Ben Holladay 7 Year Rickhouse Proof Missouri Straight Bourbon

VITALS:

- $70

- 119.6 Proof

- 7 years

- Missouri

With such a glut of new bottles, new distilleries and new brands still hitting the shelves nearly every day, it's impossible to keep up. While I'd love to try them all, there's just way too much out there. However, this particular bottle caught my eye. 

I normally wouldn't think twice about a Missouri distillery. It's not exactly a state that's known for producing fan-favorite bourbons. But, this Ben Holladay Rickhouse Proof certainly gives the whiskey fan a reason to grab a bottle off the shelf -- a cask strength, age-stated bourbon at a relatively reasonable price! Couple that with the fact that others have told me it's pretty decent stuff, I had to give this distillery a go, and I'm glad I did!

The nose had traditional notes of vanilla and caramel. It also had a decent amount of cinnamon spice, hitting all the hallmarks of what I love in a good bourbon. It also had a dark fruit note to it, somewhere in between blackberry and cherry, that made me want to dive into my glass.

The flavor likewise took on many of those traditional bourbon notes that, quite frankly, make me love bourbon. It was very caramel forward, underscored by a slightly sweet, natural vanilla note. But, it never leaned overly sweet, as slightly bitter notes of oak and dark chocolate also made their way through, tempering any sweetness.

The dark fruit notes were also present, and here I definitely got more of a blackberry note that I absolutely love. This played really well with the vanilla and oak and made for something delicious. The finish added in a good amount of cinnamon spice that really seemed to round things out, making me wish I had that spicy note from the start.

This is an excellent bourbon, one which should make the casual bourbon drinker think twice about passing on Missouri bourbons, or at the very least, Ben Holladay bottlings. I really enjoyed this, and the bottle wasn't long for this world once I cracked that seal.

Grade: A-

Still 630 Rally Point Straight Rye Whiskey

VITALS:

- $30

- 90 Proof

- NAS

- Batch No. 75

- Missouri

This bottle was one of two that I grabbed a few months back when I was in St. Louis for my daughter's hockey tournament. I wanted to make it a point to grab a bottle or two that I can't normally find in Illinois, and it's usually pretty easy to just go with a small, local craft distiller--in this case Still 630. I also typically go with ryes because most craft whiskey is on the younger end, and rye tends to hold up well at a young age.

This bottle, however, grabbed my attention for two reasons. First was the very reasonable price of $30. That in itself makes it very easy to pull this bottle off the shelf. Second was the word "straight" on the label and the lack of an age statement anywhere else, indicating that this rye was at least four years old. Considering all the other craft whiskeys I was looking at were only two years or less, it was an easy decision to go with the one that had a bit more time in the barrel.

The nose was interesting. I got a lot of earthy and nutty notes. I picked up a mix of peanuts and pecans along with a brown sugar note, but more the flavor than the sweetness. There was also a light woodiness to it as well--not bitter or anything, just a noticeable wood note. The rye spice was certainly noticeable as well, as I got decent amounts of cinnamon and pine. 

When I took a sip, the first thing I noticed was the very watery texture. It was, perhaps as a result, fairly soft in flavor. Everything just seemed a bit muted, but what was there was good. The most prominent flavors were brown sugar and vanilla. It had a very cookie-like quality in that respect.

It did, however, have a dill note as well as a touch of spearmint, making you know that this was a rye. Those flavors layered over the vanilla that was present throughout worked pretty well.  Unfortunately, these notes were also fairly muted and soft. 

My first impressions were that this rye was screaming for more spice. It didn't seem to have any of the typical rye characteristics. However, as I worked my way through this bottle, that spice seemed to actually develop a bit, giving me that cinnamon, along with light notes of anise and even ginger. These spicier notes were most prevalent on the finish. While not long-lived, the finish did provide a little bit of complexity in that respect. 

For $30, this was absolutely worth picking up to try something from a small craft distillery local to the St. Louis area. They are doing a lot of things right, and I'd love to see what more they can do with this rye.

Grade: B-

Switchgrass Spirits Rye Whiskey

VITALS:

- $20 (375 ml)

- 100 Proof

- 1 year

- Missouri

One thing I've always loved doing when I travel is going to the local liquor store in whatever area I'm in and finding a bottle or two of something that I can't find by me. Often that ends up being something from a small, local distillery that has limited distribution. Admittedly, this hasn't resulted in any spectacular finds or anything. Rather, most of what I end up with is young whiskey that leaves me wanting more.

I have learned, however, that I fair better by grabbing a craft distillery's rye over a bourbon, as rye tends to hold up much better at a young age. So, when I was in St. Louis for my daughter's hockey tournament a few weeks back, I grabbed a couple of St. Louis area ryes, including this one from Switchgrass Spirits. Honestly, what drew me to this one was the fact that it was available in a 375 ml bottle. I really wish that more products were available in the smaller, cheaper bottles. It makes it a lot easier to try stuff I might not otherwise grab.

The nose on this one was a bit surprising to me. As a young rye, I expected to get a lit of cinnamon and pine forward notes. The pine was there, but it was more muted and had more of a woody quality to it. Like pine bark rather than pine needles. What I found surprising, though, was how malty it was. I got heavy notes of honey and wheat bread, and I found myself sticking my nose into my Glencairn a lot while I was drinking this.

The flavor showed its youth, however. It had a lot of sharp edges, but it seemed farily grain forward. It had the wheat bread note, but considering how strong it was on the nose, I expected a lot more of that out of the flavor.  It had that overripe apple note, though, that I always associate with young whiskey. It's always a turn off for me.

I also got something green, almost spinach-like, and that was weird to me as well. There was a bright, fruity note as well, kind of like fresh cantaloupe, maybe even pear. This could have been somewhat redeeming, except that the pine notes really took over. And, unfortunately they weren't good pine notes. Rather it was more cleaning solvent-like and just not that enjoyable.

The nose on this one gave me a lot of hope, but in the end this whiskey was just too young and unrefined. It had a lot going on as far as flavor goes, but the flavors weren't all good, and they certainly didn't work with each other But, it was fun tasting this one, and it certainly didn't break the bank.

Grade: C-