Balcones ZZ Top Tres Hombres

The nose is soft starting with a mix of powdered sugar dusted sautéed apples, freshly baked pumpernickel bread and dusty barn floors then dark chocolate covered espresso beans, candied pecans and light herbs followed by raspberry sorbet, tangerine orange and caramelized peaches that transitions to spearmint, cloves, anise and polished oak with low ethanol burn. The taste is a medium mouthfeel starting with a mix of powdered sugar dusted sautéed mangoes, dehydrated apricots, freshly baked pumpernickel bread and dusty barn floors then a mild bitter spice that quickly fades to dark chocolate covered pretzels, espresso, candied pecans and light herbs followed by raspberry sorbet, tangerine orange and caramelized peaches that transitions to charred caraway seeds, light flinty minerality, cloves, anise and mildly bitter black tea with medium ethanol burn. The finish is medium length with dark chocolate mocha, candied orange peel, freshly baked pumpernickel bread, anise, light flinty minerality and mildly bitter black tea. This is a really nice easy sipping dram that is well composed with the three grains each providing a different flavor while working cohesively together with a light Texas wood funk in a harmonious balance. My main fault with it is that the flavors are a bit thinner than I prefer and wish they were richer and bolder, but this would still be a dram I’d be more than happy to have time and time again as it’s a balanced, interesting and a unique easy sipper that I think many would be happy with at a very reasonable price of around $60. Thanks @PBMichiganWolverine for the generous sample.

N: Toffee, red fruit, apple, caramel, tropical fruit, pecan pie, coconut, herbal, nutty. The core elements of bourbon, single malt, and rye are all present, and all have the character of different Balcones whiskies. Really impressive. P: Red fruit, sweet bread, cinnamon, caramel, vanilla ice cream with a strawberry syrup drizzle, dark chocolate, candied cinnamon. F: Sweet and spicy with fresh red fruit, strawberry, baked bread, cinnamon, faintly woody notes with char and tannin, some rye herbal notes, dark chocolate. This is my second bottle of this stuff and I really just can't keep my hands off it. It's a perfect blend with very clear and pleasurable elements of bourbon, single malt, and rye. But, not just that, it's Balcones bourbon, single malt, and rye. The sweet frosting notes of Balcones bourbons mix perfectly with the fruity and bready notes of the their single malts, while also playing nicely with their high rye bourbons and straight ryes. I feel like I'm not saying it well. It's like a blend of True Blue, a good single barrel of their Single Malt, and the High Rye Bourbon (which has that notable chocolate note of the Rye, but a little less so). It's some of the greatest hits of Balcones. I guess that makes sense. _______ Please come join an unofficial Distiller community on Discord: https://discord.gg/VSmCvzAQfH. We chat spirits (and other things) in real time while being a great resource to each other for recommendations, finding deals, and generally enjoying the journey together. (If the link is expired, please post a comment and I will provide a new one.)

On the nose getting brown sugar, charcoal, maple, raisin, date, fig, and mesquite. It’s nicely pungent but an under current of ethanol mildly distracts. Palate follows the nose but add creme brûlée, birthday cake icing, vanilla, caramel, and cocoa nibs. Some creamed corn in the mid-palate. Rich, decadent, sweet, and dessert-y. Finish carries these notes forward but then morphs into Red Hots candy, chili pepper, mint, and sweet oak. Mouthfeel is full bodied and silky enough to be a perfect match for the flavor profile. So as a reviewer of many a Balcones whiskey, I guess you can call me a fan. And I’ve found that usually the best Balcones is a subdued Balcones (yes they exist) and that’s what we have here. While some of their expressions are like a jackhammer, this one is more of a scalpel. At $53, I feel it it’s priced appropriately. One of the better whiskies in the Balcones lineup.

Nose: honey, Carmel and vanilla Palate: Carmel, barrel spice and Texas funk. I don’t know what Texas funk is but being a Texan and having tried loads of Texas drams this definitely has that Texas funk. Finish: long and lingers. Call it a Texas hug. There’s a hint of some sort of floral at the very end reminded me of juniper berry. Overall: not a bad pour. Very different sort of bourbon. I’d have another glass.

With @twostal Musty, dessert -like kind of nose of roasted corn, toffee, figs, raisins, nuts, rye, sweet cherries, caramel apples and black pepper. Light heat, sweet, flavors of grain, dark fruits, flowers, caramel, sweet corn, oak and barrel spice. Lingering peppery finish.

Tried neat with @Looneyhead n his speak easy. On the nares it’s young with notes of wheat, wood, smoke, and grain. On the palate I get char, toast, heat and spice, vanilla, strong caramel green apple. Smokey and lovely