Tag: 90 Proof

Old Forester 1870 Bourbon

TJ Provost

Old Forester 1870 is one of my favorite bourbons. It sips easy and has a wonderful mouth feel that is complex, but extremely friendly. As far as I’m concerned, you can never go wrong with a bottle of Old Forester 1870.

Old Forester 1870 Bourbon
Old Forester 1870 Bourbon

The Nose

After pouring a dram into a Glencairn Whisky Glass I swirled it and let a little of the heat of my hand warm the whiskey just a touch. There is a hint of floral notes that quickly turns to vanilla and caramel. Floating in the mix is a perfect amount of oak.

The Palate

One of the reasons I love Old Forester 1870 Bourbon so much is that the Nose and the Palate match so well. If you like the Nose you are going to love the Palate. The front of my tongue really appreciates those light but crisp floral notes. By the team the sip has hit my mid tongue it is all vanilla and caramel that smoothly transitions to a bit of oak char on the finish.

The Score – Old Forester 1870 Bourbon

Old Forester 1870 is an easy sipper. If you are new to bourbon put it over some ice to open it up. It softens the flavors and can open them up more for new bourbon lovers. Old Forester 1870 is very Sip Worthy and scores 80/100. It is also one of the bottles that started my Whiskey Safe. That means I have a bottle for when the apocalypse hits and I’m holed up in the mountains with nothing to do but drink good whiskey.

Color

Sunlit brown sugar.

Proof

45.0% ABV | 90 Proof

Pros:

  • Smooth start with floral notes.
  • Middle tones of caramel and oak.
  • Clean finish with cinnamon and spice.

Cons:

  • Isn’t always in stock.
  • Prices vary from $40 to $65 depending on local demand.

See how all Whiskeys, Tequilas and Vodkas Rank!

ChestNut Farms Bourbon

TJ Provost

Chestnut Farms Straight Bourbon Whiskey is distilled by Barton 1792 Distillery and is 90 proof. It won a Double Gold Medal at the San Francisco Spirits Competition according to their website. What year? I couldn’t find it, but that is probably due to my poor google skills. What I was able to find is that this bourbon doesn’t have a website, and is made at the same Barton 1792 distillery where they make the Costco and Trader Joe’s brand whiskeys. (According to the internet.)

ChestNut Farms Bourbon
ChestNut Farms Bourbon

I’ve found awards are hit and miss for me. Some things that people rave over, tastes like gasoline to me, while some things that didn’t even place, were things I’d buy another bottle of, so I didn’t get my hopes up for this Chestnut Farms.

I’m not a huge fan of rye. For me it just creates a lot of sharp edges and an aftertaste I don’t enjoy. Maybe that will change as I get older. I remember a time when I didn’t like Brussel sprouts, but now I love them.

Why am I talking about rye? It’s because this Chestnut Farms has some rye added onto its 51% corn and malted barley mash bill. That usually means I’m not going to like it, but in this case, they got the ratio just about perfect. All those rough edges I don’t appreciate in rye whiskeys are smoothed out and come out as spicy warmth in my mouth.

The Nose

The nose is mild. There is a little caramel and toffee, but its not complex and overall it very light.

The Palate

The palate is a little different from the nose. It has that warm flush of a regular bourbon that quickly turns to oak char and then finishes with the spice from the rye. Overall it is a very well balanced whiskey and a great introduction to rye for those who aren’t really rye lovers.

The Score – ChestNut Farms Bourbon

Chestnut Farms is Sip Worthy and scored a 77/100. It isn’t making it into my Whiskey Safe, but it is a bottle I could see myself picking up when the mood strikes me again.

Color

Deep golden yellow.

Proof

45.0% ABV | 90 Proof

Pros:

  • Perfect balance of corn and rye.
  • Ends with a nice mix of rye spice and oak notes.

Cons:

  • If you don’t like rye at all, you may not like this.
  • At a $45 price point, there are a lot of very competitive whiskeys to choose from.

See how all Whiskeys, Tequilas and Vodkas Rank!

Fistful Of Bourbon

TJ Provost 1 Comment

A friend at work mentioned this Fistful of Bourbon so when I saw it on the end cap at my local liquor store I figured I’d pick up a bottle and give it a try.

