Another evening, more reviews.
Rogue Distilling tasting samples, with rogue famously being an Oregon brewery, they been distilling since about 2003. They do distillations of all sorts of mash but it does lean towards malt somewhat.
Rogue Dead Guy Whiskey, 40%
Smells malty with woody caramelized bananas as is fairly typical with American beer-adjacent whiskeys. Mineral and metal forward palate with slightly bitter wood notes. Aftertaste is more bitter metal, like tin water. Comparably low proof, this isn’t offensive but just barely drinkable. Don’t bother.
Score: D-
Rogue Original Single Malt, 40%
Nose is perfume-forward and very approachable. Still some plantains/bananas but it’s now with tropical punch. Rather pleasant, if un-inspiring malty fruity palate, still slightly bitter but not in a bad way, more of a charred tropical fruits. Somewhat bitter aftertaste which is unfortunate. This is a conundrum overall, as I can see some potential in this but low proof and overwhelming bitter note compared to other flavors is wrecking the experience. Probably worth a try but not a bottle. Honestly, it’s also fundamentally too young to have any real complexity and possibly with too short of a fermentation process.
Score: C
Rogue Cherry Single Barrel Project. 46%
And now for something different. Not going to look up details, but probably some sort of collaboration between distillery and a cooperage to use cherry wood casks which aren’t usually done. Not going to lie, the nose is… odd. Best I can describe is ‘really burnt cherry’. It’s nearly acrid with char and some smoke, almost-but-not-quite bordering on my least favorite ‘rubber’ notes but thankfully pulled back by some cherry. The palate reminds me of a mix between Dead Guy Whiskey with some cherry added in to amp up the palate and the aftertaste which unbelievably… works. The palate is flavorful and the aftertaste is long and is quite interesting with more burnt woody cherry notes. I wonder if there’s a bit of smoked barley in the mash here as there’s a decently prominent smoke (not peat) notes that I’m getting. Extremely interesting, this is also certainly quite unique and is not for everyone, but well worth trying for the complexity of cherry flavors alone. Fans of Manhattan cocktails should apply and would be quite pleased with this. In fact this is a lot like a Manhattan without bitters and done with a mellow whiskey instead of rye. I’d certainly have it as a food pairing with smoked duck or red meat; though solo it’s somewhat lacking.
Score: C+
Rogue Oregon Rye Malt, 42.5%
So this is about 51% malted rye, the rest is some mix of other grains. The nose is actually quite breathing the insides of a freshly baked rye bread, a bit of a steamy, savory, rye-ness. The palate falls apart… this is sorta nutty water. More of the same nutty water on the aftertaste. This should be like 60% abv… then we’d talk. at 42.5% it is water! No, just no… Just shy or drain pour for the sample, and I would not get or even consider keeping the bottle. Maybe a mixer? But there are so many better mixers. This isn’t it.
Score: D-
Rogue Rolling Thunder Stout Whiskey, 58.13%
Perhaps something a little special, or at least higher proof. This is quite dark in the glass, with pretty solid chestnut coloring. Nose is leathery wood with some unfortunate rubber notes balanced off by solid alcohol kick. This solidly evokes wood varnish on the nose for me. The palate is resinous wood, quite thick and with a nearly bitter streak of flavor though it that tastes almost like concentrated hops. Still some rubbery notes distract from otherwise exceptional palate. The aftertaste is drying with some woody bitterness and yet again a bit of chocolate or coffee or hops streak through it. I quite like the aftertaste. It’s an interesting one that reminds me somewhat of a russian imperial stout that’s been fortified into oblivion while keeping its characteristic thickness and bitterness. Easily my favorite of the Rogue’s tasting samples lineup. Not for everyone, but fans of russian imperial stouts are welcome to apply and won’t be disappointed.
Some Background: https://whiskeyrevie … iskey-review-041620/
Score: B
Overall Rogue: With two D- (bordering on F) scores and overall mediocre showing I wouldn’t recommend diving into Rogue’s regular lineup with high expectations. Their special editions and higher proof stuff is perhaps something to consider long term and they are passionate about their craft which gives a bit of a notch up for them in my book. But at the end of the day… If it’s not Rogue’s high proof stuff, avoid it… low proof and younger age do not mix well.
Old Fitzgerald, 15, Bottled-in-Bond, 2019, 50%
A batched release from Heaven Hill that’s highly sought after. This is the ‘Pappy’ to Larceny with which they share mash bill of 68% corn, 20% wheat and 12% malted barley and stills. With Old Fitz being hand-selected casks and Larceny being everything else. Very familiar Heaven Hill toasted corn caramel and woody rye spice on the nose bordering on sweet wood resin. That nose is deliciously luxurious. Palate is woody, sweet and spicy while being finely balanced and leaning towards bitey spice. Almost subdued coming in, this explodes with secondary flavors after few seconds in the mouth. Long woody and spicy sweet aftertaste that lasts for a while. Overall: okay folks, this stuff is a real deal. The slightly subdued initial palate primary flavors are the only real stumble here and it’s one of those that I’d love to have again and again. A finely refined, delicious, well balanced, and dangerously drinkable. Just short of earning a WOW from me, this is right on the edge of amazing. Value… well that’s where we’re going to have a problem since all these are snagged on sight to be sold in secondary pricing and are totally bonkers on price. With MSRP of $150, I’d still say it’s about average or even low on value, but with very distinct decanter-like bottle this is barely worth it at or below MSRP if only for the unique display on your shelf and with quite tasty wheated bourbon being extra. Just like Pappy, the pricing is mostly hype and this isn’t a magical elixir of the gods, but just a bourbon, even if it is quite good.
Score: A-
Old Carter Single Cask 13 years old, Cask #95. 59.2%
Ah Old Carter whiskey. From their bourbon, to their American whiskey all overpriced. Okay seriously $180+ bottles with no transparency? No! Granted some of them are amazing. I’m looking at your Bourbon Batch 3 and 5… Still… Way pricy to get blindly. My whining aside. I got a Single Cask of 13 years. And my pretty solid guess is that this is Barton-sourced. Also to the best of my knowledge this is cask #95 from K&L Wines. Nose is full strength sweet corn caramel with the huge dollop of perfume mixed in. Sweet, flowery, and slightly woody the nose is filled with sugar, chocolate, caramel, and vanilla, yet not too spicy but mellow instead. Palate is sweet corn caramel, some wood and spices but overall more gentle bourbon palate. Very pleasant bourbon, corn and wood aftertaste that leans towards sweetness with subdued spice and a bit of wood notes at the very end. Overall: okay, yet again this is fancy Barton full proof a complex one to be sure but still a Barton full proof store pick essentially… Is it tasty? Yes, quite tasty indeed and a good one to contemplate on. Is it special-tasty? That one is up to each individual palate! Value: With list price of $210… This is a terrible value. Full stop.
https://www.klwines.com/p/i?i=1512935
Score: B+
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Scoring Breakdown: https://www.aerin.or … age=scores_breakdown