of respect for his customer. I guess I was already feeling kind of snarky about Diageo after I read this article earlier in the day: http://whiskyadvocate.com/whisky/2014/03/04/mortlach-more-news-and-the-price/Diageo's focus on the packaging and how they obviously want to make Mortlach a direct competitor with The Macallan instead of allowing the malt to have it's own character is a bit sad. The Johnnie Walker marketing is easy to ignore, but I hate to see a single malt's innate character altered to suit a marketing scheme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotch Neat Posted March 11, 2014 Share Posted March 11, 2014 Fed-ex delivered my Old Blowhard, don't know how limited this is as the bottle in in the 11,000 range. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerlam92 Posted March 12, 2014 Share Posted March 12, 2014 Got my bottle of Barterhouse and Old Blowhard. Popped Barterhouse open instantly. I haven't drank anything since Wednesday to last night so will spend more time on this first but also re-acclimate my taste buds. Will try Old Blowhard later tonight. Last night my taste buds were all wrong and it's getting better today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerlam92 Posted March 12, 2014 Share Posted March 12, 2014 Enjoying the Old Blowhard. The slight more woodiness really balance this out and a really nice pour. Initial impression, I like this a lot more than Barterhouse. Nose is quite nice, full complex flavor, and super deep and long finish. Just keep you thinking and asking for more. Quite wonderful and I gulped down the first pour. There something slightly special with this at least to my taste. Pouring my second now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scubarex Posted March 13, 2014 Share Posted March 13, 2014 I heard from an inside Diageo source that there were 35,000 bottles Barterhouse and 12,000 of the Old Blowhard... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannabis Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Tiger and anyone else who has pulled the trigger, would you be so kind as to post a thread on tasting notes for any of these? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P&MLiquorsEric Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 I heard from an inside Diageo source that there were 35,000 bottles Barterhouse and 12,000 of the Old Blowhard...Barterhouse is going to be a periodic release over the next couple years. Are those numbers for all releases or for just the first release? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squire Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 I'm only mildly curious about these brands though I am glad such whiskys are being made available. The corporate attitude seems to show a rather arrogant disregard of customer perceptions though and to say mystique can be created at will is misguided as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ishad Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 It seems strange that if this is going to be a multi-release series that they didn't start out with stronger offerings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokinjoe Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Tiger and anyone else who has pulled the trigger, would you be so kind as to post a thread on tasting notes for any of these?Dan, I posted these thoughts last week, over in the What Bourbon Are You Drinking? thread:Opened a newly purchased Barterhouse. Very, very nice nose on this whiskey. That gorgeous rickhouse smell, some dark cherry, leather, and a freshness that belies its age. Over the palate it begins to show it's full age like a 20 year old bourbon should, and without any arid over-oakiness or harsh tannins. It's pretty much what you would expect from a bourbon well treated for two decades in a barrel. Some dark chocolate notes work their way in, but that's about it. On the thin side, but honestly, most extra aged bourbons play out this way to me. Unfortunately, nothing really jumps out at me to make it memorable other than the dark chocolate. The finish falls of rather quickly, but is pleasant enough. All in all a solid, if not inspiring 20 year old whiskey. For a whiskey of this age, the $70 price of admission was fair by any of my standards in today's environment. But, the beautiful nose alone, makes this whiskey a "feel good" buy for me. I do look forward to further tastings with Barterhouse to see if they will reveal a taste and finish that can live up to what I experienced from its nose this evening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scubarex Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Good question...I will ask... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BFerguson Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Barterhouse is going to be a periodic release over the next couple years. Are those numbers for all releases or for just the first release?Either way, it's hard to believe they had that much product laying around of that age. But stranger things have happened.B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerlam92 Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Joe's tasting notes for Barterhouse is spot on. I also enjoyed it but found it a little thin. Old Blowhard add more complexity and depth but add more wood. These are not spectacular but good and almost very good, respectively, to me. These are bottles that individuals will defer greatly and needs to sample for yourself to determine how much you like it. I think Barterhouse at $65 for 20 years is a bargain. But if I can only have one bottle I may actually take ECBP over this. . I paid $80 and that was perfectly fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P&MLiquorsEric Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Either way, it's hard to believe they had that much product laying around of that age. But stranger things have happened.BThey bought an entire distillery and most of its aging stock at fire sale prices. Some of the highest value barrels were sold off.Make a big deal out of the first release of what's left at decent prices. Periodically release it later on at increasingly higher prices but always keep a wild card tucked away. Maybe a 30 year release at north of $500. