Balcones Peated Texas Single Malt Whisky

Balcones Peated Single Malt - 2021 Release Neat // Glencairn Appearance: Ruddy brown with a hint of copper. Like a nicely stained red oak. Legs form quickly and linger. Nose: Freshly opened package of bacon bits, orange zest, apricot and blackberry jam, toasted sourdough. Great variety on the nose. It invites you into the glass and doesn’t punish with alcohol burn, allowing long, deep breaths to take it all in. Just me being a Texan, or is there a red dirt smell here too? Reminds me of turning the A/C on in my granddad’s farm truck on a hot summer day. Great memories unlocked here. Palate: Wow, very distinct transitions across flavor profiles here. Starts with the salty, smoky bacon, then pivots to a juicy slice of blood orange, followed by a nicely buttered slice of sourdough toast. This finishes with a very smooth, luxurious oak spice. Finish: Oak spice starts and simmers nicely with a nice layer of oak smoke over the top. Blonde toast and smoked candied bacon are present as well. Several minutes later, I’m tasting red hots, and a fruit candy concoction - like if you just stuck your hand in a bag of jelly beans and ate everything at once. Beautiful. Finally picked this up after several weeks of waiting, and BOY does this deliver. I especially love the complexity on the finish - I’m still tasting this one 5 - 10 minutes later and unlocking new flavors along the way. This is fantastic stuff that I am extra proud of because it comes from the Great State of Texas. We do whiskey good. 95/100 My scoring system: 59 and below: Bad. Not worth buying. 60 - 69: Decent, but with obvious flaws. Might buy, but very price dependent. 70 - 79: Pleasant to good, worth buying, but nothing spectacular that wows me. 80 - 89: Good to very good. Insta-buys that I actively seek out. Must contain some “wow” moments. 90 - 94: Greatness has been achieved. No detectable flaws, and every moment is sheer pleasure. 95 - 100: This is where I score my “best of all time” drams. Similar to lower 90s, but with something tangible/perceptible that sends it over the top.

Rating: 16/23 I wasn't too impressed by Balcones Brimstone, but this one has actual peat, so maybe it's better. N: Smoke. Slight savoriness. I'm really struggling to get anything else here. It's pretty unimpressive. Eventually faint apple, coffee, and maybe just the slightest cherry come out. After several minutes, there's a touch of that Balcones sort of tart maple malt. And then it becomes a bit herbal, bringing a bit of peat character to the smoke. P: Ashy, smoky with slight chocolate, some herbal flavor, white pepper, rainbow pepper. There's a nice layer of maple sweetness over tart maltiness. There's a touch of meatiness, but it isn't too much. The pepper and herbaceousness mix well, adding a bit of depth. The smoke is somewhere between campfire and peat. Occasional touches of orange and lemon, with cherry showing up on a bigger sip. It's hot, but not harsh. And at this ABV it would be very surprising were it not hot. F: Smoke, pepper, and sweet malt linger. - Conclusion - I'd put this above Westland Peated (15/23), though not by a huge margin. It doesn't rise to the level of Amrut Peated (17/23). I'm thinking a 16 or 17. I'm not at all confident that this is better than Loch Lomond 12 (16/23), so I'm going to give this a 16 as well. I think there's some real potential here, but it isn't super complex and the profile doesn't quite come together. I do like the Balcones heart that this has, but I don't think that the campfire pairs terribly well with it. Coming back to this for a final couple of sips, the campfire is much less prominent. It's still young, but it has a complexity that surpasses that of Amrut Peated. The flavors taste better integrated than they did previously. I might bump this up to a 17. It's pretty borderline between 16 and 17 now, but I'm going to leave it at a 16. Thanks for the sample @pkingmartin ! I had a lot of different opinions over my time with this. I'd love to get my hands on a bottle so that I can spend some more time contemplating it.

Nose - oddly refined and mellow. Light smoke over a gentle sweetness. I can't believe this is higher abv. When I let it sit a bit I get a nice sweet and warm caramel and peated and powerful note, but a second nosing and it's gone. This one isn't the most aromatic whisky out there if you don't let it build it, but if you do, it's rewarding. Taste - Well forget everything on the nose. Punch you in the face balcones single malt. Cinnamon, oak, funk, texas heat, caramel, vanilla, and well peat? OK so yeah I see some peat here it's subtle and hidden for sure, but at the same time it's overt and in your face. That's kinda the magic of this pour. If you've had balcones single malt it's a BIG BOLD whisky and this is even more so and in that you can miss what is actually a hell of a peat punch because it's hidden in the oak or the oak is hidden in the peat? I can't tell. However on the finish you really do get a nice lingering peat element...and cinnamon and oak..and texas. I'm doing it, a rare 3.0 from me. I'm digging the living hell out of this. Uniqueness is driving me higher but not for uniqueness but because I want more of this intense balcones sweetness and sugars and spice with peat. This is pushing 150 dollar bottle quality, get one of these if you can. I might have to workout a bottle shipment myself. Heavy water pour for science. It has been my experience that water when applied to CS can really pull out the flaws so lets see if this holds up to the higher standards. So the water has done ZERO to the flavor. It's just honestly it's not even thinner. The flavors are slightly muted but again the same. I added like 20% water here. There's a touch of mineral coming out but I think that's from the water itself as I didn't have a bottled water ready. Really REALLY well done balcones.

