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Oran Blend No. 1 Scotch Review

By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ The Perfect Fifth is an American negotiant firm, otherwise known in the US as an Non-Distiller Producer (NDP) or independent bottler. Started by Karl J. Schoen in 2019, the company operates in familiar territory for such an enterprise, as it might operate in Scotland or Ireland: most of their offerings …

By Richard Thomas

Rating: B+

This is Oran Batch No. 2, which has an identical look as Batch No. 1
*(Credit: Perfect Fifth)*

The Perfect Fifth is an American negotiant firm, otherwise known in the US as an Non-Distiller Producer (NDP) or independent bottler. Started by Karl J. Schoen in 2019, the company operates in familiar territory for such an enterprise, as it might operate in Scotland or Ireland: most of their offerings are their own single cask bottlings of quite mature or even ultra-aged single malts and American whiskeys. These are a familiar site on select New York City whiskey bars, with their expressions on limited retail distribution around the US.

Most such companies, even in the US, also delve into making their own blends and The Perfect Fifth is not one of the exceptions. Fashioned by noted whisky author Jim Murray, Oran Blend No. 1 and No. 2 is billed as 50% malt, 50% grain and 50% ABV. However, in this instance the creation of the Blend No. 1 and Blend No. 2 were not intended to expand sales beyond the reach of discrete batches of single cask offerings: each blend had a production run of just 465 bottles, about as much as a typical middle-aged single cask offering would yield.

Blend No. 1 is built on a backbone of two ultra-aged grain whiskies, one 21 years old and the other 34 years old. The other half is a mix of small dollops of malts from Ardmore, Glen Grant, Miltonduff, an unnamed Orkney malt, Old Pulteney and Tamnavulin, ranging from 12 to 24 years old. That range of stock was aged wholly in ex-bourbon barrels. Setting the strength at 50% ABV should only enlarge its appeal to American palates, that being the 100 proof mark mandated for popular bottled in bond whiskeys.

The Scotch
The whisky has a bright, light gold coloring, which is suggestive of just how the ultra-aged components of the blend lean so heavily on ex-bourbon barrel aged grain whiskies. The nose lets the fruity aspect, coming across as apples, lead, with an accent of malty honey. Behind that are traces of green pine needles and burnt gunpowder.

The palate carries somewhat more weight than the light scent, but not so much that the fruity side fails to retain the lead. The flavor is forward with its pears, honey and caramel, with hints of ash, cake spices and oak coming along behind. The finish is a short one, combining a touch of butterscotch with a sliver of wood.

The Price
The Perfect Fifth has set the price on this blended whisky at $189.

Laphroaig Reveals Elements 2.0 Single Malt

Laphroaig, the malt distillery on the famed Scottish island of Islay, has unveiled Elements 2.0, the second in its exploratory series of bold whiskies that experiment with different distillation techniques. This new single malt showcases the flavor impact of extending the fermentation period, producing a fruitier whisky that still retains the peaty character that makes …

Laphroaig Elements 2.0
*(Credit: Beam Suntory)*

In creating Laphroaig Elements 2.0, the distillery team went beyond the traditional approach to distillation and maturation to uncover interesting and unusual ways to experiment with the making of Laphroaig.

Disrupting the usual 55-hour fermentation process, Laphroaig Elements 2.0 is created from a number of longer fermentations ranging up to almost five full days in the tun – a total of 115 hours. The tun was specially aerated to maintain mash conditions, much like practices of old; a process that helps emphasize the fruitier notes of Laphroaig Islay single malt while maintaining its signature peaty character. The resulting product, Elements 2.0, is a bold, pale gold, non-chill filtered whisky with a fruity nose and palate.

Barry MacAffer, Distillery Manager for Laphroaig, commented, “Our Laphroaig Elements Series is all about blending years of traditional whisky making with new, progressive techniques. There’s no whisky that encapsulates Islay quite like Laphroaig – but this hasn’t stopped us experimenting in a way that preserves our iconic character. Laphroaig Elements 2.0 is an unexpected fruitier whisky with the same peaty character you’ve come to know and love – made possible by over double the typical fermentation period. I’m keen to hear what our Friends think of this whisky which follows in the successful footsteps of Elements 1.0.”

