Stranahan's Sherry Cask

I’ve been revisiting some bottles that I bought earlier in my whiskey drinking days and I was still living in Colorado. This special bottle was a going away gift from an old friend right before I came down to Texas. We had some good times at the Stranahans distillery in Denver. I’m not sure if they still do this, but when they were first starting up, you could sign up to go fill bottles for a day on a Saturday, and as compensation they’d send you home with a free bottle. Good times! This particular bottle was from their first batch of sherry cask finishing. As with any finishing, it takes several batches to dial in just how long you let it cook in the sherry casks. This first batch was a bit overdone, with the sherry overpowering the whisky a bit too much. Fortunately, I like Stranahans profile of oily brown sugar and grilled peaches, and that still comes through on the palate once the sherry calms down. Finish is as long and warming as you’d expect. I’m sure that the folks at Stranahans have dialed in their finishing process by now. Value isn’t great at $92, but it’s downright affordable when stacked against other sherry finished American Single Malts from other heavy hitters like Westland or Balcones. Either way, a tasty bottle and a fun trip down memory lane. The best bottles aren’t always the top shelf pours, bit rather the ones you share with friends and associate happy memories with. Cheers!

I enjoyed the Blue Peak and love sherried scotch so this seemed like no brainer. Neat the nose is strawberry cheesecake, juicy fruit gum, malt with a touch of ginger and some light barrel oak. Not super deep but ethanol is nowhere. Palate is loaded with rich sherry fruits. Malt, barrel and spice are there but take a back seat in this American sherry bomb. Flavors are complete but not overly dense. Finish tails off the sweet dark fruit with malty barrel that dries out slightly along with the zesty ginger. The new make is evident in this high quality American single malt but can it compete with Scotland. I say yes, it does display some youth and sharpness but overall delivers a delicious malt. There are single malt scotches I would take over this in the sherry range but if you like Stranahan's go ahead and buy this its good stuff.............86/100...This is better than Blue Peak but the value knocks it down

I really wanted to like this whiskey. I’ve held off longer than usual to give a review because when I previously tasted this, it burned my esophagus and upset my stomach, every time. But, I just never gave up hope! This bottle has about 1/4 left. Uncertain how long open, perhaps about 1 year. It’s still pretty rough, not refined by any stretch of the imagination, but it does have a little charm. Nose: Dried and fresh red fruit, malt and caramel notes are strong, plus some nuts and a little ethanol. Palate: A little bite on entry, it’s viscous and a bit creamy with more fruit, malt and caramel, plus a little baking spices. Finish: Long, spicy and slightly bitter.

Beautiful rosy liquid, light coating in the glass. On the nose, dark red wine and fruit with a little vanilla oak--the full Porto profile. Charred grain and port fill the mouth, then shifts to candied fruit, burnt sugar, chewy tannic leather, and dry cocca and oak smoke. Sweet quickly disappears and dry, spicy, astringent mouthfeel lingers. I like port and wine barreled whiskeys, but this is one of the strongest Porto flavored ones I've had. Maybe too overpowering. Cask strength is good, but this just feels young. Going to revisit this over time and with a little ice to see if/how it opens up.

Big nose of juicy papaya, toffee, dried apricots, and rum-soaked raisins. First thought was "Did they empty the sherry barrels first?" Taste is more brown and purple, for lack of a better word. Toasted almonds, more of the raisins, some sweet tobacco, dried prunes. It's definitely sweet on the palate but not nearly as syrupy as I expected with just the nose. There is a slight bit of astringency on the finish but not enough to detract; more than that, it feels like it cleanses your mouth of too much sweetness. It's too bad I don't smoke cigars anymore; it would make for a nice pair.

This was a great surprise. I didn’t know Colorado would have Single Malts, let alone good ones. This one greets you with a cherry creamy pie, strawberry shortcake vibe. It’s a great bouquet that follows a bit of a different experience on the palate. There’s still some sweetness there, but there’s also the flavors of pine wood, wet oak trees in there. It’s like being out in the wood forest having a cherry pie. It’s another great dessert whiskey. Great character and flavors!