Forager's Keep 26 Year

This year for the holidays I’m going to try a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoals Dec. 26 I am concerned. I am concerned because to date, Orphan Barrel has never disappointed me. Also to date, I have been unable to say that fact about any other distillery. This never mattered until today, because I fully expected Entrapment to disappoint me yesterday, and with nothing remaining in their portfolio except things I’ve already enjoyed and other bourbons which I’m likely to enjoy should I ever get them, that makes this drink the last true trial I expect Orphan Barrel to go though to fully win my heart. Bottom of the ninth, 2 outs, bases loaded. Kicker is lining up for the game winner. Other sports metaphors. Nose is grainy. I get fresh bread, bit of hay. Standard scotch smells, but well done here. Body comes in very smoothly, with fig, red grapes, and black pepper flavors. Finish is juicy. Low burn, sweet cucumber favor. Very much like drinking a glass of that stuff in the lobbies of fancy hotels. So for starters, I love this scotch. This is absurdly smooth. Orphan Barrel has done it again delivering a fantastic whisky. That means... so far, they are the only group that have yet to produce one thing I don’t like. (Please don’t make an Forged Oak Sting, now that I’ve said that. Nor a Barterhouse Bourbon Cream. I mean it. Doncha do it.) And once again, I feel fully incapable of judging this guy with the same degree of confidence that I do when I try bourbon. I have to punt once more and say: I love this scotch. If you love scotch, you should try to experience it somehow. Is it worth 1.8181 (repeating, of course) Balvenie 21-year Portwoods? Not in my opinion. I’ve also never had the pleasure of trying an absurdly priced Macallan 25 year. This is a 26 year. I’m owning this as a shortcoming: as a scotch dabbler, I’m punting on the value/dollar argument. #thisistasty #youshouldtryitifafriendhasoneandpossiblybuyoneifyouhavetheextracash,whichwouldbeimpressiveespeciallysincechristmasjustpassedandmostofusarerecoveringfinanciallyfromthecommercializedversionofwintersolstice ‘Tis the season. I don’t know if I actually have 5 more new whiskeys lined up, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments.

The nose has some caramelized malt notes, coconut, and orange peel. This has a really wonderful flavor - it's bursting with wood spice, there's pepper, but much more than that there is loads of dried ground ginger, and that lingers from start to very long finish. It's almost too spicy, but is as spicy as can be without crossing that line. There is some wood in the body and finish, but it's far less woody than I was expecting after 26 years in a barrel. I can, surprisingly, still pick up some pleasant, malty barley notes. This is also quite oily and has a robust, rich body behind it. This is something special, I'd recommend grabbing a bottle if you can find it without an exorbitant markup.

Black licorice was the main takeaway immediately, along with an intense alcohol burn. As it faded, hazelnuts and brown butter came through. Adding a bit of ice, tamed the alcohol and brought out the maple syrup and dried fruit. After 6 years of not drinking, this was great to come back to, because it confirmed my decision to quit. Black licorice is gross.

Very sweet maple, butterscotch. Finish is surprisingly hot on the first couple sips but smooths out. Lightly peaty, oak, pepper, and just rich as hell. This is phenomenal and tastes like it spent 26 years developing.

Solid single malt with heat and peat but not hot nor harsh. Flavor is smooth and lasts. It has the oily taste of turpentine that lingers long past the finish

Strong whisky notes, not as smooth as I was expecting. In my opinion not worth the price. Much better options out there.