January 7th, 2011

Review: Angel’s Envy

John Hansell

Angel’s Envy, 43.3%, $46

Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey finished in a port pipe. This is veteran master distiller Lincoln Henderson’s newest creation, and it’s a beauty. Richly textured, silky, and well-rounded, with ripe berried fruits, candied tangerine, light toffee, maple syrup, and creamy vanilla, sprinkled with spice (cinnamon, hint of mint). Smooth, silky finish, and dangerously drinkable! The port pipe notes dovetail perfectly. Lovely just the way it is, but it’s begging for a cigar. My only gripe: why not 45 or 50% ABV? But I’m splitting hairs. I really enjoy this stuff!

Advanced Malt Advocate magazine rating: 93

Category: Bourbon,New Releases,Reviews Tags: 43 Comments

January 6th, 2011

Review: Buffalo Trace Antique Collection (2010 Release)

John Hansell

I think this might be the best annual release of these five whiskeys so far. All are classics, or very close to it.

96 William Larue Weller, 63.3%, $70

Very similar to last year’s release. (A good thing, since it was wonderful!) Very smooth, with layered sweetness (toffee, fig cake, nougat, maple syrup), dark fruit (black raspberry, blueberry), cinnamon, and polished oak on the finish. A whisky of elegance and sophistication.

95 Sazerac Rye, 18 year old, 45%, $70

This was my second lowest rated whiskey from the 2009 Collection (a 91 rating). This one is an impressive whiskey, and an improvement from last year. It’s soft (for a straight rye), well rounded, and easy to embrace, with tamed spice (cinnamon, mint, vanilla, mocha), nougat, toffee, fruit (bramble, subtle citrus), subtle date, and polished leather on the finish. Buffalo Trace is playing a shell game with this aged rye (being stored in stainless steel tanks over the past several years until new stocks mature), but in this instance there seems to be a prize under every shell. Well done!

94 George T. Stagg, 71.5%, $70

Very close to last year’s release in personality, with great balance between the sweetness, spice, and fruit. Nicely structured, with clearly defined notes of toffee, molasses, cinnamon, vanilla bean, dried citrus, brittle mint, roasted nuts, tobacco, and polished leather on the finish. A great value too, considering it’s almost the equivalent of two bottles of bourbon.

93 Thomas H. Handy Rye, 63.45%, $70

One of the best Handy offerings yet. Very vibrant with dynamic spice (firm mint, warming cinnamon, allspice, hint of clove) and lush fruit (citrus, orchard fruit, golden raisin, brandy, and teasing coconut), all tamed by a bed of soothing caramel and honey. It’s not easy for a whisky to come across as excitingly youthful, yet nicely matured. It’s a difficult balance to achieve, and this whiskey finds that balance.

93 Eagle Rare, 17 year old, 45%, $70

The only setback from last year’s Antique Collection release, when I rated it an 84 because it was showing too much wood (especially compared to the 2007-2008 releases). The 2010 release is back on track, with great balance, and showing very traditional notes of vanilla toffee, rummy molasses, dusty corn, soft summer fruit, and a sprinkling of spice (cinnamon, mint, cocoa), with oak resin to balance out the sweet notes.

Category: Bourbon,New Releases,Reviews,Rye whiskey Tags: 72 Comments

January 5th, 2011

Review: Aberlour 18 year old

John Hansell

Aberlour, 18 year old, 43%, $100

There was an Aberlour 18 on the market for a spell several years ago, aged in sherry casks, that I really enjoyed. Now we have this new 18 year old expression. There are big shoes to fill, and this whisky fills them quite nicely. Once again, the sherry is prominent throughout, with its lush fruit, velvety texture, and sweet demeanor. But it’s not cloying or sappy — the sherry blends in nicely with the rest of the flavors. Ripe orange, apricot preserve, peach cobbler, chocolate-covered caramel, and toffee, with a sprinkling of cinnamon and cocoa. Rich, silky smooth, satisfying finish. Very impressive. The Aberlour 18 year old’s reputation remains intact!

Advanced Malt Advocate magazine rating: 91

Category: New Releases,Reviews,Scotch whisky Tags: 24 Comments

January 4th, 2011

Review: The Glenlivet Founder’s Reserve

John Hansell

 

As promised, this is the first of a series of weekday reviews throughout the month of January.

The Glenlivet “Founder’s Reserve,” 55.6%, $375

A special bottling to celebrate a major distillery expansion in 2010. So nice to see this whisky bottled at cask strength and not chill-filtered. Silky smooth, velvety texture. Creamy sweet foundation of vanilla fudge and caramel coated almond. Plenty of fruit too (golden raisin, honeyed peach, ripe nectarine, hint of banana bread). Richly textured, good weight (but not cloying), and the flavors combine seamlessly. A celebratory whisky indeed.

Advanced Malt Advocate rating: 92

Category: New Releases,Reviews,Scotch whisky Tags: 26 Comments

January 1st, 2011

A downside to drinking, and what I’m going to do about it.

John Hansell

I enjoy life. I love drinking (that includes good beer and wine), and I love food. I also exercise regularly to keep from gaining weight. But, in 2010, I found myself losing this battle. It was a combination of factors: knee surgery in the spring, lots of travel for business in the fall, the stress of selling our business,  a slowing metabolism, rotating beers on tap at home, an endless supply of other great things to drink, and then the holidays and all the parties.

I’m not grossly overweight, but what I always jokingly refer to as the “five pounds of fun” around my waist has now turned into ten pounds of fun. It’s beginning to not be funny anymore. I either have to lose weight or buy a completely new set of clothes. (And I hate shopping.)

So, the lesser (and better) of the two evils is to cut the weight. This isn’t one of those New Year’s resolutions. The timing is mostly coincidental. I just finished reviewing all my whiskies for the Buyer’s Guide in the next issue of Malt Advocate, all those holiday parties are over, and I’m not traveling anywhere until February 8th, when my wife Amy and I are going on vacation. It’s time to right my wrongs of the past year, and then continue my usually balanced lifestyle after that.

So, here’s what I am going to do. I always here doctors say that it’s not healthy losing more than two pounds in one week, so I have set a goal of losing 10 pounds over the next five weeks. That’s 10 pounds by February 5th.

To jump start this, I’m going to do something I haven’t done in a long while: no booze for the first 20 days! Because of my whisky and beer review schedule, there’s only a few times throughout the year where this would even be a possibility for me. There is a break in my tasting schedule right now, and I’m going to take advantage of it.

Why 20 days? On January 20th, I’m going into New York for an editorial meeting with the editors of Wine Spectator and Cigar Aficionado magazines, and I have this feeling there just might be a nice bottle of wine (and perhaps a good cigar) enjoyed by all before the day is over. That’s something I don’t want to miss out on.

Normally this is something I would just do and not even tell anyone. My personal life is just that: personal. Why spill my guts here on WDJK? Well, if I am dealing with this issue, I’m willing to bet some of you are too.

If so, I invite you to join me.

Which brings me to another topic: my relationship with drinking. Fortunately, I never felt like I needed a drink. (If I did, I would stop drinking.) It’s just something I enjoy and look forward to. I believe it was Steve Beaumont, one of our excellent writers and a guy with great perspective, who likened his relationship with drinking to a appreciating a fine painting on his wall. He certainly doesn’t need the painting, but if it weren’t there he would miss it–and his day might be the lesser for it.

That’s how I’m going to feel for the next 20 days.

Category: Health-related issues,Holidays,Opinions,Ramblings,Writers 68 Comments

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