Tag: Wheaters

Green River Wheated Bourbon Review: Tasting Notes & Rating

JoshLeave a comment

Maker: Green River Distilling Company, Owensboro, Kentucky, USA (Bardstown Bourbon Company).

Style: Straight Wheat Bourbon.

Recipe: 70% corn, 21% wheat, 9% malted barley (website).

Age: At least four years old.

Proof: 90 (45% ABV)

Michigan State Minimum: $35

Appearance: Medium copper.

Nose: Fresh cut oak, tres leches cake.

Palate: Mild. Toasted marshmallow, salted caramel.

Finish: Spicy and a little sweet.

Mixed: Good in an old fashioned, but Liz didn’t care for it in a Manhattan. I didn’t really see the point of trying it in Coke, as mild-tasting as it is. It’s ok on the rocks, though.

Parting words: As a brand, Green River has a long history, but the current Green River started life as the non TerrePURE brand from the Terresettia who took over and rebuilt the old Medley plant in Owensboro years ago. For those who have memory-holed this fiasco, TerrePURE was an attempt to speed up the aging of whiskey by means of vibrations and radiation or something. I don’t think I ever reviewed a TerrePURE whiskey, but I did taste a few and they were all terrible. I think it’s fair to say at this point that the experiment was a total failure. Father Time remains undefeated.

Anyway, The BBC (the whiskey one) purchased the brand and distillery in 2022 and has been producing there ever since. They’ve released a healthy number of iterations, including high rye and wheat bourbons, a rye whiskey, and high corn bourbon 1885 marketed toward cocktail bars, for reasons. All have been well-reviewed, to my knowledge.

I think this one is very enjoyable, especially for the $35 price. It’s not complex, but everything that is there tastes good and works well together. I liked it! Green River Wheated is recommended.

Bardstown Bourbon Company Origin Series, Bottled-in-Bond

JoshLeave a comment

Maker: Bardstown Bourbon Company (BBC), Bardstown, Kentucky, USA

Distiller: Bardstown Bourbon Company (BBC), Bardstown, Kentucky, USA (100%)

Style: Bonded wheat bourbon

Age: 6 y/o (distilled fall of 2016)

Proof: 100 (50% ABV)

Michigan state minimum: $50

Appearance: Medium copper.

Nose: Toasted almonds, smoked chilis, leather, paperwhite narcissus.

Palate: Full bodied and sweet. Caramel, chocolate covered cherries, heat. Water takes away the heat, but leaves the candy behind.

Finish: Dry and tingly. Oak, hot chilis. Much the same with water, but a little nutty too.

Mixed: At $50 a bottle, I’m hesitant to mix this, but it did well in an old fashioned.

Parting words: This is the first Bardstown Bourbon Company product I’ve reviewed. I almost took a tour there once with my Georgia Bourbon Society comrades (I was named president of the Mitten Chapter), but I had a conflict, so I missed out.

That was before BBC had released any of its own product. I heard the tour was great, but, frankly, I wasn’t too interested in them back then. The point at which I begin taking micro distillers seriously is usually at the point when they release a bonded whiskey (or brandy or whatever). Bottled-in-Bond (from the company’s own distillery) is the test to make it into a regular spot in my liquor cabinet. If you can do that well then you’ve proven that you are worth my time.

BBC has done it well. They’ve actually done it better than they needed to. This six year old tastes like an eight year old from a large distillery. The depth of flavor and complexity was a big, welcome surprise. You can mix it or drink it on the rocks and it will be just fine, but it’s best neat or with a little water.

The entirety of BBC’s line is currently in the Michigan price book. That includes the Origin (100% BBC distilled), Discovery (BBC + sourced whiskey), Collaborative (finished), Distillery (collaborations?), and Fusion (marriage of different mashbills) series. Origin is the most affordable, which is convenient because it’s the series I’m most interested in. The Collaborative series interested me before I saw the prices. Paying well over $100 for finished, sourced whiskey doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.

At any rate, THIS bourbon is reasonably priced for its quality and proof. Bardstown Bourbon Company Origin Series, Bottled-in-Bond is recommended!

