Thursday, March 10, 2022

Obtainium, Whitmeyer’s Malt, Rare Character, Barrell SiB, American Whiskey

The sample wars are continuing with no end in sight.

Obtainium Light Whiskey. 67.8%
A sample from friend Logan. A light whiskey is typically bourbon that doesn’t conform to bourbon rules, being either too high proof at cask entry or being aged in used casks. Most light whiskey comes from MGP stocks and are typically older than 10 years due to slower maturation in previously used casks. The nose on this one is just…. very high proofed… but behind it hides a fruit punch of flavors, with cherries and strawberries being quite prominent notes. The palate… Oh boy, that proof’s got nothing to hide behind. Not going to sugarcoat it… this is quite intense. After a little water… this is velvety, almond and cinnamon croissant or a sticky cinnamon roll in a glass. All those toasty cinnamon roll flavors with big gollop of sticky sugar that just covers the mouth while being consumed all those are here. A long aftertaste slowly shifts from front of the tongue to the back of the throat with more gentle cinnamon tickle and a little bit of ginger. Overall: I quite enjoy it. Perhaps not quite good for home shelf this is certainly a top pick for a good dessert dram with friends. Bourbon purists be damned! Very enjoyable but needs careful, but nearly immediate dilution. Perhaps a perfect pour over little ice in summer. Make no mistake this is not for everyone as it’s essentially bourbon with all the primary flavors removed and all the secondary flavors amplified by 100. Value: No clue, but these aren’t very expensive at MSRP being around $80 last I’ve seen… Decent price for a novelty whiskey, especially at such high proof and age.
Score: B

Obtainium Light Whiskey 14, PlumpJack Estate Cabernet Finish. 68.1%
Another Light Whiskey, this time a 14 year old finished in Plumpjack Estate Cab casks. This sample comes courtesy of friend Orpheus. Astringent alcohol-forward cherries on the nose, as expected of wine cask finish. I expect this is going to be cherry liqueur creme-brulee on the palate… Let’s try… Yup… It’s quite hot cherry creme brulee. Water is strongly recommended to drop it down a few proof points. After water this is quite delicious. The cherry from wine cask adds tons of secondary subtle flavors and because it’s light whiskey, the secondary notes aren’t being overwhelmed. The palate is quite velvety and mouth-coating due to age. The aftertaste is more cherry, vanilla, some wood and lots and lots of ginger-cinnamon dust. The aftertaste is also quite warm and lasts for quite a long time. Overall: Slightly better than the ‘pure’ version above, as red wine casks bring lots of secondary notes to offset primaries, ending up with cherry custard that’s dusted with nutmeg and cinnamon. Enjoyable and quite drinkable though bourbon this ain’t… Also way too hot without water so it’s no casual @work drink either. In it’s own ‘weird whiskey’ category this is quite nice. Value: I don’t recall which variety this is, but PJ site has sister casks at $80 which is a decent price for what you get. Yet again, bourbon purists will scoff at it but I’ll say this is quite decent novelty whiskey for the price.
Score: B+

Whitmeyer’s Single Malt American Whiskey, 17 mo, Single Cask 54%
A small sample courtesy of friend Charu to scratch that ‘weird whiskey’ itch. This is some sort of Whitmeyers own experiment in fast aging, seeing this is only 17 months old, and a single malt nonetheless. I don’t usually group single malts and bourbons, but this review set is already going all over the place and is likely to get weirder; so here goes. The nose is eye-watering medical alcohol wipe with a tiny note of wood following. The palate is super alcoholic kahlua liquor. The finish is reasonably short and full of more coffee. This is basically highly fortified kahlua. Plus one of the weird whiskey train. -1 for everything else. Coffee-lovers need to apply here. This is like westland coffee profile but with almost no maltiness. Hard pass, though not a drain pour at least. It really tastes like coffee-flavored whiskey. It’s also not my jam in the booze department. Value: I don’t care.
https://www.whitmeyers.com/
Score: D

