Michter’s US*1 Toasted Barrel Finish Rye Whiskey Review


Oh boy!  

Michter’s US*1 Barrel Strength Rye is one of my favorite uncut whiskies.  It’s not the most complex rye I’ve tasted from Michter’s.  Their 10-year-old rye holds that honor.  However, the barrel strength rye is an extremely enjoyable pour full of rye spice and brown sugar richness.

With this new release, Michter’s takes that rye whiskey and lets it rest in toasted barrels for a short amount of time, just like their previous releases of Toasted Barrel Bourbon.  This is the first time they’ve barrel finished a rye.  The barrels used for the finishing process, as the name implies, have been toasted and not charred.  The wood used for the barrels was air dried for 24 months.

What does this toasted barrel do to the base rye whiskey?  In short, it intensifies the flavors.

The nose is ripe with dark brown sugar, vanilla and a cornucopia of baking spices.  The latter is more pronounced here than in Michter’s Barrel Proof Rye.  On the palate, this toasted barrel-finished rye comes across as rich and bittersweet.  Dark caramel and burnt sugar kick things off, followed by lovely toasted rye bread and a cabinet full of baking spices like allspice, cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon.  A layer of vanilla cream acts as a counterbalance against all the spice.  The medium-length finish features spiced caramel and a touch of smoke.

Wow.  The barrel finishing added a different dimension to Michter’s rye whiskey character.  To add even more uniqueness, this release is a single barrel whiskey, which means each barrel could be slightly different.  My 110 proof sample came from barrel 17C570.  It’s simply fantastically rich and flavorful.  The price is right, too.  $75 for a 750ml bottle.  Now the bad news – this is a limited release and not a regular offering.  Fans of Michter’s rye whiskies should rush to pick this one up.  9/10

Michters.com

Four Roses 2017 Limited Edition “Al Young” 50th Anniversary Bourbon Review

Four Roses Senior Brand Ambassador Al Young. Photo courtesy of Four Roses.


Where to start with Al Young?  He’s worked for Seagrams/Four Roses in some capacity or other for 50 years now.  In 1990, he was named Distillery Manager.  Young then transitioned into the role of Senior Brand Ambassador a decade ago.  Furthermore, Young has played the role of historian, documenting the brand from its beginning to its modern day resurgence in the book, “Four Roses: The Return of a Whiskey Legend.”

To commemorate a half century in service of the industry, Four Roses dedicated its spring-time limited edition release to Young.  The whiskey is a small batch bourbon that uses four of the company’s ten bourbon recipes.  Master Distiller Brent Elliott worked together with Young to pick just the right barrels.

  • 12-year-old OBSF
  • 13-year-old OESV
  • 15-year-old OBSK
  • 23-year-old OBSV

 The bottle is also a retro design.  Young looked through the company’s extensive archives and requested the new bottle look like one from 1967, his first year with the company.  You couldn’t ask for a better package.


The whiskey itself is magnificent.  The nose is full of beautifully aged bourbon – dark caramel, sweet corn, dried fruits and wave after wave of vanilla and spice.  A touch of cigar box adds some complexity.  Every now and then, some light floral topnotes fight their way through.  The palate was equally engaging with caramelized corn, dark cherries, candied berries, toasted grains, and spice.  Vanilla creme brulee plays big mid-palate.  The back palate features more spice (cinnamon, cloves) and slight bitterness.  That comes across more as a barrel char than something like dark chocolate.  Maybe somewhere in-between.  The finish is very long and warm, with that “bitter” character coming through alongside soft caramel sweetness.

For my tastes, Four Roses 2017 Limited Edition Al Young 50th Anniversary Small Batch Bourbon is on the shortlist for my favorite whiskey of 2017.  Though this bourbon came out in June, it’s still just reaching different parts of the country. Only 10,000 bottles are available at a suggested price of $150. If you see it, buy it.  And if you buy it, drink it.  You won’t be disappointed.  9/10

Thanks to Four Roses for the sample.  As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

A Chat and Tasting with Courvoisier Master Blender Patrice Pinet

Courvoisier Master Blender Patrice Pinet. Photo courtesy of Courvoisier.


Courvoisier Master Blender Patrice Pinet does not travel to the U.S. much.  So when the rare opportunity to meet with him privately arose, I jumped at the chance.  Pinet was in New Orleans for Tales of the Cocktail representing Courvoisier.  As Pinet’s time was very limited, only three tasting sessions were made available.  I was lucky to nab one of those sessions.  