Each expression in the innovative Elements Series features a series of subtle details on pack, cataloging the experiments that have gone into making each bottle and the hands behind them, allowing Friends and lovers of Laphroaig an unrivaled glimpse into the magic of the whisky-making process.

Laphroaig Elements 2.0 is the second expression in the Series and is available in the US as of July at a suggested retail price of $165.00 (700ml). It follows the 2023 launch of Elements 1.0 – a spicy and peppery whisky that is a culmination of three experiments.

Town Branch Single Barrel Bourbon Review

Updated June 23, 2024 By Richard Thomas Rating: B Whenever I am asked about how to organize a trip on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, my first question is always “Where are you staying, Lexington or Louisville?” This is because these two cities, the largest in Kentucky, either embrace or sit on either side of most …

Updated June 23, 2024

By Richard Thomas

Rating: B

Town Branch Single Barrel Bourbon circa 2024
*(Credit: Lexington Brewing & Distilling)*

Whenever I am asked about how to organize a trip on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, my first question is always “Where are you staying, Lexington or Louisville?” This is because these two cities, the largest in Kentucky, either embrace or sit on either side of most of the distilleries in the state, including all of the “Kentucky Majors.” If you are working from the Lexington side of the trail, there is now something special waiting for you.

Back in 2015, Town Branch Distillery added a single barrel version of their bourbon to their line-up. Nine years ago, it was a distillery-only expression and sourced. Now it is made in-house and in general distribution. The expression is not just single barrel, but also cask strength, and has been from the beginning. It used to float in the 120 to 125 proof range, but the recent bottling that I tried in 2024 was at 108.5 proof. Another recent released clocked around 107 proof. The one I tried in 2024 was distilled in 2017. The mash bill is 72% corn, 15% malted barley, and 13% rye, with an entry proof of 110.

The Bourbon
A key feature of Town Branch is its light, easy drinking character. The odd thing about Town Branch Single Barrel is how the substantially increase in strength has increased the intensity of the bourbon, but without sacrificing that easy drinking nature.

As a whiskey rises above 60% abv (120 proof), the more likely it is to require water in my book. The proof of the 2015 sample I tried at the distillery was 120.07 proof, and that likely explains how I could take it right up without a drop of water. Even so, I doubt another point or two of abv would change much in terms of straight drinkability. This is cask strength, but still very approachable.

The flavor profile is, naturally, very similar to that of Town Branch: corn sweet with notes of citrus zest, caramel and wood. Being more intense, but still carrying a light texture, the Single Barrel bursts with sweet caramel and orange zest, and the rye spices come more to the fore, hand in hand with the woody side. In keeping with its core virtues, the finish is light.

When I came back to the expression in 2024, that sample was much lower in proof, and had a nose like a caramel apple rolled in cinnamon graham cracker crumbs. The palate took that foundation and made it oakier. It was more like a baked apple, with an emphasis on ginger in the baking spice blend and a caramel drizzle. The oaky spices roll over into the finish.

I wouldn’t put Town Branch Single Barrel in the “big and bold” category, but it’s always had some personality. If you’ve read my comparison of two different barrels from nine years apart, the whiskey has certainly changed with time and origin, moreso than can usually be explained by mere barrel variance.

The Price
The price on this item has fallen by ten bucks since 2015, down to $60.

Michter’s 20 Year Old Bourbon Review (2022)

By Richard Thomas Rating: A Once one gets past their regular release line-up and into its limited expressions, Michter’s Distillery is not in the habit of doing annual batches. As I will discuss in detail in two weeks with a feature rounding-up the best of Michter’s Barrel Proof Rye, these things could come out the …

By Richard Thomas

Rating: A

Michter’s 20 Year Old Bourbon (2022)*(Credit: Richard Thomas)*

Once one gets past their regular release line-up and into its limited expressions, Michter’s Distillery is not in the habit of doing annual batches. As I will discuss in detail in two weeks with a feature rounding-up the best of Michter’s Barrel Proof Rye, these things could come out the next year or after an interval of one, two or even three years. So, I reviewed the 2015 edition of Michter’s 20 Year Old, and subsequent releases came out in 2016, 2019, 2021, and now the edition I will now address: 2022.

