Jack Daniel's Coy Hill Barrelhouse 8 Single Barrel Tennessee Whiskey - 2024

VITALS:

- $85

- 127.8 Proof

- 10 yrs, 11 mos.

- Barrel No. 24-07204

- Tennessee

A few years ago Jack Daniel's released Coy Hill, a well-aged, single barrel limited release that clocked in at very high proof points, including the so-called "HazMat" 140+ proof bottlings. I was lucky enough to get my hands on a bottle then (though not a HazMat bottle), and I was thoroughly impressed. It was, quite frankly, one of the best Jack Daniel's whiskeys I had ever tasted.  

So, when it came out again, I was certain I was grabbing another.  What is most impressive on these, I think, is the price.  Despite that the first Coy Hill was released back in 2021, and to high praise (and a solid secondary market), Jack Daniel's only increased the price of this release by $10.  They certainly could have gone higher, and it still would have sold.  But I'm so glad they didn't, as it's refreshing to have a 10+ year, cask strength limited release from a major distiller clocking in at under a bill.

The nose gave off honey roasted peanuts right away. It was a note that I do get from Jack Daniel's from time to time, and one I also associate with Beam products. It's what I love about Beam bourbon, and I really enjoyed it here.  I also got a chocolate note, as well as something tangy and spicy, almost like anise and mulled wine. It wasn't strong, but it certainly added a bit of an interesting note.

The peanut note certainly carried through to the palate, but it was an even sweeter note. It was more like a sweet peanut butter, almost like the peanut butter filling in Reese's cups. At times it was even a peanut brittle note. These sweet peanut notes also mixed with rich notes of toffee and even light milk chocolate. 

What was great about this whiskey was that despite all these sweet notes, it never leaned too sweet. It had help from notes of oak that certainly came from the age, as well as a slight cinnamon spice. These notes helped keep it balanced, added some spice and nuance, and really made this a great whiskey. 

The oak seemed to come through more on the finish, and, unsurprisingly, it was on the sweeter side. The toffee seemed to come along for the ride, and I also got a bit of a burnt sugar note.  It finished almost more on the traditional end of the spectrum, as the peanut notes faded away, leaving me with rich toffee and sweet oak on my tongue as I finished each sip.

I hope Jack Daniel's continues to release these Coy Hills, even if they are a few years apart. These have been outstanding (I have yet to hear a detractor), and I really wish I had more!

Grade: A

Lagavulin The Distiller's Edition Double Matured Islay Single Malt Scotch Whiskey - 2020

VITALS:

- $120

- 86 Proof

- 15 Years

- Batch No. 4/509

- Islay

I do love sweet and peat! And by that I mean that I love peated Scotches finished in wine casks, especially fortified wine casks like sherry or port. That sweet and peat is a combination that I just can't get enough of. So, I find that I grab just about anything Lagavulin that has spent time in such casks, and this bottle was no exception.

This bottling consists of a small number of casks that were double-matured in "specially crafted Pedro Ximenez Cask-Wood."  I wish I could tell you what that means. The wording seems very careful -- "cask-wood."  I don't know what, exactly, that is. Perhaps re-purposes PX casks?  How was the "cask-wood" "specially crafted"?  I thought about doing some independent research into the backstory here, but instead I just cracked the bottle open to see if this "cask-wood" maturation, whatever that is, made for good whisky.

The smoke that I'd expect from a Lagavulin was fairly light on the nose. I don't know if that's due to the 15 years of maturation or the low proof or both.. But this was not significantly smoky smelling. That's not a terrible thing, however, as it allowed other notes to really shine, like a bright and sweet raspberry note, accompanied by honey and something herbal, like dill or sage. Though not "peaty," it still had a lot of good stuff going on.

As to flavor, this was definitely more on the fruity end of the spectrum. It was kind of like a burst of strawberry followed immediately by a black pepper spice and peat smoke. It did have a bit of a iodine lean to it, particularly as the other flavors subsided a bit. But, it certainly remained fruit-forward, with the notes of strawberry and raspberry taking center stage.

The herbal note really came through as well, which was a bit unexpected.  Those dill and sage notes added an interesting quality. I chose the word "interesting" deliberately, because even after getting through the whole bottle, I'm still not sure how much I enjoyed it. At times it was good, adding another layer, almost like seasoning. Other times it came across as mossy or incense-like, and was a bit of a turnoff. It may have just depended on my mood that day. 

That herbal note carried over to the finish, as did the bright raspberry note, and when that all collided on the finish along with the peat, it reminded me a bit of raspberry bitters. Again, I wasn't sure how much I liked it, though it was interesting.

All in all, I really wanted to like this bottle.  By and large it was great, but I kept finding those weird little nuances that just seemed to keep giving me moments of pause, trying to figure out what I was tasting and whether or not it was something I enjoyed or not. 

Grade: B

Stagg Jr. Kentucky Straight Bourbon Batch 17 - 128.7 Proof

VITALS:

- $60

- 128.7 Proof

- NAS

- Batch 17 - Winter, 2021

- Kentucky

It's been no secret that I do love Stagg Jr. (and now just Stagg).  In fact, it got to the point that between the regular releases and store picks I came across, I had enough of a backlog that I actually started turning down bottles.  So, I've made it a bit of a point lately to start working my way through some of them, with this one being the most recent bottle killed.

I do believe I'll have to start grabbing these once again, however. Their price remains reasonable. They have just enough rarity to them to keep my FOMO going, but not enough that they're impossible to find. And most importantly, they're consistently delicious!  After this I only have four more bottles on my shelf, three of which are store picks.

As to this particular batch, it was, naturally, quite delicious! On the nose I got a healthy amount of caramel balanced by a bit of black pepper. It had a light oakiness to it, betraying at least a little bit of age, as well as a dark chocolate note to keep it from leaning too sweet. There was also a distinct anise note that I was getting to keep it interesting.  

Surprisingly, despite its proof and my experience with other batches, the heat on this one didn't hit my tongue right away.  Rather, I got a rich and sweet toffee, along with a rich but tangy amaretto note and a good amount of dark chocolate. The dark chocolate was much more prominent on the palate than it was on the nose, and it absolutely made every pour delicious.

This was very drinkable neat, but it still provided that great, warm Kentucky hug I knew would eventually be coming. In addition to those rich notes of toffee and dark chocolate, there was a bright orange peel or orange zest note along with a spiced cherry note that just seemed to complement everything else going on.

That spiced cherry note really carried through on the finish, and it reminded me a bit of mulled wine, especially with the cinnamon and pepper and other spices lingering seemingly forever.

This is one of the better bottles of Stagg Jr./Stagg that I can recall having, and it just may have rekindled my love for the line!

Grade: A