Review #306 - New Riff 8 Year Bourbon
New Riff's first attempt at a widely-available 8 year bourbon (there was previously a special release 8 year wheated bourbon in limited numbers) - unlike most of the distillery's whiskies, this is not bottled-in-bond. That's because the bourbon in the batch came from multiple distilling seasons, meaning that the youngest whisky is 8 years old, but there could be some 9 year whisky involved, as well.
They still present it at 50% ABV (100 proof), and it sports the same mashbill as their standard 4 year old bourbon and single barrels: 65% corn, 30% rye, and 5% malted barley. How will this increased age affect the flavor profile of their bourbon, which was already relatively spicy and oak-forward?
New Riff 8 Year Bourbon
USA - Bourbon
Price Paid: USD 68 (2024)
Current Locally Available Price: USD 68 (2024)
Age Statement: 8 Years
Strength: 50% ABV
Details: Not chill filtered
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 4 times over 2 months; bottles at 100%, 90%, 80%, and 70% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a Glencairn glass each time, rested 10-15 minutes
Nose: Rich and oaky to start - a bit dark and brooding, with lots of brown sugar and molasses. Spice arrives from sharp pepper and rye notes, as well as anise; with time, more mature notes arrive, such as prunes, hints of tobacco, and strong leather scents. The oak turns smoky and dry.
Palate: A nice oily palate - medium thickness for the mouthfeel, maybe a little more. Quite oaky again, with plenty of spice kick: pepper, chai notes, vanilla extract, and cinnamon. There's plenty of sweetness in the background, too: brown sugar dominates, but also bruleed sugar, molasses, even maple syrup. Again, the aged notes of leather and smoky oak arrive, but it takes some time.
Finish: Warming, and the baking notes dominate: brown sugar, lots of chocolate, white pepper, cinnamon toast, and caramelized sugars. Accent flavors include candied orange slices, charred oak, and soft leather.
Final Note: This is a good bourbon - we enjoyed our tastings with it, but it really needs some time in the glass to open up and show the more complex side of its maturity. The oak starts out strong, but it takes a while for those leather and smoky notes to pop out.
It was definitely a baking spice dominated flavor experience, at least for us, but it did provide a lot of different flavors within that realm - brown sugar was the biggest constant, adding plenty of dark sweetness to balance the strong oak flavors.
Value here is pretty good. New Riff continues to push new, increasingly old products into the market while maintaining fair pricing, which comes in under $70 for this release. Because of that pricing, as well as their quality and interesting experiments with grains and mashbills, they've won some loyalty from us.
Our Average Rating: 7.1 / 10
In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.
Value Rating: 6.98
About Us: We're a husband and wife review team living in the Midwest United States. Generally, our reviews and tasting notes will be a compilation of both of our experiences with a whisky over several tasting sessions.