According to Michter’s, they closely monitor their older barrels at the 17 year mark, and refer to that as the “fork in the road” point. Certain barrels can achieve “extraordinary” quality after that point. Promising barrels continue maturing, and some are dumped for use in the 20 year old. This expression was a single barrel back in 2015, but that language was replaced with “limited release” on the label for the 2019 edition and has stayed that way ever since. The company describes it as a small batch release now.

The Bourbon
The pour into my copita glass takes on a rich, dark amber coloring, which reflects both the age and the 57.1% ABV bottling strength. This has never been a cask strength expression, despite the high strength, and the proof of 114.2 has been set and stable since the single barrel days.

Michter's 20 Year Old Single Barrel Bourbon 2015 — Back in 2015, when Michter’s 20 Year Old was a single barrel
*(Credit: Richard Thomas)*

The nose is rich with cherries and dried figs, treacle and vanilla, and spiced with cinnamon and clove. The spicy aspect comes forward on the palate, with the cinnamon and clove broadening to include pepper and a sliver of cedar wood, coming into full balance with the sweet side of the bourbon. Behind this, a leathery, earthy note of cocoa had developed, one that grows on the back end. The finish sees that leathery cocoa and the spicy aspect rise up and swamp the aftertaste like a sudden, crashing wave, one that recedes rapidly to leave behind a sweet vanilla note on the tongue that then fades to the slightest brushing with spiciness. It’s a wonderfully sophisticated conclusion that just gives and gives, sip after sip. As rich and wonderful as the rest of this bourbon’s experience is, that finish marks it out as something special.

The Price
Officially, this bottle is priced at $1,200. The market value of Michter’s 20 Year Old is far, far higher, with online retailers asking between $5,000 and $7,000 a bottle.

Basil Hayden Subtle Smoke Bourbon Review

By Richard Thomas Rating: B Continuing with the recent practice of using the Basil Hayden brand to produce many, many iterations of Beam-made whiskeys, the latest such twist has yielded Basil Hayden Subtle Smoke. The journey that led the brand, which started out as a light, dry and 8 year old, 80 proof version of …

By Richard Thomas

Rating: B

Basil Hayden Subtle Smoke Bourbon
*(Credit: Richard Thomas)*

Continuing with the recent practice of using the Basil Hayden brand to produce many, many iterations of Beam-made whiskeys, the latest such twist has yielded Basil Hayden Subtle Smoke. The journey that led the brand, which started out as a light, dry and 8 year old, 80 proof version of Old Granddad back in the early 1990s with the Small Batch Collection has certainly led us to an interesting place.

Like many Basil Hayden expressions, this one relies on secondary maturation, aka barrel finishing, and those finishing barrels were quite exotic. This is the process they used this time, as described by Jim Beam:

The steps to create this unique bourbon begin with toasting and lightly charring a secondary barrel. Afterwards, hickory-smoked chips are delicately ignited at a constant feed to produce smoke, which is then pumped into the barrel, resulting in soft, charred notes. This six-month secondary aging process provides a smoother, more subtle take on smoky spirits, and creates the perfectly sophisticated, yet approachable introduction to both bourbon and Basil Hayden.

The whiskey remains no age statement (NAS) and 80 proof.

The Bourbon
The coloring of the pour is a clear middle amber. So, it looks like normal Old Granddad/Basil Hayden bourbon, and the rest of the experience stays in that lane as well. Naming this one “Subtle Smoke” is not an exercise in understatement. The nose is candy corn, caramel and a dab of spice and oak, with only the barest hint of creosote behind it. I haven’t had my chimney swept yet, and the smell pushed down it on a hot, humid day makes more of a presence than the hickory smoking does on this nose. The flavor follows in that vein: Basil Hayden, with its light character, candy corn and caramel sweetness, current of dry spiciness, and all that followed by the barest whiff of smoke. The barrel char note, when it is present, is usually more present than the smoke note in this whiskey, at least until the finish comes. There the smoke finally takes a step forward, sharing some real stage time with the dry, spicy current.

