Whiskey Reviews

poadeleted21

poadeleted21

Touchdown! Greaser!
Joined
Aug 18, 2011
Messages
12,332
I saw a bourbon that said "Early Times" and never knew they made a bourbon...google did not disappoint.

I just discovered a new hobby know as "reviewing whiskey on the internet".

Wow!!! This is even dumber than wine reviews. What a load of BS.

Three separate reviews for the same $14.00 bottle of swill. I've heard less BS in a presidential debate.

----

Sweet corn, along with caramel, vanilla, and more subtle ripe summer fruits (on the nose and palate). Light, slightly brash finish. Rather sweet, somewhat youthful tasting, straight-forward, and unpretentious. Not something I would be drinking neat, but it does fare better on the rocks. (The ice and cold water cut through and calm the sweetness.) I think a little more aging would add some depth, and balance some of the sweetness with more oak spice.


----

It’s aged just four years, leaving it very young, but more complicated. Again, big caramel and moderate cinnamon notes are a hallmark, and 354, while still 80 proof, has considerably more bite and less sweetness to it. You know you’re drinking old school whiskey when you sip 354, which offers a lot of wood — almost charcoal — character in the finish.

----
There are subtle hints of grain, vanilla, oak, and peaches.
Early Times 354 has a full mouth-feel with plenty of weight to it. The dominant flavors are sweet notes of vanilla ice cream, caramel, and chocolate fudge. There's also a toasty grain flavor and some oak flavors that balance this whiskey out keep it from being too sweet. A perfectly decent bourbon to sip, and a top notch choice for mixing duty.
 
Hints of a bad teen movie: slightly brash, somewhat youthful, straightforward, young but more complicated. :rofl:
 
bartmc said:
I saw a bourbon that said "Early Times" and never knew they made a bourbon...google did not disappoint.

I just discovered a new hobby know as "reviewing whiskey on the internet".

Wow!!! This is even dumber than wine reviews. What a load of BS.

Three separate reviews for the same $14.00 bottle of swill. I've heard less BS in a presidential debate.

----

Sweet corn, along with caramel, vanilla, and more subtle ripe summer fruits (on the nose and palate). Light, slightly brash finish. Rather sweet, somewhat youthful tasting, straight-forward, and unpretentious. Not something I would be drinking neat, but it does fare better on the rocks. (The ice and cold water cut through and calm the sweetness.) I think a little more aging would add some depth, and balance some of the sweetness with more oak spice.


----

It’s aged just four years, leaving it very young, but more complicated. Again, big caramel and moderate cinnamon notes are a hallmark, and 354, while still 80 proof, has considerably more bite and less sweetness to it. You know you’re drinking old school whiskey when you sip 354, which offers a lot of wood — almost charcoal — character in the finish.

----
There are subtle hints of grain, vanilla, oak, and peaches.
Early Times 354 has a full mouth-feel with plenty of weight to it. The dominant flavors are sweet notes of vanilla ice cream, caramel, and chocolate fudge. There's also a toasty grain flavor and some oak flavors that balance this whiskey out keep it from being too sweet. A perfectly decent bourbon to sip, and a top notch choice for mixing duty.
Click to expand...

:lol:

I have two brothers who fancy themselves wine connoisseurs. I sometimes enjoy substituting wines -- pouring an $8.00 wine into a $75.00+ bottle -- and listening to them outdoing each other's snobbishness and foolishness.

-Rich
 
RJM62 said:
:lol:

I have two brothers who fancy themselves wine connoisseurs. I sometimes enjoy substituting wines -- pouring an $8.00 wine into a $75.00+ bottle -- and listening to them outdoing each other's snobbishness and foolishness.

-Rich
Click to expand...

Give em' some "Two Buck Chuck"

--
At the 28th Annual International Eastern Wine Competition, Shaw's 2002 Shiraz received the double gold medal, beating approximately 2,300 other wines in the competition.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Shaw_wine
 
bartmc said:
Give em' some "Two Buck Chuck"

--
At the 28th Annual International Eastern Wine Competition, Shaw's 2002 Shiraz received the double gold medal, beating approximately 2,300 other wines in the competition.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Shaw_wine
Click to expand...

I should do that. I tried the Merlot the last time I was in California, and I was surprised. It was actually quite drinkable. I'd been expecting something along the lines of Night Train Express.

-Rich
 
While in Scotland, I attended a Whisky tasting for a new malt. A whole bunch of people laying it on about tastes and hints of... The friend I was with (thought) she whispered to me "and just a hint of raccoon". You could have heard a pin drop. After a long pause, the presenter repeated it and just laughed. It was now the "new" description added to the next three or four samples.
I get a laugh every time I read a review since I cannot without adding....
"And just a hint of raccoon."
 
mmmm yup. My aunt who was upscale in the social circles of Flint Michigan (before the auto companies went into the crapper there was real money in Flint/Detroit) also believed in value for your dollar. She had no qualms about buying wine in a box and pouring it into empty bottles of an expensive vintage to serve her bridge club. Now mind you, her wine in a box was not Ripple or MD20/20 It was a decent wine but it didn't have an expensive label. She had a reputation as one of the finest hostesses in the city and they never caught on.
 
bartmc said:
Is that because it's youthful tasting with hints of vanilla, corn, snickers and kerosene? Then finishes strong but but not so strong it's pretentious? :D
Click to expand...