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerlam92 Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 To be accurate, I add a small amount of water. Neat, there will be some bitterness especially in the OBH from the wood. If you don't prefer woodiness OBH is not going be too appealing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
393foureyedfox Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 I heard from an inside Diageo source that there were 35,000 bottles Barterhouse and 12,000 of the Old Blowhard...again, I find it unbelievable that 35,000+ bottles worth of 20+ year old bourbon was "found" anywhere.......but, discounting the notion of whether the rarity is true, a $75 MSRP on a 20 year old bourbon seems fair, even to my tight ass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whiskeyagonzo Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 again, I find it unbelievable that 35,000+ bottles worth of 20+ year old bourbon was "found" anywhere.......but, discounting the notion of whether the rarity is true, a $75 MSRP on a 20 year old bourbon seems fair, even to my tight assThe "found" notion is pure marketing as far as I can tell. I've read that they "found" so many barrels it will be a yearly release for at least a couple of years. Barterhouse and Rhetoric anyway. I think Old Blowchuncks is a on time release. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWBourbonDrinker Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 I had some of the Barterhouse neat last night and must say I thought it was quite good. Definitely a little woody but on my initial tasting it seemed like a wheater is profile. Do we have any idea what the mash bill is on this or would that ruin the great mystery that Diageo has created? I would also chime in and say the $80 for these bottles seems very reasonable in this day and age. I procured 2 but will likely squirrel away a couple more if they come into my path. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squire Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 Sure, the mash bill is 86% corn, 6% rye and 8% barley, essentially the Old Charter/ I.W. Harper family produced by the pre-HH Bernheim distillery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garbanzobean Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 The Bourbon Info Exchange group on Facebook has a plethora of delightful conspiracy theorists insisting that EC21, JPS 21/25/30, Old Blowhard, Barterhouse, and the 2013 Michter's 20 releases are all secretly wheaters, even in the face of conflicting evidence. My assumption is that the folks on BIE either REALLY REALLY want to believe that the money they spent on secondary market purchases was justified due to an illuminati-level conspiracy to sell off old S-W, or they are possibly equating mature spirit flavors and heavy oak influence to wheated bourbon. In my admittedly small mind, it makes sense, since older Van Winkle releases are generally characterized by oak influence, and that is probably what they are comparing OLD BOURBON X to. Just to be clear, I am not trying to belittle or question anyone's palate. Hopefully no one takes offense to my (probably inaccurate) observation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squire Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 Eric, it's understandable. If you over brew a tea bag you will extract bitterness, tannic acid, the same stuff present in oak. Over aged, over oaked whisky simply tastes woody. So much to the extent the mash bill is obscured. Remember the first issues of Pappy were not wheat whisky at all, not even SW, rather some old rye recipe Bourbon Julien had bought and subsequent dyed in the wool Pappy fans didn't notice the difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garbanzobean Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 Eric, it's understandable. If you over brew a tea bag you will extract bitterness, tannic acid, the same stuff present in oak. Over aged, over oaked whisky simply tastes woody. So much to the extent the mash bill is obscured. Remember the first issues of Pappy were not wheat whisky at all, not even SW, rather some old rye recipe Bourbon Julien had bought and subsequent dyed in the wool Pappy fans didn't notice the difference.I kind of figured that since oak is going to play a large part of any super-aged bourbon's flavor profile, a minor amount of wheat or rye isn't going to make a big difference. As usual, thanks for the historical anecdote. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Posted March 17, 2014 Share Posted March 17, 2014 For those interested, the Lexington Herald-Leader did a large piece on this subject today. A few dozen barrels.... :grin:http://www.kentucky.com/2014/03/16/3144062/diageo-raids-warehouses-for-orphan.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squire Posted March 17, 2014 Share Posted March 17, 2014 The only thing I regret about my childhood is not growing up with the internet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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