What Bourbon Are you Drinking Summer 2023?

[markandrex]

To Jimmy!, RRSB/SP tonight

[IamMatt]

On 8/26/2023 at 6:43 AM, IamMatt said:

I haven't tried the Calumet 14.  I like the 15 and 16 but have not done a SBS (now I know what I am doing tonight!) 

 

Worth the spend?  Good question.  People use the "$10 per year of age" thing but I think that is a VERY loose standard with KC9 and ER 10 selling in the $30 range and some 4-6-yr old "latest greatest" selling for $150 or more.  For me, Calumet and SH occupy a space similar to Remus V--moderate proof sippers with a lot of complexity, age, and depth that are a cut above many other bottles.  I can still find 15 for $110 and consider it a good buy.  16 seems to have settled around $140-plus and I definitely think it is worth owning a bottle, I don't know if I would make repeat buys or bunker it.

 

If my financial situation was such that $140 was my every day sipper price range (instead of $30 lol), I would probably buy it all day long.

So I did 4 night of SBS with Calumet 15 and 16 over a couple of weeks.  Here are my notes; YMMV.

 

First night:  I felt my palate was not great going into this tasting.  Both 15 and 16 were similar on the nose, with classic notes of caramel, vanilla, and creme brulee, along with a muted floral note and age notes of wood and wet cardboard.  Nose notes mostly transfer to the palate, with a slight proof hit upfront (though only 105 & 106 proof), a nice finish that gets sweeter and ends with a proof note that has a non-offensive hit of acetone.  Minor differences between the two were not enough to say one is better than the other.  I suspect if I did these blind I would not be able to tell the difference, or at least I would find them similar enough to have no clear preference.

 

Night 2:  They are very similar.  Nosing them tonight, I am getting a little more ethanol on the 16 than the 15,  though again, they are very close. On the palate, 16 seems a bit mellower than 15.  I have to remind myself that these are, basically, the same juice except one is a year older but at 15 vs 16 years, I don't know if one year is much of a difference. 

 

Poured two sample bottles and tried them blind.  Honestly, I can hardly tell the difference.  Will continue blinding them to see.  (Cut to the future--A is 15 and B is 16).

 

Night 3:  A has a stronger nose, in both "flavor" and proof; B's nose is more subtle but more complex and a little deeper; if I had to say I would say it smells older,  A has cinnamon on the palate this time, still has lots of layers of flavor.  B's palate is again more muted, darker or less bright, but also has multiple layers that come on sequentially, with the palate changing over time as it gives way to the medium-long finish.  Tonight I think I like B more.  Like B is Remus V and A is Remus VI lol.

 

They remind me a bit of comparing two Remus Repeal batches.  Layered, complex, not high proof, no weird notes that you have to be in a specific mood for, either one would be enjoyable at any time.  Another way of looking at it would be if you enjoyed bourbon but your budget let you drink $100-$150 bottles all the time, these would be staples.  Or if I only bought one bottle every couple of months, I would drink these, Remus Repeal, etc. instead of many of the less expensive bottles that are very good but not quite at this level.

 

Night 4 was basically a repeat of nights 1-3.  To me, these are more like two slightly different expressions of one product rather than one expression that is clearly superior to the other.  Keep in mind that there is only 1 year of age difference; this might mean a lot between a 3-yr-old and a 4-yr-old, but at these ages, 16 is only 6.7% older than 15, and I think there are a LOT of other factors that would influence one being "better" than the other more than a 6.7% age difference. 

 

I'm glad I did this, because I now know that, to me, it is probably not worth the extra money to buy the 16 over the 15.  It is important to note that the 15 and 16 I have been comparing each come from 19-barrel batches from a single rack (U36093.09 for the 15 and W4009.09 for the 16) so your batches--indeed, my future batches--may vary from these.  I would be curious to blind two different batches to see if my impressions change.

 

Cheers!

[Kepler]

2 hours ago, IamMatt said:

So I did 4 night of SBS with Calumet 15 and 16 over a couple of weeks.  Here are my notes; YMMV.

