Review #80 - Barrell Dovetail
Cabernet Cask Mini-Series: Part 1 of 3
We're starting a short series on whiskies that have some aging in Cabernet wine casks - the first of them is Barrell's Dovetail. As is generally the case with Barrell products, this is a sourced whisky which has undergone some unique aging and blending, and it comes in at a whopping cask strength of 62.62% ABV (at least for the bottle that we tried).
On top the Dunn Vineyard cab barrels, this whisky was also aged in both rum and Port barrels as well, so there should be a number of layers of flavor to dig into. We'll look for some red fruit notes from the wine, but also some sweeter tropical stuff from the rum barrels.
Barrell Dovetail
USA - American Whisky
Current Locally Available Price: USD 89 (2023)
Age Statement: NAS
Strength: 62.62% ABV [Varies by release]
Cask Makeup: New charred oak, ex-rum, ex-Port, and Dunn Vineyard Cabernet barrels
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 1 time; bottle at 40% fill level at time of review. Tasted in a Glencairn glass, rested 10-15 minutes
Nose: Comes in a little hot, you have to work your way around the heat, but you're rewarded when you do - sweetness from dark cherries, licorice, brown sugar, and molasses. The spice is here as well, like anise, mild oak; it smells rich and buttery, that cocktail cherry note transforms into a sort of amaro flavor later on.
Palate: Some heat again, but not too bad, and the mouthfeel is medium-thick. The palate is a little bit more oaky, spice, and dry than the nose - some amaro, a bitter pear, and cardamom all come to mind. There's also a nice sweet citrus, like orange, and then some cloves creep in. With more time to open up, there are dried fruits of raisin and sour fig; lots of layers here.
Finish: It's a medium-length finish, on the warm side and with some mildly bitter wood tannins hanging around. There's some bitter liqueur like that amaro from the palate, but some sweetness does arrive at the end in the form of orange rind.
Final Note: Wow, pretty tasty, lots of those dark mature notes of fruit and sugar and spice. Most of the bottles of this that we've seen on the shelf have been in the 120+ proof range, so it may not be easy for less experienced palates to sip neat, but it does offer so much flavor. Value is pretty decent, too - $85 to $90 isn't cheap, but you're getting a lot of experience for that money.
Our Average Rating: 7.5 / 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: 6.80