Rebel Distiller’s Collection, Red Wagon selection

JoshLeave a comment

Maker: Lux Row, Bardstown, Kentucky, USA (MGP)

Distiller: Probably Heaven Hill.

Style: Wheat recipe straight bourbon.

Age: NAS (4-5 y/o?)

Proof: 113 (56.5% ABV)

Notes: Barrel 7533582, Filled 11/2/2016.

Michigan state minimum: $45 (Red Wagon, though I forget which one.)

Appearance: Medium copper.

Nose: Leather, caramel, amaretto, alcohol,

Palate: Full bodied. Cinnamon almonds, burn. Water adds chocolate hard candy and oak.

Finish: Oak, candy, alcohol.

Parting words: Rebel Distiller’s Collection is a single barrel selection expression that makes the rounds of the usual retailers. I don’t remember when I bought this one, but I think it was sometime in 2022. I like Heaven Hill wheaters, generally, but Rebel (Yell) hasn’t always been made with the best Heaven Hill has to offer. Modern Rebel has a well-earned reputation of being thin, rough, and sometimes undrinkable.

This bourbon, on the other hand, is actually quite good. It’s one of the best wheaters I’ve had recently. With a splash of water, it’s a well-balanced, beautiful whiskey that can stand up alongside other high-proof wheated bourbons without embarrassment.

That said, this is a single barrel product, so there will be variation between bottles. I’ve seen reviews of Rebel Distiller’s Collection that were all over the map. As always, find a retailer (or club) that has similar taste to yours, so you can be confident that you’re getting a good one. $45 is still $45!

Rebel Distiller’s Collection, Red Wagon selection is recommended.

P.S. If you’re interested in Lux Row, check out my post on when I went there with some friends here.

Nelson’s Green Brier Tennessee Whiskey

Josh1 Comment

Maker: Nelson’s, Nashville, Tennessee, USA

Distiller: Undisclosed (Dickel? Prichard’s? Somewhere else?)

Style: Wheat recipe Tennesse whiskey.

Age: NAS (not labeled straight so no minimum age)

Proof: 91 (45.5% ABV)

Michigan state minimum: $30

Thanks to Amy for giving me this bottle!

Appearance: Light copper.

Nose: Tarragon, grape soda.

Palate: Roasted corn, dried cherry, cayenne chilies.

Finish: A bit rough, then mellowing into more grape soda.

Mixed: It was fine mixed with Benedictine, but what character it had got lost. Other than that I didn’t have a chance to try it mixed.

Parting words: Nelson’s Greenbrier is the bottom shelf (ok more lower middle shelf) offering from Nelson’s distillery in Nashville Tennessee. They’re best known for their very good Belle Meade Bourbon line, one of which I thought I had reviewed at some point, but I guess I didn’t. No place to start like the bottom, though, right?

To be clear, this isn’t really the same stuff as the Belle Meade bourbons. Greenbrier is put through the famous Lincoln County Process (filtration through maple charcoal) and is made with wheat as the “flavor grain” unlike most TN whiskeys which use rye. None of the Belle Meade are made with wheat or given the LCP treatment.

Nevertheless it does sit at the lowest price point of the Nelsons’ offerings in Michigan, and it tastes like it, frankly. It’s not terrible, but it’s much closer to the level of quality of a $10 bourbon from a major distillery, than other bourbons or TN whiskeys priced in the $30s. Dickel #s 8 and 12 are both cheaper than this, as is Jack Daniels black label. Gentleman Jack is around the same price but it’s even more vile than the regular Jack Daniels, so I don’t think it’s a good comparison.

If you’re looking for a mixing Tennessee whiskey with a beautiful (it really is gorgeous) label, this is for you. Otherwise, you’re better off saving a few bucks and buying a Dickel. Nelson’s Greenbrier is mildly recommended.

1792 Sweet Wheat

JoshLeave a comment

Maker: Barton 1792, Bardstown, Kentucky, USA (Sazerac)

Style: Wheated Straight Bourbon

Age: NAS (at least 4 y/o)

Proof: 91.2 (45.6% ABV)

Michigan state minimum: $36 (listed as “SWEAT WHEAT”)

Appearance: Medium copper.

