MrWizard's Ramblings

Almost exactly 20 months ago I’ve done a Mystery Tasting with some fancy samples from a Generous Benefactor. https://www.aerin.or … y:entry210301-223652 … It’s time for another one, this time with slightly less fancy components and slightly more mysterious undertones. None of the components were revealed to me beforehand so the guessing is completely blind. Of course, I’ll post the reveal and perhaps some thoughts afterwards, but generally, blind tastings are a big equalizer. I do know this:

• It is not all cask strength components.
• This is a blend of Kentucky and Indiana distilled bourbon.
• It is a blend of four different bottles from three different distilleries.

Quick note on scoring here. I was asked to rate these 1-10. As my system isn’t numeric-based, I’ll approximate 10 to A+, 9 to A, 8 to A-, 7 to B+… etc all the way to 1 being a unified ‘D/Avoid’
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Sample 1
N: Oooh I like this nose! Slightly metallic cinnamon. Old leather. Old wood varnish workshop with lots of cedar chips in the rafters. Aaaand then some nuttiness comes up.
P: This is proofy and tasty. Lots of nuts of the roasted variety (without being overwhelming, which is great). No off notes, this slides directly into peppers and cinnamon.
A: Peppery cinnamon, cloves, sichuan peppers, very light nuttyness. Slightly on the sweeter side. Almost zero off-notes or funkyness.
O: This distillery needs to put out more of whatever this specific bottle was. Borderline A.
Score: A- (8/10); Guess: This is the blend of everything. Proof is ~105.

Sample 2
N: Nose is reminiscent of Beam (#4) though less potent. Funky corn, wet leather.
P: The palate is very pleasant and highly complex. None of the funky notes are around anymore. Toasted baking spices, burnt pie crust notes. Very balanced. Not much to complain about. Slightly low proof is my only real nitpick here.
A: Long warming aftertaste that sticks around for a while. Surprisingly gentle.
O: I really like this. It starts like Knob Creek but finishes like something entirely different. The low proof is a problem though.
Score: B+ (7/10); Guess: Something from Beam again… Not too sure what this is. Basil Hayden’s maybe? ~95 proof. No clue on age but let’s say ~7.

Sample 3
N: Slightly nutty baking spices. Salted pickle (dill) notes. Lots of complexity. What I’d call great bourbon nose.
P: Lively palate with layers of wood, cinnamon, vanilla, burnt caramel… etc. Very slightly too sweet.
A: Perhaps a touch too heavy on cinnamon in the aftertaste. I’m also starting to feel the proof in this one.
O: Extremely enjoyable. This really reminds me of SiB Magnus stuff. This also seems like the proofiest of samples.
Score: B+ (7/10); Guess: Remus/Magnus bottling from MGP. ~115 proof. ~10 years old.

Sample 4
N: High proof nose. Slightly funky nuttyness. Light cinnamon that fades quickly.
P: Rather gentle palate… Perhaps ~100 proof. Funky nuttiness from the nose, yet again funk fades quickly. This is like pecans perhaps. Definitely not peanuts. High rye, it’s spicy.
A: Lots of warmth and baking spices here. Long aftertaste with slightly bitter notes at the very tail end.
O: Very enjoyable experience most of the way. The bitter aftertaste isn’t enjoyable and borderline off-putting on its own.
Score: B- (5/10); Guess: Something from BEAM stills. Since they all taste roughly same… ‘Knob Creek 12, 100 proof’, but could be almost anything from there.

Sample 5
N: Whoa… Road tar? Sulfur? Sweet saltiness? This smells *WEIRD*… good weird, but still strange. Thankfully most weird notes leave after some time. But it reminds me of salted nuts from snack machine.
P: Sweet and wood-bitter at the same time… Somehow falls flat on the palate; this is missing that leather and minwax notes it’s also isn’t corny. Wheated mashbill I suspect.
A: Lots of heat in the back that gets sweeter with time.
O: This is not that interesting and not offensive at the same time. The palate falls onto flat one-note; the aftertaste is warming and enjoyable but the rest of the experience is skewed.
Score: B- (5/10); Guess: Makers Mark of some kind. ~100 proof. Wheated mashbill. Age ~6.
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This will be edited later to add the reveals… but for now my rating is: 1>2>3>4>5

Personal note: This was really hard. The samples came as 1oz (for wider distribution reasons), so trying to glean insights from small pours while leaving a little bit on the bottom to revisit later is really tough. I initially thought that #2 is the blend but due to doubt that The Benefactor would voluntarily proof down their creation… I’ve decided to do tiny amount of math and assume something that’s proofed in the middle is likely the blend.
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The reveal was the following and I’ll put some notes below:

Blind 1: Elijah Craig Barrel Proof K&L Single Barrel (10yr 128.2pf)
Whaaaat?! I actually have this bottle. I should revisit this. Totally didn’t taste like typical Heaven Hill. I’m way off on guessing across all parameters.

Blind 2: Buffalo Trace Neat Drinker’s Single Barrel (NAS, 90pf)
Also whaaaat!? Totally didn’t smell or taste like any BT I’ve had. But, I’m told this is a very funky BT cask, not at all typical. Close guesses on proof and age.

Blind 3: Redemption High Rye Barrel Proof Bourbon (10yr 114.4pf)
Spot on guesses here on it being MGP. At least this one is makes me feel a little better.

Blind 4: Old Weller Antique Eureka Single Barrel (NAS, 107pf)
Whaaaat!? For the record, this tasted almost exactly like Knob Creek 15 year old pick I have. Reasonably close guess on proof, very wrong guesses on everything else. I did call out same distillery correctly with #2 though not its location.

Blind 5: Steve’s Blend (45% ECBP, 25% BT, 20% Redemption, 10% OWA)
Also whaaaat!? I cannot believe after the blend with those components worked out to taste like a funky Cask Select of Makers. Sorry, sir, this isn’t really my jam. But most Maker’s aren’t my jam either.
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Scoring Breakdown: https://www.aerin.or … age=scores_breakdown