Basil Hayden's Rye Whiskey

May 30, 2017 Eric Burke

Last week, I went to one of my two favorite liquor stores. It's weird. I almost never go there because, although it is relatively close to my house, I have to go a little out of my way to get there. Plus there have been more than a few occasions where I went in for a six pack of beer and walked out having spent $150 when I got the beer and an extra bottle or two of whiskey that I just couldn't live without.

While my last trip there didn't end in me spending quite so much, I did walk out with a whiskey that I hadn't planned on buying when I went in. And boy, is this whiskey a controversial one. At least if you judge by the Twitter replies I got when I mentioned that I'd be reviewing it. I almost never get people telling me anything about a whiskey when I pre-announce a review, but this time I got quite a few, and they had me joyfully dreading my upcoming tasting. I like tasting bad whiskey almost as much as I enjoy drinking good whiskey.

Here are a few of my favorites. I love conversations about whiskey.

@OBGyeayouknowme sent me a yawn gif (which I recognize from somewhere but can't remember where and it has been bugging me ever since).

@BourbonFanboy told me it had "notes of grass and misery." (I like this one, it's clever.)

@ryewhiskeylover told me to take it back and then buy a Booker's Rye. (ummm...cool? Show me an overpriced unicorn and I'll...still never spend $300 on a whiskey).

And then I had the distinct honor of being screamed at by a dude who I blocked after about the third post in what may have been an epic Twitter rant. It started with the statement of it being shit, moved into telling me to F*** my review because it is the worst rye this person had ever had.

But hey, I'm not going to let one angry guy, and a bunch of amusing ones tell me what to do. I buy whiskey for me, but also for you. If it's bad, then you will know not to buy it. And if it's good? Well, then I have something tasty to drink. We all win.

So...were they right?

Basil Hayden's Rye Whiskey

Purchase info: $44.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Blue Max, Burnsville, MN

Details: 40% ABV, 2017 Release. Noticeable lack of the word "straight" on the label.

Nose: Fresh cut grass, spearmint, citrus and a gentle spice.

Mouth: Grassy with spearmint, black pepper, and oak.

Finish: Spicy but short with lingering baking spice and oak.

Thoughts: Well, BourbonFanboy was half right, it certainly was grassy. I tasted almost no misery though.

But seriously, this reminds me a lot of Old Overholt. It's better than Old Overholt but similar. And the similarity isn't terribly surprising. Basil Hayden could be called a premium-priced version of Old GrandDad so why shouldn't Basil Hayden Rye be a premium-priced version of Old Overholt? Like Old Overholt, this works ok in a Manhatten if you cut down the amount of vermouth you use. Now, I don't mind Old Overholt, but as a $45 product, I find this to be a dud of a rye.

One of the thoughts I had while tasting this is that this is not a product that was put out with me in mind. I'm an experienced whiskey enthusiast with a well-developed palate. Basil Hayden's Bourbon is a great bourbon for the bourbon novice. Someone who is looking for a step up, but hasn't quite developed the palate for high proof whiskey. My wife was just such a person for a long time. Now she loves Old GrandDad 114 instead. Basil Hayden's Rye seems like the same thing. If you are new to rye, this would be a fine step up from Old Overholt and an ok example of the non-MGP style of rye.

So here is my verdict: if you are a big Basil Hayden fan, give this a try. If, like many, you find Basil Hayden to be too overpriced and too low proof, then give this a hard pass.

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Jim Beam Signature Craft: Triticale

May 25, 2017 Eric Burke

Over the course of the past month, I've been taking a look at the Jim Beam Signature Craft Harvest Bourbon Collection. Tonight we reach the final review in the bunch. Triticale. But before we get into what I thought of it, let's recap where we've been.

Even though each of these typically retail for about $50 per 375 mL bottle, a local retailer had them for sale at $20 each or the full set of six for $100. I'm not sure if they were sitting on too many or if the distributor was, but in any case, that is a screaming deal. Basically, one-third of the suggested retail price. So when I got the email, I like a lot of other people decided that the time was right to pounce on it. And after sitting on them for a few weeks, I found room in the editorial calendar to slot in six reviews.

