Old Forester Bourbon
Not particularly brash, but also not particularly complex or interesting. The oak comes through, but without much vanilla to balance it. There aren’t any higher fruity notes either. Mostly a muddy, indistinct “bourbon-ness”.
Tag: United States
Evan Williams Single Barrel Bourbon (Vintage 2000)
Overall an extremely smooth, unchallenging dram. After a week drinking fiery young bourbons, I find that this one is miles ahead in sophistication. While it doesn’t yield many exciting flavors or anything unexpected, it is eminently drinkable and very satisfying.
Evan Williams Black Label Bourbon
Not impressed. It has more flavors going for it than your average bottom-shelf whiskey, but its brash young grain and overbearing corn sweetness are just too much to recommend it anywhere but the cocktail glass.
Bulleit Bourbon
Tasty in its way, and (I would hazard) better than some cheaper bourbons. However, with those fake corn syrup flavors – almost reminiscent of aspartane or other non-sugar sweeteners – I can’t say I would ever be in the mood for it.
Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Tennessee Whiskey
Overall not as harsh and young-tasting as the principal Jack Daniel’s bottling. Whatever happens to those barrels up in the upper floors of the warehouse, it makes for a better product in the bottle. However, in my totally biased opinion, this is not $45 worth of whiskey. It also doesn’t change my mind about American whiskey. Oh well.