Fans of Basil Hayden and Old Granddad should find this an interesting twist on their favorite flavor profile, because that profile is very much there and unmolested. Smokeheads, on the other hand, will be left scratching their heads as to why anyone bothered with such an unorthodox and seemingly unproductive smoking technique as this.

The Price
The recommended retail price for this item is $50.

Michter’s 10 Year Old Single Barrel Bourbon (2024)

By Randall H. Borkus Rating: A- After a 2022 hiatus that surprised everyone, Michter’s returned its 10-year-old single barrel bourbon last year in imposing style with one of the best 10-year-old bourbon whiskeys that they have ever offered, and arguably the best since 2010. Michter’s 10 Years Old Single Barrel Straight Bourbon is always aged …

By Randall H. Borkus

Rating: A-

Michter’s 10 Year Old Single Barrel Bourbon for 2024
*(Credit: Randall H. Borkus)*

After a 2022 hiatus that surprised everyone, Michter’s returned its 10-year-old single barrel bourbon last year in imposing style with one of the best 10-year-old bourbon whiskeys that they have ever offered, and arguably the best since 2010. Michter’s 10 Years Old Single Barrel Straight Bourbon is always aged at least ten years, sometimes older, and bottled at 94.4 proof.

The gatekeepers for any release from Michter’s are Dan McKee, Master Distiller, and Andrea Wilson, Master of Maturation. Commenting on the 2024 release of Michter’s 10 Year Bourbon, McKee said, “This a wonderful single barrel whiskey. It’s brimming with all the characteristics that I look for in a special bourbon.” Wilson added, “We know that Michter’s fans everywhere look forward to our 10 Year Bourbon. We are excited to share the 2024 release, which again is overaged to a beautiful maturity with an excellent nose, creamy texture and an array of characteristics on the palate, that ascend through to the finish, making every drop an enjoyable moment.”

My personal whiskey library took a hit when I moved over a year ago, so I am missing some of the earlier years which I traditionally love to compare to the current expression I am enjoying. Notwithstanding, I am in luck as I still have a few ounces of my 2023 left over for comparison.

The Whiskey
Side by side there are some notable differences in the 2023 and 2024 Bourbons; the 2023 is in essence a fruity cherry-custard-strawberry mish-mash wrapped in a oak wrapper; whereas, the 2024 is a Caramel vanilla apple-pear collage of flavors landing in peppery oak. These are both excellent Bourbon Whiskies!

My diva bottle is #24B0674 at 94.4 proof (ABV 47.2) with the traditional Michter’s black wax.

The color of the bourbon is a dark amber, and it glows in my Glencairn. The nose is loaded with vanilla, over-ripe black cherry, cooked pear and oak staves.

The front palate starts with a viscous feel, transforming into a caramel-slopped syrup poured over an overripe pear. This leads the way to a rich mid-palate of ripe apple slush, caramel-vanilla and heavy oak dusting. The finish is dry and delightfully warm with a solid oak essence touched with a caramel-vanilla icing landing with a final hint of cooked fruit and a white pepper dryness.

This is a standout whiskey and a prize on my bar. The ultimate tale for me is in the afterglow. It is that moment when the empty glass has sat for a minute or two and the bourbon residue dries ever so slightly and the oak influence jumps into my senses. The afterglow here is exceptional with hints of fresh cut oak rolled in that traditional toasty sweetness generally reserved for an older finer distinguished bourbon whiskey! I really enjoyed this bourbon.

The Price
Michter’s 10 Year Bourbon has a suggested retail price of $185 per 750ml bottle and I am sure much more with many retailers.

