I sometimes wonder what my grandmother would think to know that multiple people at my liquor store know me by name the minute I walk in. Would she approve? Would she be sad?
Should I be?
Not when they say: "Eric, it's in," the moment I open the door, I shouldn't.
A month or so ago, I was talking to the assistant manger at my local store. We were talking bourbon, like we do every time we are both there. He was telling me about all the new products he was getting in. I'd heard of most of them and had varying levels of interest. There was one though that I was really interested in. I'd heard rumors on twitter of a blend of rye and bourbon whiskies that Wild Turkey was going to put out. It turns out that this was one of the ones he was getting in. He just didn't know when.
Now, Minnesota is normally not on the early list for getting new whiskies, I usually get to see blog posts about them to whet my anticipation. This time though, he thought he'd be getting it in within a couple weeks. And joy of joys, he offered to pull one and hold it for me.
After stopping in a few times over the course of the month to see if it had arrived, today was the day. "Eric. It's in," the lady behind the counter called to me when I opened the bright red door and walked into the store.
"It is?" I countered. "Well, that's why I stopped in!" Of course, while she grabbed the bottle, I asked the store manager who happened to be standing nearby if he could get me a bottle of the Four Roses 2013 Limited Edition Small Batch.
I'm never satisfied, it seems.
Wild Turkey Forgiven
Stats: This is a blend of bourbon and rye straight whiskies. It is bottled at 45.5% ABV. It has a nice toffee color in the glass. The bottle is the same shape as their Rare Breed bourbon and comes in a nice embossed paper and metal tube shaped box.
Nose: Initially caramel, then after a while I get a floral scent and faint black pepper.
Mouth: My first note from after my first sip just reads: "SPICY!" If you hold it in your mouth while trying to tease out it's flavor, it tingles. After spending a little more time with it, I'm hit with cinnamon and a hint of vanilla. But this isn't an overly sweet whiskey.
Finish: Tannic bitterness which fades into a peppery tingle.
Overall: I like this whiskey a lot. Wild Turkey Forgiven is a tasty whiskey. It is not, however, an easy-drinking, card-playing whiskey. This is kind of an aggressive whiskey and wants you to devote your full attention to it.