Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon (2017)

I got to try this when some kind stranger brought it to a bottle share. The host then offered his 2018, which was also amazing, but not as good as this. I bought my own bottle and this dram is from my own bottle, which is mostly full. Nose: sweet, menthol, cherry, brown sugar, oak, red fruits, caramel, leather, plum - ok, enough nosing, I can't resist tasting this any longer - cinnamon, light bubble gum scent. What a fantastic nose. I love this nose. More cherry, with a spice. Palate: oaky sweet with a gentle burn that allows you to keep it in your mouth for a while, on the nose and on the palate I'm reminded of those jolly rancher lollipops that used to be popular and the flavor goes back and forth between cherry and strawberry. Mmmm this tastes fantastic. Finish: leaves your mouth oily, which I just love. oaky, slight tingle, but that's mostly what I'm getting. The tannins definitely linger for a while, but that's the main taste I'm getting on the finish, with a minor strawberry or cherry note I hate to do this, but I heard if you add some water to this, it'll change and you'll get some more notes, so, while I hesitate to do this, I'm going to add a couple drops (of filtered water from the fridge). Post 3 drops of water notes: omg it's milk chocolate...it still has that rye spice, but it's got an herbal milk chocolate nose now. It's like smelling chocolate gin, if that's a thing. Cherry is coming back. Getting more spice on the finish. Didn't notice much but spice on the palate. There's a bit more tingle to the palate and less of the oak tannins lingering. Nose is kind of a salted cherry milk chocolate. On the palate, post-water, I'm not really picking up much other than the mild spice. Perhaps some very minor herbal notes? Some spicy banana on the nose. Oh my gosh, it's almost like a banana split smell. You have the gentle vanilla (ice cream), banana, and then the cherry and milk chocolate could be the toppings. Arghhh this nose is so good!! Some butterscotch oak on the palate now. Onto the last sip, although I really want to pour another...Mmmm more cherry coming through with vanilla bean sweetness. Man that was so good! I love this bourbon and I think it's my favorite of all time. I have high hopes for the bottle to just keep improving as I drink the bottle down - maybe I should have a second pour........no, I must save it! Be strong! This is so good. I may have ordered two backup bottles.... 96/100 - Backups required

Nose - (w/o water) Dark leather, vanilla, dark oaky caramel, lightly herbal, hint of dried cherries, dark cocoa powder (w/ water) Softens the nose a bit, more fruity/floral versus dark tones, more caramel sweet. Taste - (w/o water) Fruity cinnamon heat, dry, cherry vanilla, dark caramel, cocoa nib bittersweet (w/ water) Light sweet mint, dry, cinnamon spice, sweet vanilla caramels, light cherry. Finish - (w/o water) Linge4ring fruity cinnamon heat, light toasted sweet oak bitter/tannins, dark chocolate cherry, dry (w/ water) More mouth drying somehow, light herbal/minty cherry, light tannic cherry. Score - 85/100 Final Thoughts - This was an interesting one in that on the nose it screamed dark leather, dark fruits, oak, but once it hit the palate, it was something completely different. It had a "dark" vibe to it, but it was subtle and quite pleasant, minus the mouth drying qualities to it. Nice taste & finish throughout and the addition of water did change the dynamic of it, but not by much. It opened up some herbal, almost rye-like notes on the palate, but somehow ended up making it more mouth-drying than it did neat. Regardless, a tasty dram but the mouth-drying nature of it was quite strange. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No

#5 of 6 for the evening with regard to tasting order. I’ve pined for a taste of this - and it did not disappoint. It immediately reminded me of some very good single barrels but with a bit more dustiness and maturity on the nose. The bubblegum and buttered toast are there in spades. The palate is medium thickness in viscosity but is soft and almost playful. There’s zero heat and a burst of Juicy Fruit, chalked candy necklace and a spice almost resembling sandalwood. I could drink this all damn day. Interestingly, it reminds me in ways of the balance achieved with Cream of Kentucky 13y. Profile is quite different, mind you, but the easy going and balanced palate is there. Now Jim Rutledge left four roses in 2015 and this limited edition would be the craft of Brent Elliott, but I would argue there’s a silver lining that carries over at least to this 2017 blend that has Jim’s touch.

Nose: vanilla & caramel as well a a spice I can't quite place but it reminds one of Christmas... Color I find unimportant as it really does not effect my enjoyment of this or any other drink. Taste: very light oil at first, again slight vanilla. most of the flavor drops off for me leaving only burning, an enjoyable burn but still a burn. Adding water is almost a must, just a few drops and it changes completely, the burn takes longer to start letting you enjoy the subtlety longer. All in all it is too subtle for me. I find myself chasing the complexity but never quite catching it.

Not my cup of tea at first. Hot with a ton of spice, but lacks the sweetness of a true bourbon and the nuance of a high rye. I suspect it would go well in an old fashioned but obviously you’re not pulling this bottle off the shelf for that. This gets significantly better as it opens up. The sweetness intensifies, the spice mellows into rich cinnamon, warm oak, black pepper and chocolate. The finish is medium at best.

It has a sweet birth with notes of dark fruit, stewed fruit, sweet vanilla, soft oak, a hint of menthol, allspice & vanilla bean; while a rich life adds notes of caramel, oiled orange sweets, hints of raspberry, cherry, milk chocolate, butterscotch & charred oak. that led to a long death with hints of brown sugar, ginger, spicy, clove & cinnamon. September 2018 / January 2019 / August 2022