The first one we tried was the Six Row Barley. It didn't impress while tasting it in a Glencairn, but was really quite good in a rocks glass under normal drinking conditions. So good that I immediately ran back to the store and picked up another set of six.

Next was the Wheat. The wheat was less impressive than the Barley, and I was surprised by that. I had expected to like the Wheat more than the Barley.

Brown Rice was the only real dud of the bunch. Even though it was an 11-year-old bourbon, I had a hard time finding much to say about it. That I compared it to Bud Light should tell you something about it.

The Rolled Oat was the surprise of the group for me. Fruity, nutty, and very minty and I really enjoyed that.

The High Rye was one that I just assumed I would like. And I did, though it was for different reasons than I would have expected. This is made by the same folks who produce Old Grand-Dad another High-Rye Bourbon. It, however, doesn't use the OGD mash bill or yeast. So it is an entirely different product. And it shows. It was herbal and delicious. So much Anise that I tried it in a Sazerac riff.

Which brings us to the Triticale, my favorite of the bunch. It, though, suffers from the same flaw that the rest of these do. It typically retails for about twice as much as I feel it should. Most of these would be good at $50 for a 750 mL (not the Rice one...that's a dud) but are crazily overpriced at $50 for a 375 mL bottle.

Bottom line: if you find any of these for a good sale (Ace still has them and does ship*), I'd recommend giving them a shot. If you can only find them for retail though, I'd pass on all of them. None are $100 bottles of whiskey.

Jim Beam Signature Craft: Triticale

Purchase info: $16.67 for a 375 mL bottle (on sale) at Ace Spirits, Hopkins, MN

Details: 11 years old, 45% ABV, Triticale used as flavoring grain.

Nose: Vanilla, fruit, rose petals and oak.

Mouth: Sweet and spicy with a delicate floral note dominating.

Finish: Dry with a decent length. Lingering grain and oak.

Thoughts: This is a fantastic bourbon. To be honest, it reminds me of Old Grand-Dad with more age (even though it's made with a different flavoring grain and yeast). It has a nice spice, and the floral notes are delicious. I'm really, really impressed by this one.

*This isn't sponsored by Ace, I just like passing along a good deal.

Jim Beam Signature Craft: High Rye

May 23, 2017 Eric Burke

I've been on a bit of a cocktail kick lately. The thing I like about cocktails is the same thing I like about cooking, the interplay of flavors. Really, it's one of the things I like about whiskey too. But unlike whiskey where someone else has determined what works together, with a cocktail you are the one who decides what to put together. And it may be amazing or it might not.

As I was doing the tasting for tonight's bourbon, I was struck by the distinct anise notes that presented themselves. Now anise is a fairly major flavor component in my favorite cocktail, the Sazerac. I know a traditional Sazerac uses Rye Whiskey. But since the Rye was a replacement for the original Cognac, I didn't feel too bad about substituting a High Rye Bourbon. Especially since the difference between a High Rye Bourbon and the barely legal Rye whiskey that's often called for is a few percentage points of Rye at most.

And it was good! It had a nice thick mouthfeel; the spice was a bit more nutmeg and cinnamon than in the Rye version I normally make. Speaking of that, I made another Sazerac cocktail using Sazerac Rye to compare to it. And by way of comparison, the Rye-based one fell a bit flat. Of course, by a weird turn of events, the Sazerac Rye is one of my least favorite Ryes to use in a Sazerac so who knows what would have happened with a better Rye. But that's the point, keep experimenting. You never really know how things are going to turn out until you do.

Jim Beam Signature Craft: High Rye Bourbon

Purchase info: $16.67 for a 375 mL bottle (on sale) at Ace Spirits, Hopkins, MN

Details: 11 years old, 45% ABV, more Rye than usual used as flavoring grain.