 

First night:  I felt my palate was not great going into this tasting.  Both 15 and 16 were similar on the nose, with classic notes of caramel, vanilla, and creme brulee, along with a muted floral note and age notes of wood and wet cardboard.  Nose notes mostly transfer to the palate, with a slight proof hit upfront (though only 105 & 106 proof), a nice finish that gets sweeter and ends with a proof note that has a non-offensive hit of acetone.  Minor differences between the two were not enough to say one is better than the other.  I suspect if I did these blind I would not be able to tell the difference, or at least I would find them similar enough to have no clear preference.

 

 

Night 2:  They are very similar.  Nosing them tonight, I am getting a little more ethanol on the 16 than the 15,  though again, they are very close. On the palate, 16 seems a bit mellower than 15.  I have to remind myself that these are, basically, the same juice except one is a year older but at 15 vs 16 years, I don't know if one year is much of a difference. 

 

 

Poured two sample bottles and tried them blind.  Honestly, I can hardly tell the difference.  Will continue blinding them to see.  (Cut to the future--A is 15 and B is 16).

 

 

Night 3:  A has a stronger nose, in both "flavor" and proof; B's nose is more subtle but more complex and a little deeper; if I had to say I would say it smells older,  A has cinnamon on the palate this time, still has lots of layers of flavor.  B's palate is again more muted, darker or less bright, but also has multiple layers that come on sequentially, with the palate changing over time as it gives way to the medium-long finish.  Tonight I think I like B more.  Like B is Remus V and A is Remus VI lol.

 

 

They remind me a bit of comparing two Remus Repeal batches.  Layered, complex, not high proof, no weird notes that you have to be in a specific mood for, either one would be enjoyable at any time.  Another way of looking at it would be if you enjoyed bourbon but your budget let you drink $100-$150 bottles all the time, these would be staples.  Or if I only bought one bottle every couple of months, I would drink these, Remus Repeal, etc. instead of many of the less expensive bottles that are very good but not quite at this level.

 

 

Night 4 was basically a repeat of nights 1-3.  To me, these are more like two slightly different expressions of one product rather than one expression that is clearly superior to the other.  Keep in mind that there is only 1 year of age difference; this might mean a lot between a 3-yr-old and a 4-yr-old, but at these ages, 16 is only 6.7% older than 15, and I think there are a LOT of other factors that would influence one being "better" than the other more than a 6.7% age difference. 

 

 

I'm glad I did this, because I now know that, to me, it is probably not worth the extra money to buy the 16 over the 15.  It is important to note that the 15 and 16 I have been comparing each come from 19-barrel batches from a single rack (U36093.09 for the 15 and W4009.09 for the 16) so your batches--indeed, my future batches--may vary from these.  I would be curious to blind two different batches to see if my impressions change.

 

 

Cheers!

Thanks for this detailed write-up. Very informative.  When I made my Calumet purchases I choose to pick up the 14 and the 16 based on info I gathered here on SB combined with the prices in my local area -- plus the fact that I had a hunch that the 14 yr would go away soon, and I wanted to try it before it was too late.  I need to open one of mine, and your excellent review makes me want to do that soon!

[Kepler]

I just had to go back to the Wild Turkey 12 Year tonight (the blue 12 "transitional label" export version that I was drinking yesterday) while watching a movie with Mrs. Kepler tonight.  It is an incredible bourbon, one of my absolute favorites.  Since I didn't want to kill that bottle yet, I then switched to a decent substitute for WT12, ... Master's Keep Decades.  Very nice.

 

[fishnbowljoe]

I’m having slightly out of character pours this evening. Instead of going with one or more of my regulars BT, ER or MM, I’m enjoying  ≈100 proof pours. Hey, it just happened. I enjoyed pours of Rebel 100, ET BIB and MM 101 this evening.

 

 

 

[Anwalt]

11 hours ago, IamMatt said:

So I did 4 night of SBS with Calumet 15 and 16 over a couple of weeks.  Here are my notes; YMMV.

