Nelson's "Green Brier" Tennessee Whiskey

VITALS:
- $30

- 91 Proof

- NAS

- Tennessee

I do love seeing new bottles on the shelf. I'm at my go-to liquor store on a fairly regular basis, some weeks I swear it's daily. And every time, without fail, I make that walk down the whiskey aisle to see what new labels are looking back at me, even if I just did so the day before. Because every now and then something shows up unexpectedly, and I feel I need to give it a go. This was one such occasion.

While this was a new product on the shelf, it certainly wasn't a new distiller. I've enjoyed just about every Belle Meade product I've tried to date, so at least this new brand was familiar to me. Plus, coming in at only $30, it nearly begged me to at least give it a try. And who knows, perhaps I'd find myself with another bottle that I can claim as a go-to when drink options aren't plentiful.

Interestingly, the nose was far from traditional bourbon. In fact, I seemed to get notes more akin to an Irish whiskey than a bourbon or Tennessee whisky. I think that primarily came from the prominent notes of leather and sweet pipe tobacco. It still had some bourbon characteristics though, as I got notes of corn bread and honey as well.  The corn notes seemed to really stand out, indicative of a young bourbon.

The first thing I noticed on my first sip was that this was certainly on the sweeter end of the spectrum. It had a cane-sugary sweetness to it that was, quite frankly, a bit off-putting.  It did have a decent burn on the back end, not necessarily an ethanol burn, but more like a corn whiskey. In fact, even on the front end it had that grain-forward flavor, kind of like raw corn. There was a grassiness to it as well that seemed to underscore everything.

It seemingly lacked any wood or barrel influence, at least as far as imparting wood or char notes goes. I think that would have helped, as it came across as somewhat straight forward with sweet and heat and not a whole lot else.

The sweet character did seem to take on some complexity at least, as on different pours that sweetness seemed to take on different forms. At times it came across as sort of a cherry licorice, imparting that artificial cherry. I even got light notes of chocolate at time. On the last few pours, that sweetness seemed to come across as more of a cola note, maybe even root beer.

I wish I could say I found a new go-to for cheap bottles, but I can't. This was fine, but I think I'm reaching for other options at that price range. This was just too sweet for me, and I wish there was more going on beyond just sugary notes and grain-forward flavors.

Grade: C

Bardstown Bourbon Company Phifer Pavitt Reserve Straight Bourbon

VITALS:

- $125

- 100 Proof

- 10 Years

- Tennessee

I've mentioned before that I'm not a big fan of Dickel products. While some people love the stuff, I just have yet to find one that has really suited my palate. That chalky, fake vitamin note is real, and it just doesn't work for me.  

However, when I was offered the chance to buy this bottle, I still couldn't help myself. This is yet another collaboration from Bardstown, this time collaborating with Phifer Pavitt to finish this 10-year old Tennessee whiskey in Phifer Pavitt Cabernet Sauvignon barrels. This is the second such release, and the first one got some pretty good reviews. So, despite knowing that this was sourced from Dickel, my FOMO got the best of me, and I plunked down the cash to take this one home.  It's interesting to note that while this is 100 proof, it's also labeled as "cask strength."  That's quite the coincidence there that it landed right at 100 proof without any dilution.

The nose certainly lets you know right away that this a wine finished bourbon. The fruit-forward aromas of dark cherry and blackberry really came through. I even got a bit of blueberry off the nose that I really enjoyed. It also had that caramel base to it, as well as a light cinnamon spice to sort of round everything out.  The nose on this bourbon was delicious, and I found myself sniffing my Glencairn constantly while drinking this.

On my first sip, I was looking for those Dickel notes, the Flintstone Vitamins note that so many people get. But, I didn't notice it here . . . at first.  Rather, I got sweet notes of smooth butterscotch, like ice cream topping. That blended well with the flavors from the wine finish. I didn't get so much the cherry that I got on the nose, but the blackberry was certain prevalent. I even got the blueberry notes that I got from the nose, probably a first for me as far as tasting notes go.

Unfortunately, though, as I made my way through this bottle, those vitamin notes started coming through. It wasn't the fake grape flavor that I got in the Dickel Bottled in Bond that put me off, but rather more of a strawberry note. In that respect it wasn't offensive or anything, just there and noticeable.

The finish seemed to kind of wash away that vitamin note, however, bringing in the cinnamon spice that I got off the nose. This is also where the cherry note came through, leaving a real dark cherry note (as opposed to artificial cherry) that lingered for a considerably long time after the finish. It turned out that the finish was what I enjoyed the most about this bourbon, and it's the reason I went back for more pours.

I still hesitate to grab Dickel distillate, and this certainly didn't change my mind. However, I did feel that what they did with the finishing on the distillate was very good. I loved the notes the Phifer Pavitt barrels introduced to the whiskey, I only wish it were a different whiskey . . . and a different price.

Grade: B

George Dickel 15 Year Tennessee Single Barrel Whiskey

VITALS:
- $70

- 84.4 Proof

- 15 years

- Tennessee

I really haven't found a Dickel product that I've loved.  I've had some here and there that I've enjoyed, but far from anything that has blown me away or knocked my socks off or whatever other such colloquial phrases. But, I keep trying them, whether it's craft whisky sourced from Dickel, Dickel whisky finished in wine barrels, or single barrel offerings.

Such was the case with this bottle. I wasn't aware that it was going to be released, but when I spotted it on the shelf, a great internal conflict began in my mind. I'm generally not a big fan of Dickel, yet here was a 15 year single barrel product at a relatively accessible price. Certainly the proof could be a lot higher, but in older whiskies, lower proof can certainly be alright as far as I'm concerned. The wood bitterness tends to be a bit less pronounced. And so I brought home another bottle of Dickel whisky.

The nose smelled like it had a bit of age to it. I got something woody, but it was a lighter woody note, like the smell of your garage after using a table saw (so, sawdust, I guess--so much for brevity).  I also got something sweet and earthy all at once, like tobacco leaf, or even tea leaves. There was something crackery, which, with the sweetness, reminded me of animal crackers. And behind all this was kind of a dried or powdered strawberry note. It had a funky aroma overall, but not a bad one.

On my first pour, I was admittedly looking for that grape flavored vitamin note. I perhaps have some PTSD from the Dickel Bottled in Bond.  And on the first few pours, I was pleasantly surprised to only notice the vitamin note just a little bit. Luckily, there were a lot of other flavors bouncing around on my tongue.

It had a familiar sweet pastry-like quality. It took me a while to try to pin down exactly what type of pastry I was tasting, but ultimately I decided it was like a funnel cake with a dusting of powdered sugar. I also got the dried strawberry note that I got on the nose, and these flavors, as you might expect, all worked really well together. 

Other notes came through as well, all on the dessert end of the spectrum. I got additional notes of blackberry and even banana. I also got brown sugar as well as a bit of a cake note, kind of like pancakes.  Interestingly, I even got somewhat of a rum note, which really complemented the banana and brown sugar flavors.

Unfortunately, about halfway through the bottle I noticed that the grape vitamin note seemed to becoming more and more prominent. Perhaps it was the whisky opening up. Perhaps it was just me being more in tune to it. But, as with the Bottled in Bond, I had a really hard time getting past it. It wasn't nearly as prominent as it was in the Bottled in Bond, and it even leaned towards a cherry vitamin note (which isn't really better), but it was there enough that I just had a hard time enjoying this as much as I wanted to.

I doubt that I'll swear off Dickel products altogether, but they really just aren't for me for the most part, and I don't see myself dropping any substantial amounts of money on future products. It's unfortunate, because they do release well-aged products at decent prices, and so many people love their whisky. I just can't count myself among them. 

Grade: C+