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Wine Enthusiast Magazine
50 Best Spirits of 2005

Page 3  - AMERICAN WHISKEY & BOURBON

Booker’s 7-Year
11-Month
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Batch No. B96-L-23
(USA; Jim Beam Brands, Deerfield, IL)
63.4% abv,  $50.  96100
CLASSIC / Highest Recommendation
A first-rate, multilayered bouquet that includes notes of cocoa, cigar tobacco and paraffin with aromas of caramel corn, cotton candy, oak and tapioca. The palate entry features tastes of spice, buttered corn, bacon fat and cream; the midpalate displays traces of butterscotch, nougat, sap, maple and vanilla. Finishes spirity and biscuity. Add water to reduce the alcohol.

     Booker's  

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Evan Williams
Vintage 1995  Single Barrel
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
(USA; Heaven Hill Distilleries, Bardstown, KY)
43.3% abv,  $22.  96100
CLASSIC / Highest Recommendation
The layered aroma is loaded with savory scents, including pine nuts, acorn, firm spirit core and oak; a sophisticated, lean and muscular bouquet. Palate entry is slightly sweet and even a touch spicy; the midpalate stage is tight, fat-free, yet supple, grainy and direct. Concludes moderately sweet and delicious. This sinewy, crisp-as-parchment Bourbon ranks with the best of the Vintage series.

 

Michter’s
10-Year-Old
Straight Rye Whiskey
(USA; Michter’s American Whiskey Co., Bardstown, KY)
46.4% abv,  $70.  96100
CLASSIC / Highest Recommendation
The first aromas are strong, nutty and mocha-like; further sniffings pick up deep-seeded scents of walnut, new leather, flax-fiber and soft cheese. The sweet and honeyed flavor profile bursts onto the tongue in the entry stage, then turns drier, grape seed-like and woodier at midpalate. Ends up incredibly honeyed. A tour-de-force rye whiskey that delivers at every level.

 

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Pappy Van Winkle’s
Family Reserve  15-Year-Old
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
(USA; Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery, Frankfort, KY)
53.5% abv,  $45.  96100
CLASSIC / Highest Recommendation
Initial sniffings find aromas of sweet corn dripping with butter, dark toffee and hazelnuts; later inhalations pick up notes of chocolate cake frosting, cocoa beans and vanilla. Palate entry is spicy, prickly and raisiny; at midpalate the taste features lead pencil, slate, black pepper, sautéed butter and deep-seared oak. Finishes ash-like, chewy and oily. American whiskey doesn’t come any finer.

Bernheim Original
Kentucky Straight Wheat Whiskey
(USA; Heaven Hill Distilleries, Inc., Bardstown, KY)
45% abv,  $40.  9095
SUPERB / Highly Recommended
Initial scents are floral and wheat cracker-like; aeration adds deeper, mildly sweet aromas of sap, fresh vanilla bean and light honey. Palate entry is finely balanced with wood, moderately sweet grain and acidity; by midpalate the alcohol warms the throat with off-dry flavors of charred oak, light toffee and sap. Finishes elegant and warm. A true sipping whiskey.

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Buffalo Trace
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
(USA; Buffalo Trace Distillery, Frankfort, KY)
45% abv,  $20.  9095
SUPERB /Highly Recommended
Initial aroma displays elements of spice, sautéed butter and old leather gloves; following aeration the fat/butter component dominates. Palate entry is corny sweet and almost fruity; at midpalate tastes include sweet oak, cinnamon, nutmeg, honey, tar and beeswax. Concludes spirity and feisty. One of the greatest values in the worldwide whiskey category.

Old Pogue
“Master’s Select”
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
(USA; The Old Pogue Distillery, Campbellsville, KY)
45.5% abv,  $40.  9095
SUPERB / Highly Recommended
The nosing passes find alluring, sweet grain and plum scents, delicate aromas of paraffin, confectioner’s sugar and a trace of maple. Palate entry is silky smooth and tastes of light caramel, buttered sweet corn and maple. Concludes firm, warm on the tongue, and moderately oily.
A new American small-batch gem.

     Old Pogue

Russell's Reserve     

Wild Turkey
Russell’s Reserve  10-Year-Old
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
(USA; Austin Nichols Distilling Co., Lawrenceburg, KY)
45% abv,  $30.  9095
SUPERB / Highly Recommended
The bouquet features a woody/piney aromatic surface with dry scents of grain and resin beneath. The palate entry has a flash of corny sweetness upfront, then a whisper of butterscotch; the midpalate is full-bodied, sweet, oily, clean and maple-like. Concludes with sumptuous tastes of dark honey and marzipan.

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