Review #357 - Redwood Empire Pipe Dream
Redwood Empire, based in California, has ideals of environmental sustainability at the center of their values and production processes. They distill their whiskies just once, which saves water and fuel, and the spent mash from the fermentation process is used as animal feed for local farmers. Their name references the famous Redwood trees in California, and true to the tree theme, the distillery has pledged to plant a new tree for every bottle that they sell. At the time of writing, in August 2024, they've planted more than 1.5 million trees.
Their whiskies also bear the names of famous trees from the redwood forests - Pipe Dream, their bourbon, is named for a 367 foot tree located in the Patriarch Forest of Humboldt Redwoods State Park. This tree is more than 1,300 years old, and belongs to the coast redwood variety.
The bourbon itself carries a more modest 4 year age statement, though according to the brand's website, it's really a blend of barrels with an age range of 4 to 12 years. Bottling strength is a decent 45% ABV (90 proof), and they give us some nice mashbill details: it's 73% corn, 18% rye, 4% wheat, and 5% malted barley, making this a four grain bourbon.
Redwood Empire Pipe Dream
USA - Bourbon
Current Locally Available Price: USD 32 (2024)
Age Statement: 4 Years
Strength: 45% ABV
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 2 times over 2 months; bottles at 60% and 40% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a nosing glass each time, rested 10-15 minutes
Nose: Quite oaky - fresh lumber, even cedar wood. Some sweet notes come forward, like cherries, and there's a kick of spice that develops with time - rye spice, clove, nutmeg. At times, hints of Merlot wine appear; it's a relatively mellow nose overall.
Palate: A medium thickness mouthfeel, a bit spicy, not a lot of sweet notes - oak is stronger, along with a hint of ethanol, and we get a spice like jalapenos and white pepper. There are hints of salt and syrup, and later on, sweeter vanilla and brown sugar arrive.
Finish: Mildly sharp and oaky, a little warm, with plenty of fresh wood flavors and sugars. Some peppery baking spice is accented by little hints of sweet fruit; it's a medium-short finish.
Final Note: This was alright - a heavy emphasis on raw oaky notes, but we did find little hints of fruit and sweetness from time to time. The finish was a bit short and spicy... we liked the nose the most.
Value is still decent - this is a very fairly priced bourbon in our area. Worth a shot if you are interesting in trying something from a newer distillery, especially from a state which has a blossoming whisky industry.
Our Average Rating: 5.3 / 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: 6.60
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.
Check out our other 4 year old bourbon reviews:
Review #342 - Evan Williams Bottled in Bond Bourbon
Review #314 - New Riff Kentucky Straight Bourbon
Review #226 - New Riff Silver Grove
Review #187 - Nulu Toasted Small Batch Bourbon
Review #169 - Old 55 Single Barrel - Moontown Brewing Pick
Review #152 - Linkumpinch Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon
