The color alone is striking, a deeply red cherrywood stain. The nose is dense and captivating with cooked dark fruits and molasses leading off with cinnamon, allspice, fresh peach and raspberry rounding out the whole.
Really? We know that strategy isn’t fool proof. Remember all those single barrels we picked which were 12-15 years old? They got that old because letting the whiskey sit was the only option. That idea also doesn’t take into account all the taxes on those barrels.
The 8-year-old starts off dark and deliciously grain-forward on the nose and remains dark with whiffs of molasses, sassafras, flat cola and charred oak. Hints of black pepper and baking spices follow and finish alongside rich notes of bitter chocolate.
If you’re a lower-proof, softer whiskey fan, this is made for you. It’s a cozy drink, a warming dram that will leave you cheerful and summoning someone to bring the bottle for more.
So, to look at the back label on a bottle and read ‘produced and bottled by,’ you know you’re getting something truly from that distillery.
At least single-barrel picks are better at Barton. My first pick ever happened there on a frigid winter day; the outdoor temp was 18 degrees and I was wondering why anyone thought this was fun.
Per usual, this Booker’s aroma is like the others: powerfully spicy and meant to warn that keeping the glass a few inches from one’s nose is wise.
Making whiskies for others in his own place is fun, he said, “but to have our family’s name on our own unique brands—a flagship brand is what gets me up in the morning. It gets me excited.”
The nose–like anything from the flawless Cascahuin distillery–El Negocio Blanco brings deep minerality and floral character atop an undercurrent of horno-roasted agave, agua miel and golden raisins.
“Ten years ago, this was but a figment of our imagination, and our partners helped our imagination become actual whiskey. For somebody like me who’s been in this business for a very long time, this is really exciting.”