Nose: Alcohol, vanilla, apricot, char.

Palate: Full bodied and sweet. Crème brûlée with apricot and vanilla bean.

Finish: Short and drying.

Parting words: 1792 Sweet Wheat is an extension of the 1792 Bourbon line of (originally) high malt bourbons. It is presumed by people who have looked into these sorts of things (like me) that it is the same recipe as the old Kentucky Tavern bourbons. Constellation took this recipe and used it to create 1972 back when it owned the Barton Distillery. When Sazerac bought the distillery, they gave the bottle a makeover and created a number of line extensions, the most successful of which have been the barrel proof and single barrel expressions.

Sweet Wheat is a different beast from those, though, because the recipe has been changed. The rye has been swapped out for wheat, putting it into the same category as Maker’s Mark, Larceny, Weller, and the notorious Van Winkle bourbons. It fits somewhere between Maker’s and Larceny/Old Fitzgerald in terms of flavor. It’s not as delicate as Maker’s and Weller, but not quite as sharp and yeast-driven as the Heaven Hill wheaters. I like it a lot at $36, but I like it less at what I paid for it.

If you can find it for <$45, buy it. Any more than that, and you’re overpaying. 1792 Sweat, err Sweet, Wheat is recommended.

Old Elk Wheated Bourbon

JoshLeave a comment

Maker: Old Elk Distillery, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA

Distiller: MGPI, Lawrenceburg, Indiana, USA

Style: High wheat straight bourbon (51% corn, 45% wheat, 4% malt)

Age: 5 y/o

Proof: 92 (46% ABV)

Michigan state minimum: $67

Appearance: Medium copper

Nose: Cassia, star anise, powdered ginger, oak, alcohol.

Palate: Sweet and spicy. Cinnamon, allspice.

Finish: Cola, cinnamon rolls.

Parting words: Old Elk is an NDP/Micro-distillery located in Fort Collins, CO run by Master Distiller Greg Metze, who was chief distiller at MGPI for 38 years. Those years included the ones that saw it rise from an obscure industrial distillery to a famous (and somewhat infamous) bulk and custom whiskey producer that fueled the explosive growth in independent bottlers in the US, and the rye boom.

The big wheaters on the market, currently, those made by Heaven Hill, Buffalo Trace, and Maker’s Mark all trace their recipes back to the bourbons made at the legendary Stizel-Weller distillery in Louisville. While there are differences betweeen them, they have more in common than not.

This wheater is different. It’s the first high wheat bourbon I’ve ever purchased, and boy is it high. It’s 6 percentage points away from being a wheat whiskey. It has a bit of the “biscuity” quality of wheat whiskeys, but its primary characteristic is spice. Specifically what is often called baking or Christmas spice. It’s truly a unique product in the world of bourbon.

Old Elk has a few sharp points, but at 5 years old, that’s to be expected. $67 is too expensive for a 5 y/o, 92 proof bottling from a major distillery, but I’m willing to give it a pass, given how unique and well-crafted it is. I would really like to see the age go up and the price go down, but even as it is, Old Elk Wheated Bourbon is recommended.

A brief word on the bottle itself. The label and shape of the bottle is elegant, but I don’t like how heavy it is. We’re in the midst of a global climate crisis. Heavy bottles=more fuel needed to move them=higher carbon emissions. It’s (past) time to dump the heavy bottles.

Thistle Finch Small Batch, Batch 09

Josh1 Comment

Maker: Thistle Finch, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA

Style: Wheated (!) Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 2 y/o

Bottle date: November 13, 2019.

Proof: 90 (45% ABV)

Purchased for $47 (PLCB Monroeville-Northern Pike)

Appearance: Light copper.

Nose: Sawdust, cut grass.

Palate: Medium bodied and sweet. Allspice, hay.

Finish: Grass, dark chocolate, burn.

