Hooker's House Bourbon - Pinot Barrel finish I will start with the disclaimer that I can see why many would dislike this whiskey; it has many different flavors than the usual bourbon and the wine tannins can confuse things further, especially for those not familiar with those flavors. However, I do not believe there are objective flaws with this whiskey other than the fact that its flavor combinations are polarizing. I happen to really enjoy the weird stuff going on all at once. N: spent peanut shells, maple, bookshelves, and the wood of an old wharf T: herbal, medicinal, thin, digestive herbs, and perhaps juniper. the pinot tannins seem to manifest themselves in this fashion like an Amaro F: dry and tannic... like a temperate-climate grown pinot
About this bottle
Hooker's House Bourbon is named after the infamous General Joseph "Fighting Joe" Hooker who was known to overindulge in both women and whiskey. The bourbon starts out in Kentucky where it is aged for 7 years in charred American oak barrels. It's then sent to California to finish for an additional 9 months in sourced French pinot noir barrels from Schug Winery in Sonoma Valley. This double barreling process, though common for a Scotch, is unique for a bourbon and some consider it misleading. However, its aging in new oak and mash bill of 54% corn meet the requirements for bourbon so it is not mislabeled.
Reviews
Showing the most detailed of 12 parsed reviews.
Almost as much rye as a bourbon. Not a beginner drink. High proof. Nose: Astrigent, incense, Herbal, raisins, nuts, hint of pinot noir aroma. Taste: Very peppery, fruity, spices. Oily and clingy. Bitter tannin and pinot noir aftertaste. How: With water or single ice cube. High proof. Mellows out spiky notes and makes it fruitier.
2016-05-28 Blind tasting against 9 bourbons - "Lovely smell, HORRID taste! Ugh! Kill me. Hope this isn't one of the new bottles I bought"
Sweet nose. Caramel and toffee on the palate with a sweet stone fruit finish. Mellow and smooth overall.
Toasty, smokey flavors with spice. Relatively smooth. Warm finish.
This tastes like a much younger, cheaper whiskey
6 more reviews were collected for this bottle. The longest ones are shown first.
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