Nose: Floral, Anise, and Oak.

Mouth: Sweet with Anise, Spice, and Oak.

Finish: Warm and long with lingering sweet Anise.

Thoughts: This one is delicious. Top two or three of the six for sure. I'm a big fan. Reaffirms my decision to snag another batch of six at the sale price.

This is the fifth of six posts looking at the Jim Beam Signature Craft, Harvest Bourbon Collection. Previous posts can be found here: Six Row Barley, Soft Red Wheat, Brown Rice, Whole Rolled Oats.

3 Whiskeys from Florida's Timber Creek Distillery

May 18, 2017 Eric Burke

It has been brought to my attention that a blog post from a certain writer that will not be named (who happens to be an undisclosed former promotional man for a different small distillery...hmmm conflict of interest?) called out this post specifically as an example of how you cannot trust me (and various other reviewers) because, and I'm paraphrasing here, "I obviously do not know the definition of bourbon because I didn't call out a fact of how these are made clearly enough." I'm not going to name that blog because, since he didn't reach out to me for comment or clarification, he is obviously more interested in being a dick, attacking people, and proving he is correct than he is about having a dialog. The sad fact of the matter is, in today's world the burden of proof is on the accused, not the accuser. And as there is no way to prove that I knew something before I was accused of ignorance, I am placing my thought process on why I wrote the post the way I did here.

The unnamed blog is correct. I did make a mistake when I wrote this post. Though I know better, I didn't call BS on the process that the distiller is using explicitly enough. I explained the process used, but did so in a way so as to not be a dick about it. Yes, it is technically correct that you should not call a product bourbon if the grains were not mixed before fermentation. The products reviewed below mixed different types of 100% grain whiskey after the fact to get the same ratios as would have been used if the product would have been distilled in a traditional manner. My thoughts on the matter were that this is a distinction without a difference, but since the law doesn't always follow my idea of common sense, I probably should have made my thought process clearer. I tried that in the comments, but I probably should have edited the post.

I continued to refer to the various whiskeys as "bourbon" because I felt that using a different name than what was on the bottle would be confusing to readers when I was reviewing multiple whiskeys of different taste profiles. I stand by that as I still feel that would be confusing.

To be clear, I still find the process that was used by the distiller very interesting. That and the fact I am nowhere near where it was distributed is why I accepted the samples in the first place. And now on to the review that you probably came here to see. In order to maintain transparency, I haven't changed a word below the line. It's sad that I've had to explain this because one person on the internet decided to make an accusation of untrustworthiness without even asking a question as to why a writer would write a certain way, but welcome to the United States of America in 2018.

I state in my Statement of Ethics that if I accept a review sample, I will disclose it at the beginning of the article. Please consider it disclosed. I’d like to thank Timber Creek Distillery for providing this sample to me with no strings attached.

A couple of months ago, I was contacted by the PR firm that works with Timber Creek Distillery to see if I would like to review some of their products. At first, I was a little leery since, unfortunately, I've sort of soured on trying new craft whiskey lately. At this point, they have to be interesting on some level to even get me to respond anymore. I've just been burned too many times.

But as I was reading through some of the notes that came along with the offer, I thought to myself, "what the heck? I probably won't be back to Florida for a while, and the rye says it's made with a Florida specific strain of Rye grain." So I said yes to the offer of samples. The worst that would happen is that I would have something to make another batch of Cherry Bounce this summer.

Timber Creek is located in the Florida Panhandle near the town of Crestview, about 70 miles north and east of Pensacola). In talking to Camden Ford, the proprietor, I was intrigued by a few of things. First, he is very particular about where he gets his barrels. He sources 15-gallon barrels from McGinnis Wood Products in Cuba, MO and 53-gallon barrels from Canton Cooperage in Lebanon, KY. Both sizes are charred to a #3 char level. (I was glad to hear he shared my opinion of the Minnesota produced barrels you often see small distillers use. I've had very little good whiskey that came out of them.)