Wilderness Trail Bottled In Bond Wheated Bourbon Review

By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ When Shane Baker and Pat Heist set out to get into the business of making whiskey (as the owners of Ferm Solutions consultantcy, they already had a foothold in the whiskey business generally), they had two wants. Both men are self-confessed whiskey nerds at a time when whiskey nerds in …

By Richard Thomas

Rating: B+

Wilderness Trail Bottled in Bond Wheated Bourbon
*(Credit: Richard Thomas)*

When Shane Baker and Pat Heist set out to get into the business of making whiskey (as the owners of Ferm Solutions consultantcy, they already had a foothold in the whiskey business generally), they had two wants. Both men are self-confessed whiskey nerds at a time when whiskey nerds in general were obsessed with wheated bourbon. They both frankly admit its their favorite kind of bourbon, so they wanted to make it. They were also committed to making their core expressions bottled in bond whiskeys quite early on. Taking those two factors in account, it’s fair to say that Wilderness Trail Bottled In Bond Wheated Bourbon is the whiskey they got into the business to make.

Wilderness Trail’s wheated bourbon follows their “standard” mash formula of 64% corn, 24% flavoring grain (in this instance, wheat) and 12% malted barley. As one might expect from expert consultants on fermentation, their yeast strain is proprietary. They are a sweet mash outfit. The distillery goes to 134 proof on the still and ages in extra seasoned, #4 alligator char barrels for four to five years.

The Bourbon
My pour has the look of dulled copper. My take on the nose is that it smells like a toasted graham cracker smeared with apricot jam, if you sprinkled the top of that cracker with brown sugar, cinnamon and bits of clove and served it on a musty oak plank. It’s predominately sweet and fruity, but that musty wood and the extra spice are in no way minor players in the scent.

The flavor runs in a similar vein, albeit replacing the brown sugar with honey in the sweetness, while adding some caramel drizzle. It’s a well-balanced sipper, tasty and more than just a little sophisticated, hitting well above its weight in age terms. The finish runs quite warm, stays honeyed while also turning woodier, but doesn’t run along like that for long. It fades off a moment or two too soon.

The Price
Officially, these are supposed to sell for $60. A sampling of online retailers places that point in the center of the range of $55 to $65.

Old Fitzgerald 10 Year Old Bottled In Bond Bourbon Review (Spring 2024)

By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ The 13th installment of Old Fitz Bonded is now out, and this time it’s a mature, but relatively young bourbon. The current offering of Heaven Hill’s Old Fitzgerald brand is a bottled in bond version of its wheated bourbon, but always far older than minimum four years required by the …

By Richard Thomas

Rating: B+

Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond Bourbon, Spring 2024
*(Credit: Heaven Hill)*

The 13th installment of Old Fitz Bonded is now out, and this time it’s a mature, but relatively young bourbon. The current offering of Heaven Hill’s Old Fitzgerald brand is a bottled in bond version of its wheated bourbon, but always far older than minimum four years required by the Bottled in Bond Act of 1897. This Spring 2024 release is 10 years old, which is more than double the minimum requirement, but still on the young side for bourbons in this line.

The Bourbon
My pour into a copita glass came out with a bright copper/bronze coloring, just shy of what I would call even light amber. The nose smacked to me of melted caramel plus the rose incense I burn sometimes at home. The palate took a foundation of traditional bourbon flavors–candy corn, vanilla–and added some tea tannins and rose water. The finish turned spicy and dry, making it a strangely oak-driven conclusion for a 10 year old bourbon.

The Price
Officially, a bottle of this should run you $139.99. But with demand and retailer pricing being what it is, well, the Autumn 2023 bottling has a market average price of $505 at time of writing.

Upton Tea Imports Cherrywood Whiskey Barrel Smoked Tea Review

By Richard Thomas Rating: A- Japan has its own idiosyncratic varietals of oak used by their whisky industry. Mizunara has become familiar with erudite enthusiasts, as the wood’s characteristic sandalwood notes have found a fan following and it sees more use outside of Japan. The odd thing is that even among those of us who …

By Richard Thomas

Rating: A-

*(Credit: David Wilmont/Wikimedia Commons/CC-by-SA-2.0)*

Japan has its own idiosyncratic varietals of oak used by their whisky industry. Mizunara has become familiar with erudite enthusiasts, as the wood’s characteristic sandalwood notes have found a fan following and it sees more use outside of Japan.

