One Eight Distilling Untitled Whiskey No. 17

VITALS:

- $80

- 115.8 Proof

- 10 Years

- Batch 1

- Washington D.C.

When One Eight Distilling's Untitled Whiskeys started hitting shelves a couple years ago, they got decent enough hype that I certainly became curious. I remember seeing private select single barrels, and their batches, such as this one, had some incredible finishing combinations, usually with bright, fruity and rich finishes such as sherry, port or cognac. What I had up to this point was all really good and, at the very least, really interesting.

It wasn't long after that initial run that I picked up this bottle, Untitled Whiskey No. 17.  This one is a blend of a 10 year old wheated bourbon that was finished in rum, Calvados and Cognac casks along with a 14 year high rye bourbon finished in Amontillado sherry butt. That's a whole lot going on inside this bottle. I wasn't sure if it would all work together or if it would be too much, but I was certainly willing to find out!

The nose on this was impressively rich. I feel like I use that word a lot in these blog posts, but this is quite possibly the richest nose I've ever nosed, bull of dark chocolate mixed with various dark fruits, including blackberry and cherry, fig and raisin, and even plum. It even had a bit of clove to it that made all those fruit notes come across like a spiced wine.  I couldn't get enough of this nose. I want to make a candle out of it!

While the flavor was very rich itself, it seemed that the spicy notes came through a bit more. I definitely got the dark fruit notes. Blackberry and dark cherry seemed prevalent, even with a bit of a sour note accompanying that cherry flavor.  

But, what took center stage was the spice. Cinnamon and black pepper spice seemed to dominate this. At times I feel like I even got a chili pepper note. This certainly gave that spice-wine character, just heavy on the spice. Dark chocolate notes also came through, providing a bit of a backbone and somewhat tempering the spice notes.

Towards the back end, the dark chocolate notes carried through as the cinnamon and black pepper subsided a bit. I also got some nutty, earthy notes, like walnut and almond. And it was on the finish that the sweetness came through, kind of a molasses note.

There was a lot of really good "stuff" happening here. I liked those wine notes, the dark fruit notes, and the dark chocolate notes.  Something about this blend, however, just didn't quite work. I'm not sure if one of the finishes had more influence than others. Perhaps it's the rum finish that I didn't like, as I have yet to find a rum finished rye or bourbon I've liked. But there was something about this that just didn't work, just didn't quite bring all of those great flavors together into something cohesive. 

Grade: B-

Untitled Woodman's Private Barrel Selection 10-Year Calvados Finished Bourbon

VITALS:

- $80

- 121.2 Proof

- 10 years

- Barrel 1012

- Indiana

It seems as though for a short while there was a sort of flood of these Untitled barrel picks. I had picked one up at Binny's, had seen a few on shelves of other smaller liquor stores near me that appeared to be distributor picks, as well as this one from Woodman's (which I understand was one of at least two picks that Woodman's got in). 

There are a lot of positives about this bottle just going on face value, before even trying the whiskey inside. First, it's MGP bourbon. So that's a good start. Second, it's a 10-year old bourbon, so it's got some decent age to it. Third, it's a single barrel (which doesn't mean a whole lot, but people seem to favor those). Fourth, it's bottled at cask strength. And fifth, it's finished in Calvados barrels, something that appeals immensely to me! This bottle certainly had a lot going for it, so the price tag of $80 didn't actually seem all that prohibitive.

The most notable thing about this whiskey is that it is bold! This was apparent even from the nose. The aroma was strong, making its presence known a few feet away from the glass.  I was getting great, rich notes of peach and amaretto. It had a light oakiness to it, as well as a light peanut note as well. It even had a bit of the saltiness that comes with the peanut note. I also got a sort of a black tea note.

The flavor was likewise super rich. Right up front I got a ton of amaretto liqueur, as well as rich, dark fruit notes like fig and plum. It had a molasses type sweetness to it as well.  There as a bit of an oakiness in the flavor, just as in the nose, and that provided some tannic bitterness that kept the molasses sweetness from going too far.

I certainly got wine notes, something along the lines of a rich (I find myself using that word a lot here) Cabernet Sauvignon. I really got this on the finish, which was full of wine and black pepper spice. The finish was also fairly boozy, providing a good amount of heat as well as a sweet but charred burnt sugar note.

Everything about this was rich and full of flavor that absolutely smacked me in the mouth with each sip. However, the one knock I'd have on it is that the finish was so overpowering that the bourbon wasn't really allowed to shine through.  This was more like a syrupy, cask strength Calvados than it was a bourbon that received some influence from a Calvados barrel. That said, for what it was it was still really good!

Grade: B+

One Eight Distilling Untitled Binny's Private Barrel Selection 14 Year Straight Bourbon

VITALS:

- 140

- 117.7 Proof

- 14 Years

- Barrel No. 362

Untitled, the bourbon label coming out of One Eight Distilling in Washington D.C., seemed to come on as sort of a surprise to me. I had never heard of either the label or the distillery prior to about a year or so ago. But then I saw a couple of these squat bottles, specifically Release No. 11 and Release No. 13, with age statements, high proof and intriguing cask finishes. So I had to try one and lo and behold it was pretty good!

When I learned that Binny's was going to be getting a private barrel from them, I was immediately interested. When I learned that that private barrel was going to be a 14-year cask strength straight bourbon, I was completely sold. Quite frankly, having only seen the exotic blends of finished bourbon poured into these bottles up to this point, I wanted to know how an unfinished, well-aged cask strength bourbon under their label would taste.

The nose was interesting, for sure. It immediately came across as bright and sweet, with orange peel and vanilla right up front. It had a very caramel forward note providing the sweetness, but also a sort of sponge cake type of aroma to it, like that smell of freshly baked cake that fills the kitchen, which I absolutely loved.  It also had a bright cherry note as well. There was a lot going on here, but it smelled delicious, and I couldn't wait to dive into my glass.

The very first note that I wrote down when I took my first sip was "cherry cordial."  It hit on all elements of dark chocolate, cherry, vanilla and event that brandy liqueur note. I was immediately impressed. This was also the note that really dominated the finish. Long after each sip my mouth remained filled with those chocolate and candied cherry notes, and I found myself quickly reaching for the next sip.

It also had a certain amount of oak to it as well, to be expected, I guess, given the amount of time in the barrel. However, that note really just added a bit of an earthy element, and did not take away from the sweet, cherry cordial note. It didn't add any bitterness, just a bit of depth.

Other flavors came through from time to time as well as I made my way through this bottle. I did get notes of dried strawberries at times, adding a different, brighter element of sweet berry  I also got notes of cola, and at times I even got that light pastry note akin to the sponge cake I was getting on the nose. I even got the slightest mocha note, perhaps with the wood showing more influence in later pours and offering just a touch of bitterness.

All in all, this was a rich and delectable whiskey. It never got too sweet, always tempered by the dark chocolate and brandy liqueur notes that I was getting.  That cherry cordial note, which I loved, was prominent in every pour. I almost wanted to make my own dessert using this whiskey. Well, not really, but I enjoyed it that much!

Grade: A

One Eight Distilling Untitled Whiskey No. 13

VITALS:
- $80

- 106 Proof

- 10 Years

- Batch 1

- Washington D.C.

I'll admit that I knew very little about One Eight Distilling out of Washington D.C. before purchasing this bottle. In fact, I know very little about them now. But I took notice when I saw their Untitled Whiskey Nos. 11 and 13 suddenly appearing on my local liquor store shelves. The bottle and label designs are simple, and the finishes sounded great. But that price for an unknown turned me away.

Then I started not only seeing their whiskeys everywhere on Facebook, including single barrel picks that people were going nuts for. So I reconsidered, and I ultimately broke down and bought a bottle of Untitled No. 13. It was the neck label that sold me on this particular one: 

"For Untitled Whiskey No. 13, we rested 10-year old high rye bourbon in a combination of Cognac, Spanish brandy and Oloroso, Amontillado and Pedro Ximenez sherries."  

It certainly had a lot going on, and the description reminded me a lot of the Jos. Magnus products. But, this one was not only age-stated at a healthy 10 years, but it was a bit cheaper than the Magnus blends. So I gave it a shot.

The nose on this thing was crazy full and rich. I got a healthy amount of dark cherry and chocolate, and even some blackberry. It had a brandy-like richness of baked pear and apple as well. It also had a rich read wine note, like a pinot noir. It did have a bit of a brightness to it, kind of like raspberry, but those dark, rich fruit notes really dominated here. 

Of course the flavor followed suit. The wine barrel finish seemed to dominate immediately up front, as I got a lot of the full-bodied red wine flavors. I got a lot of that blackberry and dark cherry as well. It didn't come across as super sweet or anything, just full of flavor.

Those rich (I'm using that word a lot here, I realize), dark fruit notes were accompanied by dark chocolate and walnut notes. I also got some notes of raisin and plum that worked really well with everything else going on. There was also a bit of brown sugar to add just a bit of sweetness.

On the finish it had just a bit of tanginess to it. I liked it to amaretto liqueur. It's hard to put my finger on, but there was just something  lightly bitter while at the same time sweet that lingered on my tongue. It also left behind those notes of dark chocolate and walnut, giving it a very dessert-like finish.

What I didn't get, however, was the high-rye bourbon notes that I wanted. I didn't find any of that spice from the rye content that I was expecting. I also didn't get many of the more traditional bourbon notes, like caramel and vanilla. Unfortunately, while I bought the bottle in part because it started with a 10-year high rye bourbon, the bourbon ended up being almost completely masked by everything else going on. While it was still delicious, I wanted the bourbon itself to take more of a lead role here.

Grade: B