 

Science, sample sizes! Very useful notes, thank you for taking the time. If we twist your arm, will you do more? Sample size!

[Anwalt]

On 9/9/2023 at 6:36 PM, Kepler said:

I felt like something a little nicer for this fine college football Saturday.  Love this stuff.  Such a nice long finish.

Is this an older packaging for the Japanese export version?

 

I loved the more modern incarnation. Best $50 spent on booze, ever, when available at that price.

[IamMatt]

9 minutes ago, Anwalt said:

 

Science, sample sizes! Very useful notes, thank you for taking the time. If we twist your arm, will you do more? Sample size!

I enjoy doing SBS and blinds, never sure if my experiences are relevant to anyone else. 

[TwoFingers]

Having a pour of FRSB and remembering two friends.  Childhood and high school friend, John Griffin, who died in the South Tower of the WTC.  Also, a work colleague, Paul Ambrose, who died on the plane that hit the Pentagon.  Hope they and all those that died that day can rest in peace.  Never forget!

[IamMatt]

Condolences.

[bayouredd]

1st a VOB 90, which I have been enjoying immensely, but not tonight; too uncomplex.

 

Switched to a George Remus Blend.

50% shelf George & 50% Wine World SiB which I wasn't too fond of. Total, way better than sum of it's parts...

[markandrex]

Some MM MR 1-3 this evening.  I picked this up in Loretto a couple of years ago. A very nice expression of their wood finishing series.  I never saw any except in the gift shop.

[JCwhammie]

Some of my favorite bourbon ever was from this run of CNF 6th floor in 2019 and 2020. It highlights what 10 year turkey can be.

This one was bottled 2 days after little Whammie was born, so there's a little emotional attachment. 

Ive been contemplating opening it (I still have a stash of them, don't worry) for a while. A quick text-versation with @0895 was the kick in the tail to get me to finally tear the shrink wrap off and offer myself a healthy pour. 

[Skinsfan1311]

Winding down after a great vacation, and a great weekend of football!

 

[Skinsfan1311]

John J Bowman in the glass...

[TwoFingers]

Having some Dant while watching Yankees vs Red Sox.

[markandrex]

I broke into the RR-SP.  The nose is the old root beer barrel candies from my childhood.  Palate is cinnamon, toffee and cherry.  It finishes with a really nice aKentucky hug in the chest with lingering cinnamon on the palate.

I know where I’m heading tomorrow.  Time to bunker a case of the CN-B

[Double C's]

Last night started off with a pour of FRSB while I worked on sharpening the last of my broadheads in preparation for the start of archery season. Once I was done messing with the sharp objects I followed it up with a pour of WT101.

[TwoFingers]

58 minutes ago, Double C's said:

Once I was done messing with the sharp objects I followed it up with a pour of WT101.

You certainly want a steady hand with those.  Never had much luck with the archery season (probably just not patient enough).  I stick to the 3-D targets these days.  Good luck with the season.  I think a pour of the WT101 might be in order this evening, with thoughts of being afield.

[Double C's]

4 hours ago, TwoFingers said:

You certainly want a steady hand with those.  Never had much luck with the archery season (probably just not patient enough).  I stick to the 3-D targets these days.  Good luck with the season.  I think a pour of the WT101 might be in order this evening, with thoughts of being afield.

I use a Lansky sharpening guide, so the blade is clamped in and a guide rod for the sharpening stone. Still have to be careful to not slip and get cut.

[Kepler]

On 9/11/2023 at 8:12 AM, Anwalt said:

Is this an older packaging for the Japanese export version?

 

I loved the more modern incarnation. Best $50 spent on booze, ever, when available at that price.

 

It's an older packaging for the export market.  This particular bottle was picked up in Hong Kong by my wife many years ago.  I have a backup bottle of this blue label that was purchased in the UK around the same time (2016 I think) while they were still available there. 

[markandrex]

VOB100 tonight, simple but satisfying.

[mbroo5880i]

KC9 

[Thomm]

ET BIB followed by Kentucky Vintage.

[fishnbowljoe]

Same as it ever was!