The odd thing is that even among those of us who study Japanese whisky (but don’t actually live in Japan), their use of cherrywood has gone largely unnoticed. I say that is odd because cherry trees have been identified with Japan much longer than anime, Toyota, sushi, katanas and Hello Kitty. The subject of Japanese woods does not come up often in conversation, even among my colleagues, but when it does come up I never hear what is to me an obvious question: why not cherrywood?

The answer is it is in use, and outside Japan to boot. Every Japanese distillery has a cherrywood finished whisky, most recently Suntory. Over in Ireland, both Teeling Whiskey Company and Irish Distillers with their experimental Method And Madness series have done whiskeys aged in cherrywood. Where fashioning casks from cherrywood is too expensive, smoking grain with the wood is an alternative.

Upton Tea Imports has done both. They ground some of those cherrywood whisky barrels into chips and used the chips to smoke Japanese black tea for six to eight hours.

The Tea
This isn’t a strong cup of morning brew, but more in the teatime, pick-me-up vein of afternoon teas. It mixes a mild tannic streak with a note akin to a berry-driven red wine and a current that is half-smoke, half-ash. This is quite distinct from the oak whisky barrel smoked tea I tried last month, and somewhat better in that it is more approachable for folks who aren’t absolute smokeheads. The smoky side here is strong, but moderate enough that folks who appreciate a current of smoke in their barbecue, chili or street corn, but are turned off by something like Islay single malts, will appreciate it.

The Price
A 30 gram packet is $38.50, which comes out to $2.89 per cup.

Dewar’s Double Double 21 Year Old Scotch Review

By Richard Thomas Rating: A- One of the things to come out of the Japanese whisky explosion a decade ago was the introduction of many whisky enthusiasts to Japan’s Mizunara oak. Whiskies finished in this wood have been appearing in a steady trickle ever since, often as limited editions. Mizunara is a scarce wood (the …

By Richard Thomas

Rating: A-

Dewar’s Double Double 21 Year Old Mizunara Wood
*(Credit: Richard Thomas)*

One of the things to come out of the Japanese whisky explosion a decade ago was the introduction of many whisky enthusiasts to Japan’s Mizunara oak. Whiskies finished in this wood have been appearing in a steady trickle ever since, often as limited editions. Mizunara is a scarce wood (the trees aren’t mature until they are past two centuries old, compared with seven or eight decades for American white oak), and I’m told it is finicky to work with as well (those slow-growing trees don’t grow straight). While it imparts unique flavors, it is not the kind of thing one builds a mass market or major premium brand expression around.

Enter Dewar’s, the blended Scotch brand that has particular ties to the United States, as it was once the top-selling whisky in this country. The Double Double part of the name refers to the two-fold and doubled elements in the blended whisky. First, Master Blender Stephanie Macleod chooses casks of 21 year old malts, presumably sourced from all the usual sources for Dewar’s (presumably, but not necessarily, as these things aren’t transparent), as well as 21 year old grain whisky. This liquid is then blended and given a stint of secondary maturation in the new Mizunara casks. Double Double is a line of 21 year old blended whiskies, each with their own finish. The first was in the almost expected ex-Sherry casks. How long the finishing period is isn’t said, but from there the whisky is bottled at 46% ABV.

The Scotch
The look of this pour in my copita glass is golden, while the nose smacks of green apples and Anjou pears, cut grass, honey and hints of vanilla and sandalwood. On the palate, the honey holds on as the foundation of the sweetness, along with the light touch of vanilla, but the fruity aspect morphs to lemon zest. The sandalwood note grows to occupy a proper supporting role on stage, joined by an almond nuttiness and a sliver of more traditional oak. The finish rolls out mildly, carrying something akin to citrus blossom honey until it fades to a vaguely incenses-driven note.

Dewar’s put it together well here. The whisky is very mature, superbly balanced and shows a degree of complexity. Combine that with the price (see below) and it should figure prominently on the shopping list of anyone looking for a good blended Scotch whisky around the $150 mark.

The Price
This 21 year old Scotch is available for $149.99 per 750 ml bottle, which is a pretty good bargain considering 1) some previous releases in the 21 Year Old Double Double line were in 375 ml bottles; and 2) it’s a 21 year old blend.