Regular readers might have noticed that Whiskey Wednesday has been absent here over the past few weeks. Despite four negative COVID tests, I’ve been down for almost a month with some mystery virus that did indeed completely take away my sense of smell, and thus probably 90 percent of taste. Like “stick my nose in a tub of Vick’s Vapor Rub to check and smell nothing” bad. So it was not an opportune time to be reviewing whiskeys. It would have been unfair to the talented distillers to share my observations that the sample smelled like um … glass and tasted like public swimming pool water. Fortunately, I’ve pretty much shaken the sickness, and smell and taste are back, baby! (Right before I would have called my insurance broker to inquire if I was eligible to collect on the disability insurance I’ve been paying for over the past few decades.)
So without further ado, here’s what I’ve been drinking. (And it sure has been fun playing catchup on my review shelf!)
Some of these “new” products are actually re-releases of previous products, but they’re still notable. The first one is a new product, though — the latest product from Sweeten’s Cove Spirits. Following the release of their award-winning, more affordable Kennessee Whiskey, the Tennessee-based spirits company has returned to the premium realm with their new Sweeten’s Cove 22 Tennessee Whiskey, a blend of four different Tennessee bourbons, aged 10, eight, six and five years. After talented distiller/blender Marianne Eaves came up with the proper ratio and recipe for the final product, it was finished in Scotch whisky casks from the Speyside region of Scotland and then bottled at 114 proof. This decision is a nice nod to Scotland as a home to both great whisky and golf, the inspirations for Sweeten's Cove Spirits.
Although the whiskey itself is not peated, the malty, honey character does come through from the barrels, and it’s a delightful addition to what is already a very nice spirit. The base whiskey exhibits all the vanilla, oak and caramel you’d want from a Tennessee whiskey, and even with the addition of some older juice, it’s not at all tannic.
To celebrate the release of Sweeten’s 22, representatives snuck down to the Sweeten’s Cove Golf Club in South Pittsburg to surprise the golfers who had been lucky enough to score tee times for that day with a full Scottish breakfast and a wee dram of the new product. I was supposed to be on hand to witness their delight, but damned virus! Sweeten’s 22 will be a very limited release — about 2,000 cases nationwide — and it will retail for around $200 a bottle. But this is a very special bottle that shan’t pass this way again, so if you see some, I’m guessing you won’t be disappointed.
George Dickel has dipped into its vaults for some re-releases that are also worth your attention. The first is a new (old) version of their 17-year old Reserve Tennessee Whisky. Seventeen years is a favorite sweet spot from Dickel products and has previously been released in 2016 in a 375-milliliter half-bottle edition available only at the distillery and as part of the distillery’s Cascade Moon series of specialty products selected by head distiller Nicole Austin.
This particular release comes in a full-sized 750-milliliter bottle, which retails for $250 per bottle. Bottled at a slightly elevated proof level of 92, this spirit is definitely a sipper, best enjoyed neat or over a single ice cube. It’s much too complex and oak-forward to play nice in a cocktail, despite the fact that 92 proof is just about the perfect ABV for mixing.Â
But you wouldn’t want to muddle the dark fruit and vanilla aromas and long finish of cedar and menthol with any mixers, so try it straight up. This whiskey will not show up in many markets, but Middle Tennessee is lucky enough to be in Dickel’s backyard, so I’m saying there’s a chance! If you find some, buy some.
The second re-release from Dickel is a small amount of an acclaimed collaboration with Denver-based Leopold Bros. I wrote about the unique George Dickel x Leopold Bros Collaboration Blend last year, and I still think it’s one of the most interesting spirits I tasted in 2021. While the spirit in the bottle is ostensibly the same as last year’s release, the barrels that Nicole Austin and Todd Leopold select definitely exhibit different characteristics, making every bottle unique. Last year’s allotment sold out quickly, but the two distilleries were wise enough to set some back for holiday gifting this year.
A blend of some rye whiskey that Dickel tried as an experimental project a few years back and rye from Todd Leopold’s historic three-chamber still that harkens back to manufacturing methods and styles of the early 20th century, this is unlike anything you’ve probably ever tasted before. (Unless you scored some last year.) At $109.99 a bottle, it would be a fun gift for any whiskey lover on your holiday list. Inducing maybe someone who just got his sense of taste back. Just sayin’.
Randy “Goose” Baxter with his whiskey
The last bottle off my review shelf is the 10th release in Jack Daniel’s Distillery Series where they allow employees to create their own unique spirits for limited releases. Number 10 honors longtime employee Randy “Goose” Baxter. If you’ve ever been lucky enough to meet Goose in the Tennessee Squire room at the distillery or been regaled by his tales on a tour, you’ll remember the amiable man in overalls that has forgotten more about Jack Daniel’s than most spirits writers know.
For his Distillery Series offering, Goose selected some of Jack’s finest Tennessee Straight Whiskey and finished with chips of pecan wood to add a nice nutty character to the spirit. Jack’s Master Distiller Chris Fletcher describes Goose’s creation this way: “This expression is perfect for the holidays with notes of warm brown sugar, light savory nuttiness, and toasted oak with lingering hints of dried fruits and a touch of caramel. This release was specially selected by Goose, and it’s only fitting to have a whiskey as unique and full of character as this Lynchburg legend.”
Goose isn’t afraid of a little burn either, choosing 120 proof as the alcohol level for his creation. The whiskey carries the higher proof well and is another delightful snifter option. Packaged in 375-milliliter bottles, Distillery Series #10 is now available at the White Rabbit Bottle Shop at the Jack Daniel Distillery and in select stores across the state at an MSRP of $41.99.
