Hirsch The Horizon Straight Bourbon (Batch AAH0320)

Hirsch The Horizon (Blend of 6'ish year MGP rye mash bills 75/21/4 and 60/36/4) APPEARANCE: Love the Flask Shaped Bottle and Labeling. Unique without being Tacky or Kitschy. Nice Burnt Orange color. NOSE: Buttered Corn Bread, Rye Spice, and Oak. Mostly Savory, but hints of Vanilla Bean and Brown Sugar. A little Alcohol Sting. Just okay. NEAT: A lot Sweeter than the nose would suggest. Enters very Sweet with Lots of Oak, Vanilla, and Pink Bubblegum up front. Dry Cornbread and Tingly Rye Spice dominates the Mid-Palate and Finish. Decent building KY Hug with heat blooming in the back of the throat and upper chest. Drying Slightly Tannic Oak and Rye Spice coat and layer the palate. SPLASH: A few drops of water bring BIG changes. Nose gets a hint of chewable Baby Aspirin? Rye really dominates the palate now. Wintergreen, Eucalyptus, Clove, Black Licorice, Varnished Oak. That taste you get chewing on the Lacing of your baseball glove between pitches. Very Interesting. The coating becomes Sweet Mint and those Edible Flowers they use as garnish at those quirky, cool restaurants. Verdict: A solid 4. Very Good. Different. Clingy. Sweet. The Aftertaste lasts long after the glencairn is empty. Changes drastically with a few drops of water. One of the rare Bourbons where the taste drastically outperforms the nose. I knew absolutely nothing about this when I spied it on the shelf, but the label was very open about what was in the bottle and I thought $40 was decent VFM for 6'ish year old MGP. I definitely think it slots in well with some of my other favorite $40 bottles like HMcK10, Longbranch, MM46, Knob Creek, etc. Looking forward to spending some more time with this one and will definitely buy again if I see it.

Dark amber Nose: ethanol and cherries First sip: Cherries, caramel, smoky vanilla. Sweet. Easy- very little burn. After sitting: not much change. Maybe a little more cinnamon spice on the back end. With water: nose becomes heavy vanilla, and ethanol disappears. Notes of black pepper, black tea and oak with a slight floral quality appear. I thought water would ruin it because it’s not spicy to begin with, but it opens up a whole new set of notes. Less sweet with water. Medium finish with slight toffee notes. For $35, this drinks like a much more expensive, older bourbon. A steal at this price point. A good everyday sipper. If you like spicier high ABV bourbons, you might find this one a little weak- but I feel like it has just enough spice without overwhelming you with burn.

Saw this one appear in my grocery store's shelf about a week ago, and it intrigued me. After reading the positive review here, I decided to pull the trigger... First pour and I'm already a fan. Sweet but spicy, too. I'll attribute that to the fairly high rye % in the two mash bills. I generally don't like high rye bourbon, but this is an exception. Tastes more expensive than its price point. 7/9: Second pour... Like this even more. What drives me crazy about trying new Bourbons is not being able to pin point WHAT it is I'm tasting. Maybe it's the rye/spice... maybe be I'm a closet rye fan. Now, I want to try the other Hirsch offering (offerings?), if I can find it.

The palate is soft and starts with banana bread, dark chocolate, raw oats, roasted peanuts and slight oak and caramel. It is quite intriguing for a bourbon and very inviting. Each smell leaves you wanting to go in again to decipher what you’re getting. It is reminiscent of Heaven Hill’s nuttiness but more roasted, earthier. The palate is just as soft yet fills the mouth with roasted peanuts with a slight rye spiciness tingling the mouth ever so slightly. Not much else comes out other than some subdued oak and vanilla, but is still oddly satisfying to sip on. The finish medium short with the entire palate falling off other than some lingering pepperiness.

First pour from bottle. Immediate buttery sweet corn, vanilla, and some fruitiness. Nose opens up to darker caramel and more vanilla, orange, and baking spice. Late there is a touch of a milk cocoa note. Taste- Begins with a buttery, corn, morphing into some alcohol heat, vanilla to butter caramel, ending on sweet corn and chocolate notes and a moderate finish. Later tastes on this bottle which was a new open have been better with more opening up of the cocoa notes and more sweetness. There is a bit of nuance on this dram, although I would prefer some more punch behind the whiskey. Let this one breathe to have a unique chocolate whiskey experience.

Definitely not bad but also an odd flavor. I get stale now and plenty mixed with fennel seeds, like they set out at Indian restaurants. Bit of a burn for 92 proof. Once your mindset is prepared for this experience, it is pleasant. But if you're in the mood for a more "traditional" flavor, this one might catch you off guard.