Fistful Of Bourbon

Fistful of Bourbon is a blend of whiskey combined from five different whiskeys. The marketing material brags about having 100 years of experience blending whiskey.

How did they do? Well, I have to be honest that I was a little worried when I first searched for the website and the very first thing I see is a page about cocktails.

Why is this the first page? Well, to be honest I don’t think this is a whiskey the creators figured would be a sipper.

The Nose

I poured a dram into a Glencairn Whisky Glass and swirled it a bit to bring the nose up. That nose starts with alcohol burn that slowly reveals some charred wood underneath. It was strong enough that I was curious if I lost some nose hairs.

The Palate

The first sip is consistent with the nose. The initial taste is strong alcohol and jagged edges that slowly fades. It does open up with a little bit of water with does let you appreciate some of the more subtle flavors. There is wood char and spice there, but the alcohol burn just barely lets it poke through here and there.

The Score – Fistful Of Bourbon

For me this Fistful of Bourbon scores a 53/100, putting it firmly in Mixed Drinks Only territory.

Color

Light brown.

Proof

45.0% ABV | 90 Proof

Pros:

  • It should be cheap .
  • The bottle is very nice. I like the old fashioned squarish bottle. It reminds me of the bottles I found at my grandfathers house as a kid.

Cons:

  • The online price is nearly $15 bucks cheaper if I had looked there first. $40 bucks is just too much for this bottle.
  • Lots of alcohol burn and sharp edges. The alcohol overpowers any other flavors that might be hiding here.

See how all Whiskeys, Tequilas and Vodkas Rank!

Whiskey Dreams – Breaker

TJ Provost

I am always on the look out for new whiskeys whenever I am out and about, so i was super excited when I saw this Breaker on the shelf at my local store.

Breaker

I poured my usual two fingers into my favorite Yeti Tumbler and swirled it around so I could breath in the sweet aroma of this deep amber bourbon before I took a sip.

The Nose

The nose on Breaker hits hard, but in a good way. There are a lot of things too appreciate on the nose. There is vanilla and citrus that blends really nicely with caramel that ends with a nice bit of spicey pepper.

The Palate

While the nose was amazing, things really fell apart on the first sip. The Rye and spice just don’t work for me.

The Score

I know I don’t like strong Rye whiskeys, but I keep trying. Unfortunately, I found that Breaker was not something I enjoyed. I’m giving it a 29/100, making it Just Bad. I was able to drink a few sips before pouring it out and going to my stand by, Basil Hayden’s.

Color

Overly brewed tea.

Proof

45.0% ABV

Pros

  • Sweet nose with hints of vanilla.
  • Deep amber color that invites you to sip.

Cons

  • Surprisingly rough. I expected this to be smooth.
  • The nose was better than the palate.
  • Too expensive to use for mixers but not smooth enough to drink straight.

Whiskey Dreams – Winchester Extra Smooth Bourbon Whiskey

TJ Provost

I like to try new bourbons. Sometimes I find things that surprise me by how good they are, and other times I end up with something like this Winchester Extra Smooth Bourbon which left me feeling cheated that I spent $30 dollars on it.

The first sip made my eyes go wide as the whiskey slid over my tongue and hit the back of my pallet. It feels thin and has a strange aftertaste that is hard to describe, other than it reminds of me of my days working at a chemical plant and accidentally getting a whiff of petroleum products that made your throat burn.

The distillers at Winchester Extra Smooth Bourbon pride themselves on using a purification/accelerated maturation process to remove harsh-tasting congeners from their whiskeys. The whiskey itself is aged a minimum of 6 months. Both those sentences should scare you. Whatever they did, it results in some really funky flavors.

Overall, Winchester Extra Smooth Bourbon earned its 15/100 score and I’m still shivering at the memory of the taste.

Winchester Extra Smooth Bourbon Whiskey

Color

Medium coffee.

Proof

45.0% ABV

Pros

  • Maybe you can use it to clean tools?
  • Both my cats wanted to be in the picture.
  • Six points better than Hilly Billy.

Cons

  • Thin mouth feel.
  • Strange unpleasant aftertaste.