Woodford Reserve Wheat Whiskey

I've known about Woodford Reserve Wheat Whiskey for a while and have always wanted a taste but always had something I wanted more. Whelp, today's the day. The nose is so soft and light, you REALLY have to dig deep in there to get the scents out of it. But once you do, there's an almost dessert with warm apple cider quality about it. Caramel, chocolate and hot apple cider with a cinnamon stick brings back memories of having dessert in front of a fireplace. Speaking of fireplace, if you dig deep enough there is just a kiss of tannic oak in there, too. The palate has a really unique taste I've never quite had in whiskey. Vanilla and oak are slightly present but I get really odd but oddly satisfying Andes chocolate mint thing happening mid-taste. And it turns out to be the predominant flavor profile. The finish dries up in a more classical sense, with the tannic oak making a comeback from the nose. Dark chocolate and peppercorns join the mix, too. What an incredibly interesting whiskey. It's so different that I can't really say if its good or not because I don't have a standard to judge this against. So I'm just going to stick this with an agreeable 3.5 and suggest you try some for something incredibly unique.

You don't often read the words "Kentucky Straight WHEAT whiskey". It gets specially unexpected from a renowned distillery like Woodford Reserve. Of course, the mashbill here is mostly wheat (more than 51%), and that is why it gets that name. This very interesting release from Woodford, is bottled at 45.2%abv. On the nose, i get notes of rice, paper, yeast, bread. It is like a yellow apple infusion; red fruits. After letting it breath, i get creamy Gelatto Ice cream. After a couple of sips i get a nice burnt caramel like crème brulèè. On the palate, dulce de leche and "Brazo Gitano" which is a dry dulce de leche roll with flour and impalpable sugar. Honey, hay and some spices that clearly come from the alcohol. Aftertaste was not very good. It feels a little young and rough; it has a powerful bite. Honey and hay. Overall, in my humble opinion, the experiment has failed. There is not much to see here, the flavors feel underdevolped. This is one whisky i am glad i have had before some of you do, since i can give you a heads up, for you to pass on this one. My score for it is 68 over 100.

On the nose, vanilla takes the immediate note, followed by oak and spiciness from the rye and barley mash. Peanut shells, and semi sweet dark chocolate are also present. Tasting notes include brown sugar, and vanilla that coat the palate. Spices fill the back of the throat but do not overwhelm. Their is a musty note also present that is slightly off-putting. The finish is rather long which was unexpected due to the rather low proof. I am a massive fan of wheated bourbons, but the mash bill here may have too much barley and not enough corn giving it a an astringency and mustiness. Interesting, but not as good as the standard Woodford bourbon and far behind the Double Oaked offering. Nose: 3/5 Taste: 3/5 Overall 3/5 Repurchase: No Type: Daily Drinker/Mixer

The nose is gentle with notes of charred oak, smoke, nuts, with vanilla and a slight bit of caramel eventually making their way out. Its fairly mild, but you can get lost in how different this is from other Woodford whiskies and even other wheat whiskies. The palate is somewhat dry and starts with a big burst of spice lighting up the tongue and front of the mouth. It is somewhat unbalanced by being so spice forward, but there are still smoother notes of vanilla and a bit of astringent cherry in the background. The finish is medium with lingering notes of spice and cherry. This is a nice experience, but the balance isn't quite there to make it memorable.

We'll call this nose.... tickley. Not much there. I think it's that way because you have to stick your nose all the way in there before anything shows up. When it does, bit of cinnamon, bit of vegetation. And that's about it. The taste is.... fine. Baking spices, touch of vanilla, maybe some oak. It also does this weird thing I've only ever found with Balvenie where all flavor is in a circle round your palate, and there's a sort of hole in the middle of your taste buds. And yet I like it. Is it special, no. Is it memorable, no. But it does what it sets out to do. And Woodford is always reliable to be decent. Don't let its star rating put you off.

Rested about ~20-30 minutes. Nose: sweet, some fruits, maybe a touch of vanilla pudding, notes of almond extract, small hint of oak Palate: early on the first thing I noticed was a super thin mouthfeel; it’s virtually absent. Some cinnamon-apples. The longer this sat, the nuttier it got — primarily, almonds on the nose and into the palate. Finish: little bit of bite on the the end, but overall it stayed pretty sweet I won’t grab another bottle. Might make a good mixer. Happy Labor Day!