Nope. Because it goes down easy and provides the requisite buzz. But I'll drink Paddy's also, so .....

Oddly, my daughters are all whiskey drinkers.
Sadly, my sons drink <horror> <embarrassment> rum </embarrassment></horror>
 
Shepherd said:
Nope. Because it goes down easy and provides the requisite buzz. But I'll drink Paddy's also, so .....

Oddly, my daughters are all whiskey drinkers.
Sadly, my sons drink <horror> <embarrassment> rum </embarrassment></horror>
Click to expand...

Your sons have good taste. :D
 
We have a local bourbon called Waterford that we picked up last night for our trip to the islands. I'm told its quite smooth, we'll see. I usually get really cheap bourbon to cook with, cheaper the better. That bite really makes food pop. Of course, it all tastes the same once you mix it with soda pop.
 
Shepherd said:
Nope. Because it goes down easy and provides the requisite buzz. But I'll drink Paddy's also, so .....

Oddly, my daughters are all whiskey drinkers.
Sadly, my sons drink <horror> <embarrassment> rum </embarrassment></horror>
Click to expand...
If they are Sons of Neptune, let them know about Shellback rum (silver) and Shellback spiced rum.
 
I live in wine snob country (well, very close to it anyway) and I still enjoy Carlos Rossi about as much as a $100 bottle of Heitz Cabernet.

Well more actually, because if I'm drinking a $100 bottle of Heitz Cabernet, it's because the owner offered me a glass and I'm supposed to pretend I'm savoring and enjoying it, vs. chugging it and "gettin' the job done."
 
Real whisky has no 'e' and no ice in it.

Scotch whisky (the relatively more reasonable ones):

Not Peated:
Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban (best overall in my opinion for taste and price)
Glendronach 15 yr
Macallan 12 yr (the 18 yr is good but $200! pfft)
Balvenie Double Wood
Balvenie 15 yr
Glenfarclas 17 or 21 (relatively cheap for the age)

and there are tons more but they all get up there in price.


Peated (smokey!):
Laphroaig anything.
Lagavulin 16
Ardbeg anything
Highland Park 18 (not very peated)


If you must drink Bourbon: Colorado Straight Bourbon Whiskey by Peach Street Distillers. These guys also make a 30% ABV peach brandy that is fantastic.

Stranahan's ("Straight Colorado whiskey" not technically bourbon specs IIRC)
 
Last edited:
petrolero said:
Real whisky has no 'e' in it.

Scotch whisky (the relatively more reasonable ones):

Not Peated:
Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban (best overall in my opinion for taste and price)
Glendronach 15 yr
Macallan 12 yr (the 18 yr is good but $200! pfft)
Balvenie Double Wood
Balvenie 15 yr
Glenfarclas 17 or 21 (relatively cheap for the age)

and there are tons more but they all get up there in price.


Peated (smokey!):
Laphroaig anything.
Lagavulin 16
Ardbeg anything
Highland Park 18 (not very peated)


If you must drink Bourbon: Colorado Straight Bourbon Whiskey by Peach Street Distillers. These guys also make a 30% ABV peach brandy that is fantastic. Perfect for skiing!

Stranahan's ("Colorado whiskey" not technically bourbon specs IIRC)
Click to expand...
The Balvenie 12yo DoubleWood is a great bottle and my go to :yes:
 
Bourbon - Knob Creek
Town Branch. Unfortunately, can't get it out here in California. It's only available in Kentucky.

Scotch - Laguvalin - nectar of the gods.
I'm nursing a bottle of Kirkland Signature - MacAllan 18 year sherry cask finish. A few years ago, it was $70. They don't offer it at Costco anymore. Excellent whisky.
 
Strictly speaking, real whiskey comes from TN or KY.

Loosely speaking, it comes from anywhere but Canada.
 
RJM62 said:
:lol:

I have two brothers who fancy themselves wine connoisseurs. I sometimes enjoy substituting wines -- pouring an $8.00 wine into a $75.00+ bottle -- and listening to them outdoing each other's snobbishness and foolishness.

-Rich
Click to expand...


Reminds me of Penn&Teller on water..

 
http://freakonomics.com/2010/12/16/freakonomics-radio-do-more-expensive-wines-taste-better/

"One of these researchers is Robin Goldstein, whose paper detailing more than 6,000 blind tastingshttp://www.wine-economics.org/workingpapers/AAWE_WP16.pdf reaches the conclusion that “individuals who are unaware of the price do not derive more enjoyment from more expensive wine.”

"And there was just one classic moment when one of the French judges by the name of Raymond Oliver, who was the owner of the Le Grand Vefour restaurant, he had a television show on food in France, he was a big thing in French wine and food circles. He had a white wine in front of him. He looked at the white wine, then he held it up to a light to look at the color very closely. Then he took a sip of it. Then he held it up again. Then he said in French, ‘Ah, back to France.’ And I looked down at my scorecard and he’d just tasted the 1972 Freemark Abbey Chardonnay."
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top