The soft-spoken Master Blender poured a taste of Courvoisier VSOP, XO and rare L’Essence as we talked cognac.  On the subject of cognac and cocktails, Pinet called it “a very interesting period of time where we are rediscovering cognac.”  The spirit was used in punch back in the day, but it wasn’t called cognac.  At that time, the spirit we now know as cognac was referred to simply as brandy from the Cognac region.  The regulations that define cognac were put in place much later.  Remember, all cognac is brandy, but not all brandy is cognac.

“There is no crime to dilute or use cognac in a cocktail,” Pinet said.  “Back in the 1950s, people drank cognac fine à l’eau, which means cognac and sparkling water.”

In terms of modern cognac-based cocktails, Pinet compared the French spirit to cuisine.  “If you want to prepare a meal in an established restaurant, you need to have a very good ingredients to have a very good meal,” said Pinet.  “To make a very good cocktail, you also need good ingredients.  With Cognac you have a very good ingredient.  It’s very aromatic.  There’s something about cognac that combines very well with fruits and liqueurs.  Mixologists can play with cognac very well.”

Making cognac shares similarities with whiskey-making, but they are worlds apart.  Whiskey comes from grains, which are pretty much the same year-to-year.  Cognac, on the other hand, is made from wine.  The grape harvests are different every year.  Pinet explained, “To have a very sustainable quality, it is very important to blend different years.  Otherwise you’d have too much variation from one year to another.”


I asked about the blending different crus, or sub-regions, in Cognac.  “We obtain different wines, and depending on soil, it gives the possibility of different taste profiles.  There is very chalky soil in Grande Champagne and Petit Champange. A little bit less chalky in Fin Bois or more flint in Borderies,” said Pinet.  “It depends on what I want to do.  If I want to do something very floral, like Courvoisier VS, I like to use Fin Bois.  Fin Bois is very good after just two years of aging.  We do not like to distill Fin Bois with the lees (residue yeast from wine-making).  We eliminate them for the Fin Bois in order to have something very floral and very fruity.  This is my favorite cru to make a young cognac. When I want to do higher quality blend, I use Grand Champagne as a base. The richness in Grande Champagne is very interesting. We like to add a touch of Borderies in the higher quality blends to give some spiciness and floral notes like violet or iris.  It is not a lot. I would say maybe 10 – 20% Borderies.”

All cognac must be aged in French oak casks.  In addition, Courvoisier, along with most cognac producers, utilize both dry cellars and damp cellars to store their cognac-filled casks. 
“When you have a dry cellar, there is more evaporation of water. There is more concentration of alcohol, making the spirit dry.  In a humid cellar you have more evaporation of alcohol.  You have more smoothness.  That’s why it is important to have both types of cellars.  You need to have the balance.”

Courvoisier is one of the world’s largest cognac producers, so consistency in their product lines is of utter importance.  Their eight person tasting panel tastes daily for quality and consistency, but Pinet says their knowledge and experience makes the process or manageable.

“I would say that for a Master Blender, the easiest thing to do is a limited edition.  You make a batch that’s unique and that’s it.  To have a very consistent blend, it’s much more challenging.  You need to play with different cru and different ages.  We have a standard recipe, but this recipe has to be adjusted.  We know that Courvoisier VS, for instance, we have about 85% Fin Bois and 15% Petit Champagne.  From year to year we move a little bit.  Our VS is aged from two to seven years, so we play with different years to have a very consistent quality.”
  
Lastly, I asked about the possibility of a high proof cognac.  Pinet smiled and said, “If there is a demand from mixologists to use a cask-strength cognac in order to have a lot of aroma and a good basis for cocktails, it is something we would look at.”

Photo courtesy of Courvoisier.


As for the cognacs we tasted, you can find my review of Courvoisier VSOP and XO here.  The last pour, L’Essence de Courvoisier, was heavenly on the nose and refined on palate.  Rich dark toffee, dried fruits, and leather filled the nose alongside light floral notes.  The palate carried over more of the same, with a touch more on the fruitier side.  I remember plum and herbs on the finish.  This cognac was made using Grande Champagne and Borderies dating back to the early 1900s.  Exquisite!

I want to thank Courvoisier for the chance to speak with one of the great blenders in the spirits industry.  The best way to learn about a brand is to drink their spirits.  But learning from the person who actually blends said spirits is enlightenment on a whole other level.