Old WM. Tarr Manchester Reserve

A brand re-birth. I was lucky enough to try a very generous pour of this after flipping the bottle around and examine if the label. My understanding is that this particular blend was backed by an investment from the University of Kentucky Football Head Coach Mark Stoops. I would like to pause for a moment and co sister how unbelievable this mans bourbon collection must be. A head football coach in the SEC who likes bourbon enough to invest in it. Coach Stoops, please let’s share a few pours some day if you ever read this. Moving on, the Distillery is headquartered in Lexington, KY but bottling appears to occur in Bardstown, KY. The blend is that of a KY bourbon and rye, aged separately for 7 and 8 years before marriage and bottling. The nose was largely sweet with baked apple pie, slight lemon and chocolate cake. The mouthfeel was reasonable, not thin but not heavy. I did get a small initial bite of heat that faded quickly into a medium warm finish. The palate was much like the nose. Sweet bourbon flavors up front with caramel and green apple that transitioned nicely mid-palate to more rye-cocoa sweetness with a bit of praline that lates into the finish. It reminds me of a High West (MGP) Bourye. It’s a bourbon:rye blend and while the Bourye is spicier with some MGP dill thrown in this was more sweet overall. Next kicker, Bourye also commands $80-90. This is said to be likewise limited (30k bottles) and is undoubtedly sourced, presumably all KY but the details need some deconstructing. It appears that the 7y bourbon is 75/13/12 which could be Beam or Turkey. Interestingly this only makes up 10% of the blend. The other 90% is likely Turkey or HH at 37/51/12. Do you like sweet ryes? Do you like wild turkey? If so, this might be a good purchase. There’s not much to dislike and while I could complain about mouthfeel not being heavy, the finish being medium and the lack of wood and earth notes I suspect most who try this will like it. It likely won’t empress your snobby enthusiast friends but is approachable and will win over most.

My first taste of the new year. I have been anticipating this one and reading about it. Bourbon Obsessed Lexington has the history spot on. As a bourbon guy that likes some ryes, I am most intrigued as it is blended from both with the largest component (90)% being rye. The distillery (if you can call it that) says all whiskey is sourced in Kentucky but won't say any more. The age of the juice and stated mash bill components on the label make the rye Wild Turkey juice. Hard to say on the Bourbon part but I'm gonna guess Heaven Hill as it was bottled in Bardstown. So I sipped and sniffed it neat through the early afternoon. Hard to believe it's 114 proof as there is only a faint whiff of ethanol. The nose is very shy, the color light and the body thin. The nose builds slightly with typical rye spiciness and a touch of caramel coming in. Butterscotch is more prominent on the palate with some green apple and rye spice coming in. I find this one better on ice as the nose is much more alive. It's a nice easy enjoyable sipper. But at 80 it should be. I like it but it will be my only bottle. A friend said he enjoyed but was glad to try mine and will not seek it out

Nose- Pleasantly sweet, heavy cinnamon/brown sugar Less oak presence than what I had expected, but if you dig it is there Smell very much reminds me of a coffee cake, maybe snickerdoodle cookie Very beginning of the smell, before the cinnamon spice notes take over, there is a hit of something reminiscent of sweet tea? Taste- Very sweet up front. Heavy heavy brown sugar/caramel. So immediately sweet that I actually would have thought maybe it was a wheated bourbon like Weller. As the initial palate fades, there is a big hit of a vanilla cream note. The immediate taste upon swallow is potent oak, followed up by the same nutmeg/cinnamon/brown sugar as the nose. The finish includes a long-lingering heat that seems to coat my entire mouth, mostly toward the back of the palate. Probably one of the longest-lasting finishes I've had in a whiskey thus far, very impressive for "only" 114 proof. Drinks much lower proof than the 114 suggested by the bottle. If I had to guess when trying it, I'd have put it somewhere around a bottled in bond, 100 proof. Overall -- 8/10 very, very good. Would seek out if in an area where it was available.

Brought to Cali by Austin and given to me as a Christmas gift. Sweet up front. Quite delicious. Thank you Austin!

Light color with thin legs Caramel nose Caramel palate Short finish

Maple and brown sugar