Parting words: I knew nothing about Thistle Finch before I saw this bottle on the shelf at the PLCB store I stopped at while coming home from a family vacation in Somerset Pennsylvania last summer. I’ve heard Pennsylvanians complain about the PLCB stores for years but I had never experienced one until then. Folks, it’s all true. They’re terrible. I went to that store to pick up some Dad’s Hat Rye and I had a list of Pennsylvanian wines I wanted to look for. They had none of those wines, and I was only able to find Dad’s Hat after wandering around the store for twenty minutes. It was in a special “made in Pennsylvania” section next to Pumpkin vodka, and several bottles of sickly sweet plonk. Bad selection, bad prices, poorly organized, it was awful. Like a LCBO store but much worse.

I picked up this bottle of Thistle Finch Rye from the bourbon section where it was lurking for some reason. I mostly picked it up because I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to find Dad’s Hat, but since they didn’t have any of the wine I was looking for I went ahead and bought Thistle Finch too. I’m glad I did. It has a lot of typical young rye flavors but has a roundedness that was nice, maybe due to the wheat in the recipe, highly unusual for American ryes.

It’s ok neat, but it really shines in cocktails, where it works well in drinks that might usually call for higher proof rye, on account of its aromatic nature. It did very well in a Manhattan, with ginger ale and orange bitters, and in a couple of cocktails I have named the Sterling Hayden (2 oz rye & 1/2 oz Aquavit), and a Skink (2 oz rye & 1/2 oz green Chartreuse). Both of the latter play up the rye’s herbaceousness.

I know next to nothing about the Thistle Finch folks, but this is a solid rye, that should only be getting better in later batches, if they let some rest, like they say they will. The distillery is located next to a brewery in an old tobacco warehouse in Lancaster. It’s one of these bar/distillery operations, and a pretty successful one by all appearances.

$47 isn’t cheap, but think of it as an investment in the future. Thistle Finch Small Batch Straight Rye Whiskey is recommended.

Wyoming Whiskey Private Stock, Red Wagon selection

JoshLeave a comment

Maker: Wyoming Whiskey, Kirby, Wyoming, USA.

Style: Wheat recipe bourbon.

Age: 5 y/o (according to paragraph on back label)

Proof: 107.72 (53.86% ABV)

Selected for Red Wagon stores, Troy & Rochester, Michigan, USA.

Barrel #4743

Michigan state minimum: $60

Appearance: Medium copper.

Nose: Oak, alcohol, custard.

Palate: Medium bodied and sweet. Caramel, brown sugar, candy cake decorations, then burn. With water: Even sweeter with more oak, but with less burn, obviously.

Finish: Clean and hot. With water: blondies, oak.

Mixed: Outstanding in classic cocktails, Kentucky mule, and even with cola or ginger ale.

Parting words: During the first wave of micro-distillers there were a lot of distilleries making bourbon who were trying to find shortcuts to get product on the market as soon as possible. They resorted to gimmicks like weird grains, small barrels, magical cave water, historical fiction, overpowering finishes, ill-conceived technologies (eg TerrePure®) and flat-out lies to try to ride the bourbon wave to profitability. I grew very tired of these cheesy “craft” distilleries very quickly.

There were a few micro-distilleries that seemed to be committed to doing things the “right” way, though. They used full-sized barrels, planned on aging the whiskey properly, used unique but not gimmicky recipes, and, most importantly, they hired people who knew that they were doing. It was clear from the beginning that Wyoming Whiskey is in that second category, so I made a mental note to watch for their bourbon on shelves. A few months ago, I was perusing Red Wagon’s Rochester location and to my delight I saw a Wyoming Whiskey selection in an in-store display! I grabbed it and brought it home.

I have to admit that I was disappointed at first sip. There was a strong wood varnish note that was very off-putting neat, so I laid off the bottle for a while after that. The next time I poured from it I used it in a Manhattan and it was great. Next I tried an Old Fashioned and it was even better. By the time I tried it neat again, it had blossomed into a beautiful, classic, but still distinctive, wheater. Now I can’t wait to try some more selections and I’m fantasizing about possible future releases with ages in the double digits.

Anyway, I like this bourbon a lot, obviously. I’m less of a fan of the price, but factoring in the high proof, wheat recipe, age and the usual micro-mark-up, I think $60 is a fair, though more than that might be pushing it. Wyoming Whiskey Private Stock, Red Wagon selection is recommended.