Reviews

Bulleit 10 Year Old Bourbon Review

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Bulleit bourbon is one versatile whiskey.  It’s great neat, but its high rye content makes it outstanding in cocktails.  Best of all, it’s a solid buy for about $25-$30.  In 2013, Bulleit Distilling Company unleashed a version of Bulleit bourbon aged 10 years, which is about 3-4 years older than their standard Bulleit bourbon, and considerably more expensive ($45).  How does the extra time in the barrel change things?  Is it worth the extra cash?

(Bulleit Distilling Company provided a small sample for this review).  Where Bulleit bourbon is dry and spicy, its 10 year old sibling Bulleit 10 is a bit more balanced.  On the nose there’s some oak along with spice, vanilla, and a little caramel.  It’s nice.  Taste-wise, I don’t get the alcohol kick I expected at 91.2 proof.  Much less of a kick than its younger brother.  There’s a nice balance of oak and spice, with a little vanilla and caramel.  The finish is a little spicy and sweet, but doesn’t stick around too long.

Overall Bulleit 10 is a tasty, balanced bourbon.  It lacks the big spice of its younger sibling, but evens things out with a little oak.  The whiskey in this bottle is highly recommended, even at $45.  My only gripe is the price.  It’s about $15 more than standard Bulleit bourbon… a fantastic bourbon in its own right.  Bulleit is the better value, but Bulleit 10 is the better bourbon.

8.5/10

Berentzen Bushel & Barrel Review

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The majority of posts here have been bourbon reviews.  As much as I love bourbon, I thought it was time to branch out a little bit and try a “flavored whiskey”.  This one sounds perfect for the holiday season:   Berentzen’s Bushel & Barrel.  It’s a mix of straight bourbon whiskey and Berentzen’s apple liqueur.  This “flavored whiskey” category is new territory for me.  I poured myself a little glass and drank some. (Berentzen provided a review sample for this post)

My first impression was it tasted like an apple Jolly Rancher without some of the artificial flavoring of that candy.  I had a few more sips.  This is some sweet stuff.  Although bourbon is listed on the label first, I struggled to find bourbon flavors anywhere.  Adding some ice mellowed the sweetness a bit, and brought out a little more bourbon flavor (key word there is “little”).

Fans of apple or sweet fruit cocktails would probably like this a lot.  I admit I liked it better with some ice.  It was like a dessert drink of sorts.  A bottle of 60 proof Bushel & Barrel will run you just north of $20.  Now don’t go looking for bourbon here in this bottle.  The star of the show is the apple liqueur.   Not a huge fan of it by itself, but it could make for a great mixer in cocktails that call for an apple liqueur, or an interesting way to spike your Thanksgiving Apple Cider.

5/10

Lost Prophet Bourbon Whiskey Review

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Orphan Barrel’s fourth release, Lost Prophet, is the newest bourbon in their line of highly aged bourbon.  This one follows 20 YO Barterhouse, 26 YO Old Blowhard and 20 YO Rhetoric.  Lost Prophet is a 22 year old straight bourbon whiskey.  Unlike its siblings which were distilled at the Old Bernheim or New Bernheim distilleries, Lost Prophet was distilled in 1991 at the George T. Stagg Distillery (now the Buffalo Trace Distillery).  The mash bill for Lost Prophet Whiskey is 75-78% corn, 7-10% barley and 15% rye.  So, how’s it taste? (Diageo provided a sample of Lost Prophet for this review)

Wow!  For a 22 year old whiskey, I expected tons of oak.  Instead I got some slightly burnt caramel, some oak (it IS 22 years old after all), leather, honey and butterscotch.  There’s a soft entry on the palate.  That means pretty easy sipping at 90.1 proof.  There’s some caramel, followed immediately by some cinnamon and nutmeg spice.  Oak is there, but kept in check for the age.  There’s a slightly creamy character with this one too.  Last but not least, there’s some vanilla on the back end.  The finish is long, spicy and sweet, with a honey note left over.

Bottom line:  Lost Prophet has made me a believer.  This whiskey far surpasses Barterhouse, Old Blowhard & Rhetoric as leader of the pack.  There’s much more balance in this than Old Blowhard and Barterhouse – not too sweet and not too spicy.  A bottle of this should run about $120.  If you’ve got the cash, pick this one up.

9/10