I liked the idea that they were doing things a little differently than the big guys. They use a roller mill to crack the grains instead of a hammer mill. Then they lauter them before fermentation (in other words they filter out the grains as you would in making beer) and ferment the wort instead of distilling with the grains still in. They also produce their whiskey in the Canadian manner. They grind, ferment, distill and age each of the grains individually and then blend them after aging. To my knowledge, I've never had an American Whiskey that was created this way.

So yes, they make their own products. These whiskeys are young. The age statements are nine months on each of them. But as they are blending product from small and large barrels, this isn't surprising, particularly in the heat of Florida. Their standard Bourbon is a wheated bourbon made from corn, wheat, and less than 5% barley. The Reserve Bourbon is a four-grain Bourbon made from corn, wheat, less than 5% barley, and a Florida-specific strain of rye called Florida 401 or Black Rye. The Black Rye Whiskey is made from 100% Florida Black Rye.

Timber Creek Florida Bourbon

Purchase info: This bottle was provided to me for review purposes by the distillery. Doing a little digging shows that it is available for purchase online for $40.

Details: 9 months old, 46.5% ABV

Nose: Young with raisin, cinnamon, and cedar.

Mouth: Peppery with dried fruit and a lot of baking spice.

Finish: Short and gentle with lingering dried fruit notes.

Thoughts: If you are generally a fan of craft bourbon, you are probably also a fan of very young whiskey. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with liking a young, well-crafted whiskey. And while this certainly is a well-crafted whiskey, it is not my preferred style. There's no nice way to say this. For me, this tastes way too young.

Timber Creek Florida Reserve Bourbon

Purchase info: This bottle was provided to me for review purposes by the distillery. Doing a little digging shows that, it is available for purchase online for $50.

Details: 9 months old, 50% ABV

Nose: Young with raisins, brown sugar, and almonds.

Mouth: Sweet with wintergreen, brown sugar, raisin, and ginger.

Finish: Short with lingering wintergreen, ginger, and sweetness.

Thoughts: On the first taste of this, I am finding it much more palatable than the previous bourbon in tonight's review. It's still young tasting, but the sweetness, ginger and wintergreen add a nice counter to the young grain/raisin notes. As far as young bourbons go, this is pretty interesting. I'm going to say that I like this, but if you are turned off by young bourbons, you probably won't.

Timber Creek Florida Black Rye

Purchase info: This bottle was provided to me for review purposes by the distillery. Doing a little digging shows that it is available for purchase online for $51.

Details: 9 months old, 46.5% ABV

Nose: Sweetness with raisin, anise, cedar and a hint of wintergreen.

Mouth: Gentle in the mouth with dried fruit, wintergreen, baking spice and a generic sweetness.

Finish: Short and gentle with lingering wintergreen and granola.

Thoughts: This is definitely the most interesting of the three as it was distilled from a local Florida grain I have never encountered before. I'm actually very happy that this one wasn't aged too long as too much barrel influence might well overwhelm what makes it different from other rye strains.

Blanton's from a friend

May 16, 2017 Eric Burke

Blanton's Bourbon from Holiday Market in Royal Oak, Michigan

Tonight a tornado hit the town where I grew up. My family is ok, no worries. Property damage, but no injuries reported from them so far. But as I was calling around, checking to make sure everyone was alright and learning about the damage they'd suffered, I thought about how important friends and family are. I don't live near most of my family, and that is by design. I enjoy a different lifestyle than would be possible in a small town in rural Wisconsin. But on nights like this, when their power is out, and they are only available by cell phone, I kinda wish I was closer.

Friends, however, are a different matter entirely. I have a lot of friends, and I value every one of them. It doesn't matter where I visit; I probably have a friend nearby. That's the beauty of the internet. I have good friends that I have never met in real life and good friends that I knew online well before I knew they lived near me. I even have friends from places I've never visited, but that I see almost every year in Kentucky.

