Defiant American Single Malt Whisky

This was given to me as a gift. I’m not really a malt whiskey or Scotch drinker, I’m very much a Bourbon drinker, so keep that in mind. I will say the aging process, or lack there of, has made me a little apprehensive. But this was a gift, so here it goes. The nose has honey, fresh malt, slight bandaid note and a very strong notes of tequila. Not something that I enjoyed nosing. The palate is sweet with notes of honey, tequila and vanilla. The finish is short with a little lingering vanilla and a slight bitter aftertaste. Like I stated before, I don’t frequent this category of whiskey, but it didn’t even remind me much of scotch or other malt whiskies. It just tasted young and one dimensional and for some reason that dimension was tequila? I know this company is “defiant” in their approach to making whiskey, but it didn’t work for me. It reminds me of how a child defies their parents, but in this case their dad is Father Time and he can’t be fooled.

Tasted at room temperature / Norlan glass / no water or ice added. 82 proof. The nose is honey, vanilla, and orange peel, and far exceeded my expectations. There's a bit of alcohol in the nose as well, but I suspect that has dissipated since I first got this bottle as it has been open for some time prior to this tasting. On the palate its an entirely different whiskey, coming across as hot, young, and rough-edged. If you let it move around your mouth fully, you will get some maltiness to offset the alcohol you're first confronted with. Kind of hard to isolate flavor profiles here. Aside from malt, maybe a little citrus? The finish is respectable mid-tongue, but non-existent throughout the rest of the palate. What does linger is an enjoyable orange-vanilla.

A balanced, American Single Malt Whiskey produced by Blue Ridge Distillers of Golden Valley, North Carolina & their water is drawn from an aquifer right under the distillery. It is made with Two-row premium malted brewer’s barley, yeast, water & then with a proprietary aging process using premium American white oak, toasted to perfection for finishing. It has a grainy birth with notes of malt & vanilla; while a rich life adds notes of caramel & honeyed fruit; that leads to a warm & spicy death with a hint of oak. March 2019 / August 2022

Read the story of how this is made. Very unique, a combo of this and aging in Barrell might be a sweet spot? I hate scotch but I love this one even though it has a hint of scotch to it. Otherwise buttery sweet with caramel and vanilla. A smooth drinker, love it. Some of the reviews I see don’t make any sense. Just because it isn’t aged like other bourbons, it’s new, unique and delicious. And yes I’m a NC native so prob a bit biased.

As a North Carolinian, I sincerely wish Defiant the best. But as a scotch and bourbon drinker, I’m just not a fan (as much as I wanted to be). The act of aging a whiskey is fundamental to its excellence, and I’m afraid their shortcut process just doesn’t produce the kind of whiskey I’m looking for.

Fresh honeycomb, coconut and vanilla on the nose. The palate isn't as sharp as reviewed, but layers a good amount of spice, caramel, toasty nuttiness, leather and sweet vanilla. The finish is the calling card of this pour with good legs and a rollercoaster of sweet baking spices.