—- And now for a few Americans of ‘weird character’ all samples below are from Jaimie

Rare Character, 5 Years old MGP Bourbon, K&L Sp. 59.85%
An MGP product aged in Kentucky. Kinda a funky MGP nose notes, somewhat woody and strongly alcoholic, which isn’t surprising, given the proof. Very warm palate; an interesting mix of Kentucky, notably Heaven Hill with MGP cinnamon and wood, nothing too complicated here likely due to age a pleasant if a little hot drinker, like very alcoholic red hots. Medium length aftertaste that’s continuing from the palate. Water tunes down the heat a little bit making it an easy drinker for a relaxed conversation if heat is too much. Not much gained not much lost. Overall: Enjoyable and not too complex. The bottle is pretty and I guess would make a nice table topic, but this isn’t offering anything new that I’ve not seen before. Quite cohesive package if you’re into SAOS/MPG 5 year old offerings. An excellent example of an old familiar, like the favorite pillow. Value: at $70 for a 5 year old MGP with admittedly pretty label and bottle? Sure, I guess it’s okay price in the current market.
I’m fairly sure it’s this: https://www.klwines.com/p/i?i=1585153
Score: B+

Barrell Bourbon 8, SiB “Old Ills”, 58.37%
Woody and cherry-forward nose profile. Quite a nutty bite on the palate with warming cinnamon, wood and some baking spice. Oddly mouth-watering after the sip, or perhaps my palate is trying to adjust itself to the burn. Chocolate-covered cherries dusted with cinnamon here for sure. Long and highly complex tingling sensation on the aftertaste. Few drops of water open up little more wood and makes it better balanced. Overall: Quite enjoyable but the cinnamon profile isn’t my cup of tea in bourbon to be honest… Though plenty will enjoy it. It’s also a little bit of nutty underneath the spice and the proof and leans very lightly into the peanut notes, though this is Kentucky single cask so Dickel is likely out of the mix here. I think the lesson here, is not everyone’s palate match up with picking single casks. Seems like I’m not a good match to the person that picked out this one. Value: at $100… it’s about average what I’d expect from a 8 year old single cask nowadays for the price.
https://www.klwines.com/p/i?i=1589188
Score: B

Barrell Bourbon 8, SiB “Blakely’s Barrel”, 58.6%
Another Kentucky bourbon sample. Another wood, alcohol and some cherry nose… While the description mentions mashbill with rye as the ’small grain’ (whatever THAT means). It does not seem like something out of BT or HH… Oh well, done with guessing. The palate is reasonably balanced, quite sweet and almost tame, yet not lacking in flavors deal. Lots of burnt sugar, cherries, spices, wood. Wonderfully balanced almost floral in its notes. The aftertaste is not too long on primary notes but lingers for a while with a light tingle. Overall: I quite like it’s sweeter-than-average and floral character. It’s both complicated and not overly so though the balance leans slightly towards delicate flower firewater rather than what I would associate with ‘macho American BBQ’ drinking… This is a warming winter drink rather than southern BBQ drink. Value: Another $100; it’s about average what I’d expect from a 8 year old single cask nowadays for the price.
https://www.klwines.com/p/i?i=1589575
Score: B+

Barrell Bourbon 6, SiB “Triple Cherry”, 59.95%
The nose lives up to its nickname spectacularly, it’s essentially cherry cough sirup for alcoholics. Really sweet cherry vanilla cola on the palate, end of description. The aftertaste brings an explosion of cinnamon and baking spices that are then slowly fade away over medium-long period. Overall: this will appeal to vanilla cherry lovers… Honestly, it’s not quite my thing due to cough sirup note associations as it’s on the lighter side of the spectrum. With a little bit more wood notes, this could have been much better balanced. Value: Another $100; it’s about little below average what I’d expect from a 6 year old single cask nowadays for the price.
https://www.klwines.com/p/i?i=1589189
Score: C+

Scoring Breakdown: https://www.aerin.or … age=scores_breakdown