N: Woodsy, salty, medicinal - something very specific that I think is wood charcoal, but I'm not 100% certain. I'm going with it anyway. Swirl releases stone fruit, caramel, vanilla - all drenched in charcoal smoke. Hints of fine tobacco - cigarette smoke, cigar ash. Bacon and figs, baked goods, sweet bread. Earthy and peaty, but less than a traditional peated Scotch. Nuts soured with citrus juice. Definitely some ethanol, but comes with the territory of the proof (67.9% ABV on this bottle - or is it 62.9%? Handwritten label...). Incredible nose. Truly a monster. P: Intensely sweet with the Balcones pecan pie hallmark. Smoked nuts. Smoked and grilled fruit. Lots of bitterness, which just counters the sweet and really works for me (I expect some would hate this though). Super rich salted caramel. Spicy cinnamon starts to mix in. Slightly stale, crispy burnt bread. Mint and menthol, oddly like a young rye (there's no rye in this). Finish is crazy spicy - hot cinnamon quickly builds to something just a hair below habanero chili pepper. Lots of tannic bitterness lingers through the end, but it's still blackstrap molasses sweet. Incredible whisky. Shock and awe type of sheer power. I only knock it a bit for lacking any sort of subtlety - I tend to like some subtlety. Bottle says this is a minimum of 36 months aged - give it like double that and maybe it gets a little smoother and subtler. I don't think it necessarily needs that, but I also think I would like it. Regardless, this is special, worth seeking out. Thanks to @Ctrexman for the recommendation. Don't think I would have found this without the help.

The nose starts with a mingling of peat and mesquite smokes, charred meats (leaning towards brisket), bacon wrapped dates, black tea, candied pecans, dehydrated figs, chocolate covered raisins, polished mahogany, leather and pit master signature secret “take to the grave” dry rub with a high ethanol burn. The taste is another flavor explosion, basically think of a flavor genie granting you flavor wishes, anything someone thinks is delicious and tells me they find in this one, I’ll believe. Let’s start on my genie wish list on this one: it starts with a very viscous mouthfeel with pecan pie and wildflower honey, brisket, dark chocolate, bacon wrapped dates, Jamaican jerk eggplant, bit-o-honey candy, sour patch kids, smoked s’mores sandwich, steeped black tea, leather and pit master secret dry rub with a medium ethanol burn. The finish is long with brisket, chocolate covered bacon, dates, dehydrated figs, bit-o-honey candy, toasted marshmallow, and espresso that lingers for what seems like forever. This is a big powerful in your face whisky with all of those flavors coming right at you in full force before the next one takes over and somehow manages to balance that flow without one overpowering the other. A hell of a whisky that if you spot in the aisle, grab it, bring it home, rub the bottle, pop the top and see what your flavor genie has in store for you. Thanks to @Ctrexman and @skillerified for bringing this one to my attention and the great tasting notes you two provided.

This is some badass Texas single malt. Think of it as Stagg Jr Texas style. Well at least regarding proof. Flavors are quite different. Poured neat....this is actually better with 2-3 drops to open up but neat is absolutely doable. There is a lot going on here, it may start off with a hit of ethanol but just wait for it. Butter pecan, milky way, maypo cereal and smoked honey represent the sweet side. There is also dusty malt, new car, black beans, seasoned oak and puff of smoke from burnt tripped electrical circuit. Its like a combo of Balvenie Peat week and Bruichladdich Classic only much more intense. The mouthfeel is rich and oily leading way to palate explosion. Thick dark honey assaults along with graham cracker smores, 3 musketeers and creamy malt all tempered by Texas sunshine and weathered oak. This is framed with Bit-O-Honey candy bar engulfed in smoke. Finish is slow fade of nutty sweet notes, smoldering beehive and barrel with some added char. Overall Im blown away. The sheer intensity coupled with complexity at such a young age is remarkable. Thank the relentless Texas heat for quick extraction. If you enjoy a smoky, malty, honey profile you will be in love. It maybe hard to find but well worth the effort........98/100......Has improved since opened(little air calms the beast). Magnificent Texas Single Malt!..... Keep in mind this will mess you up fast so be careful