Review #5 - Four Roses Single Barrel
A single barrel product at a good strength, which is widely available and reasonably priced? Count us in - we love to explore the unique character that individual cask releases present to us. While this release is from a huge distillery, with a well-practiced process than likely leads to plenty of consistency in the product, there are still some inevitable intricacies to dissect.
Generally aged 7 to 9 years and distilled from a high-rye recipe, this bourbon offers a nice mouthfeel, plenty of flavor, and nice balance between sweetness and oak.
Four Roses Single Barrel
USA - Bourbon
Price Paid: USD 42 (2020)
Current Locally Available Price: USD 37 (2023)
Age Statement: NAS
Strength: 50%
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 4 times over 8 months; bottles at 60% (Warehouse AN, Barrel No. 28-2B), 40% (Warehouse AN, Barrel No. 28-2B), 30% (Warehouse AN, Barrel No. 28-2B, tasted blind), and 50% (local bar barrel pick, did not get cask information) fill level at times of review. Tasted neat in a Glencairn glass each time, rested 10-15 minutes
Nose: There is some sweetness up front here, it's coming in the form of dark red fruit, like dark cherries, maybe a bit of light raisin, and some vanilla and brown sugar, even a hint of raspberry. This is balanced by a decent amount of oak, very light sharpness, and some wood smoke. There are spices, too, pepper and a sweeter spice like cardamom; ends with a touch of anise.
Palate: A bit less sweet than the nose suggested, there are more dry pepper and oak notes, along with a touch of ethanol. That oak really comes on stronger as the palate develops, and it's accompanied by some mild maraschino cherry, maybe even a hint of dark Luxardo cherry, and brown sugar. On a second taste, the oak bitterness build a bit more, and there are more spices, nutmeg and clove with just a dusting of anise. The mouthfeel is a medium thickness.
Finish: The finish lasts a medium amount of time, with mild warmth and a bit of syrupy sweetness. The oak now takes a more mild role, not too biting, but there is some wood sugar and light wood spice. Hints of candied orange rind, a little bit of red fruit, and baking spice; while it isn't lacking flavor, there is a certain softness on the palate, velvety might be a good description.
Final Note: Nice stuff, this has a lot of your classic bourbon notes, but the two bottles we reviewed really honed in on a red fruit or cherry note, which is something we enjoy. Well balanced overall, this is a bottle we will definitely replace on our shelf once the current one is finished.
[Reviewing this a year later - value has gotten even better after price drops in our local area. A strong recommendation if you can find this under the $40 mark.]
Our Average Rating: 6.3 / 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: 7.19