One of the latter is Josh from Sipology Blog. I see him nearly every year at BourbonFest. Recently he reviewed a private selection of Blanton's from a retailer near him, and when he offered me a sample of that very interesting sounding bourbon, I jumped at the chance. Blanton's is a bourbon that, I'm surprised to say I've never reviewed on the site before. And come to think of it, that's probably because I've never purchased it. I've had it at bars and always enjoyed it, but every time I'm in the liquor store with $60 in my pocket I always seem to turn to something besides this Single Barrel Buffalo Trace product. I think the next time I see it, that will have to change.

Blanton's Single Barrel - Holiday Market Selection

Purchase info: This sample was graciously shared by Josh at SipologyBlog.com. He lists the Michigan state minimum as $60.

Details: 46.5% ABV. Warehouse H, Rick 15, Barrel 66.

Nose: Very fruity on the nose with mixed berries, oak and honey.

Mouth: Earthy honey, ripe fruit, oak and some spice.

Finish: Gentle, but not timid. Warm, but not overpowering. Lingering green apple, oak and spice.

Thoughts: This is a very tasty bourbon that was provided by a friend in Michigan. I'm enjoying the heck out of it. I'm loving the fruitiness and spice. I gotta agree with Josh, this one is recommended.

Jim Beam Signature Craft: Whole Rolled Oat

May 11, 2017 Eric Burke

WOW! Has it ever been a busy time in the BourbonGuy household. This week, my major client has been on vacation so, since the weather is nice, I am busy trying to get caught up with all the projects I want to build for the Etsy store (BourbonGuyGifts.com should you want to check it out).

I love working with wood and I have some new things coming up that I am really proud of and hope everyone likes them as much as I do. Probably won't show up until next week though.

So why am I talking about that instead of the bourbon I'm reviewing tonight? Well, how much more can I say? I've already reviewed three of the six in the lineup (Brown Rice, Red Wheat, and Barley), and honestly, there isn't much more to say. Beam did a little experimenting. They changed the flavoring grain and/or flavoring grain ratio in their bourbon and then let it age for 11 years. They then released it at an absurdly high price, but I got a screaming good deal on the pack of six, so much so that I went back to get another six-pack.

Jim Beam Signature Craft: Whole Rolled Oat

Purchase info: $16.67 for a 375 mL bottle (on sale) at Ace Spirits, Hopkins, MN

Details: 11 years old, 45% ABV, Whole Rolled Oats used as flavoring grain.

Nose: Tropical fruit, caramel and oak.

Mouth: Peppery heat with spearmint and fruit along with a nice sweetness and nuttiness.

Finish: Long and peppery with oak and a hint of smokiness.

Thoughts: As you can see from the fill level above, I liked this one. I really liked it. To be honest, I wasn't expecting much from the oat version of this. But man, the fruit and the strong spearmint are fun and fantastic. And though I get nutty notes from this, I wouldn't have ever guessed that it was a Jim Beam product if I had been served it blind. Very, very nice.

Jim Beam Signature Craft: Brown Rice

May 9, 2017 Eric Burke

Rice. It provides more than one-fifth of the calories consumed by humans worldwide*. It's a bit of an understatement to say that it's a pretty important crop to humanity. And yet, for a long time, Americans drank more rice than they ate**.

That rice was not, however, consumed in the form of bourbon. Instead, Americans consumed their rice in the form of Budweiser beer. Up to four pounds of rice per person per year.

So, as I am of an age where I started drinking beer before the current iteration of the craft beer revolution, it is safe to say that I've consumed plenty of fermented rice in my life. I can honestly say though, that I've never had fermented and distilled rice before the bottle of bourbon I'm reviewing tonight.

Jim Beam Signature Craft: Brown Rice

Purchase info: $16.67 for a 375 mL bottle (on sale) at Ace Spirits, Hopkins, MN

Details: 11 years old, 45% ABV, Brown Rice used as flavoring grain.

Nose: Strong brown sugar, bubble gum, and oak.

Mouth: Peppery heat with peanut, mint, vanilla, and oak.

Finish: Peppery heat that fades fast and is replaced by a general lingering sweetness.

Thoughts: While this is by no means a bad whiskey, it is my least favorite of the bunch so far. I don't know if I'd go so far as to say I like it, but I don't dislike it either. It's just kind of meh. Kind of how I feel about Bud Light.

*According to the Wikipedia article on Rice. Accessed 5/9/17.
**New York Times Food section, December 17, 1997. Accessed 5/9/17.

This is the third of six reviews in the Jim Beam Signature Craft, Harvest Bourbon Collection Series. I've previously reviewed the Six Row Barley and the Soft Red Wheat.

Jim Beam Signature Craft: Soft Red Wheat

May 4, 2017 Eric Burke

I am in heaven right now. I have Maddy, my little American Eskimo dog in my lap. I have Whiskey, my Border Collie mix at my feet and I have Niku, the Siberian Husky I'm dog sitting sleeping behind my chair. There are dogs everywhere, and I couldn't be happier.

Another thing that is helping the general sense of well-being is that I have a glass of bourbon close at hand. I like to have a touch of whatever bourbon I'm reviewing as I write the review just to double check my impressions from the tasting we did earlier in the week.

And it really is a good thing I do this. When I first started the blog, I did tastings, photos and articles all on the night that the article posted. But since that lead to a few too many spelling errors and typos, I decided to start doing the week's tastings on the weekend before to allow myself the luxury of ummm...well...writing sober? Which is why the posts are written with a touch of whiskey and not a full pour. I have enough typos as it is, I don't need help from our friend, beverage ethanol.

I've also found that spending a little more time with a bourbon gives more perspective into how I really feel about it. I've had things I really disliked and really loved in a Glencairn soften to meh or like in a rocks glass with more exposure. And honestly, since both glassware and circumstances affect your enjoyment of a whiskey (which of course is all I'm actually measuring since I refuse to use numerical scores...don't get me started on that topic) I like to gain as many exposures as I can to kind of average out the results.

Which brings me to tonight's bourbon. This is the second post on one of the Jim Beam Signature Craft Harvest Bourbon Collection. I'm working my way through the six pack I found on sale at a local store for $100 (and if you want to play along, it looks like it still is on sale as I write this...don't worry, I made sure to pick up a second full set for myself already so have at it. No, they aren't sponsoring the post, I just thought it was a really good deal). On Tuesday I reviewed the Six Row Barley which I was pleasantly surprised by. Tonight I'm looking at the Soft Red Wheat bottle. I picked these two first since barley* and wheat are fairly typical ingredients in a standard bourbon. I was unimpressed by the Barley in a Glencairn and very impressed with it in a rock glass. I was impressed with the Wheat in a Glencairn and...well, let's find out, shall we?

Jim Beam Signature Craft: Soft Red Wheat

Purchase info: $16.67 for a 375 mL bottle (on sale) at Ace Spirits, Hopkins, MN

Details: 11 years old, 45% ABV, Soft Red Wheat as flavoring grain.

Nose: Oak, caramel and dried wheat grains (think uncooked hot cereal)

Mouth: Tingly spice and brown sugar sweetness along with mint and oak.

Finish: Medium to long with more mint, spice sweetness, and oak.

Thoughts: I had a suspicion that this would be one of my top two out of the six. I like some wheated bourbons and I am pretty confident that I will really like the high rye (I've yet to open it). Turns out, not so much. I mean I like this, it's good. But I much prefer the Barley over it. Once again, my hang-up comes with the price. I got it for $16.67 for a half bottle which is about $33 for a full bottle. That seems about right for this. But, they want $50 for a half bottle. There is no way anyone should pay that for this. It simply isn't that good. Sure it's interesting, but interesting can only take you so far.

*Yes, I know bourbon typically uses malted barley and that this probably uses a combination of malted and unmalted barley, but whatever. Close enough.