Author: Xenoraiser

  • Maker’s Mark 2021 Wood Finishing Series (FAE-02) Scoresheet & Review

    Maker’s Mark 2021 Wood Finishing Series (FAE-02) Scoresheet & Review

    Maker’s Mark is one of my favorite distilleries. That’s not exactly an unpopular opinion, given the brand’s iconic look and penchant for consistency. However, my appreciation for Maker’s Mark largely comes from their uniquely finished products, namely the Private Selections and Wood Finishing Series. Rather than taking their whisky and…

  • Milam & Greene Triple Cask Scoresheet & Review

    Milam & Greene Triple Cask Scoresheet & Review

    If you’ve seen the popular Epicurious video Whiskey Expert Guesses Cheap vs Expensive Whiskey, then you might be familiar with Milam & Greene. The second name comes from Heather Greene, the brand’s CEO. Greene was the first American woman to serve on the Scotch Malt Whiskey Society in Edinburgh and,…

  • Teeling Single Grain Scoresheet & Review

    Teeling Single Grain Scoresheet & Review

    Grain whiskey is a style that often flies under the radar. Part of this is due to the relative dearth of available options, further confounded by a likely confusion about what separates grain whiskey from other categories. Yet the simplicity of it is right in the name: grain whiskey can…

  • Knob Creek Single Barrel Norman’s Liquors Pick Scoresheet & Review

    Knob Creek Single Barrel Norman’s Liquors Pick Scoresheet & Review

    Nostalgia and hindsight make for one hell of a combination. It wasn’t long ago that folks were singing praise for Knob Creek Single Barrel picks sitting on shelves, some of them as old as 16 years. Yet bourbon continues to boom, and it was only a matter of time before…

  • Old Forester 100 Scoresheet & Review

    Old Forester 100 Scoresheet & Review

    Divisive opinions are nothing new to the overarching whisky community. It’s just one of many factors that makes sharing and discussing whisky both interesting and enjoyable. Yet if I had to identify one distillery that splits thoughts more than any other, Old Forester would certainly be a frontrunner. This primarily…

  • Courage & Conviction Scoresheet & Review

    Courage & Conviction Scoresheet & Review

    Newer distilleries have their work cut out for them. We might often hear about the collaborative nature of whiskey production, but at the end of the day, several bottles will compete for customer and consumer attention. To that end, established names like Buffalo Trace, Old Forester, and Wild Turkey are…

  • Wilderness Trail Yellow Label Scoresheet & Review

    Wilderness Trail Yellow Label Scoresheet & Review

    Out of all the distilleries I visited in Kentucky last year, Wilderness Trail had the most je ne sais quoi to it. Their grounds are a bit out of the way on the Bourbon Trail, with the most immediately eye-catching part being just how much land they occupy. Yet the…

  • Driftless Glen Single Barrel Rye Scoresheet & Review

    Driftless Glen Single Barrel Rye Scoresheet & Review

    Craft and otherwise newer whiskey producers are going through something of a transformation. Where these fresh faces were previously dismissed by most, oftentimes for being minimally aged while commanding high prices, they’re now being accepted and even sought-after in some cases. Among the more recent examples are producers outside of…

  • Teeling Single Pot Still Scoresheet & Review

    Teeling Single Pot Still Scoresheet & Review

    These days it’s not uncommon to hear about old brands or names in whiskey being resurrected, and Teeling is no exception. Although the Teeling distillery itself was only built up in 2015, Jack and Stephen Teeling trace their family name back to 1782 “when Walter Teeling set up a small…

  • Knob Creek Small Batch 9-Year Scoresheet & Review

    Knob Creek Small Batch 9-Year Scoresheet & Review

    Many casual drinkers probably don’t realize just how prolific brands like Jim Beam actually are. Bottles bearing the Clermont distillery’s name are easy enough to discern, but Jim Beam plays host to many others as well. Consider their parent company, Beam Suntory, and Jim Beam’s prominence becomes that much more…

  • Ardbeg An Oa Scoresheet & Review

    Ardbeg An Oa Scoresheet & Review

    Exploring peated scotch has been one of the most interesting and exciting treks in my spirits journey thus far. In addition to the broadly distinct profile, different peated malts can come across so differently, even without doing side-by-side comparisons. And yet, where I believe these drams can impress the most…

  • George Dickel Bourbon Scoresheet & Review

    George Dickel Bourbon Scoresheet & Review

    Few debates feel as long-waged as the distinction between bourbon and Tennessee whiskey. Drinkers, whether casual or enthusiastic, will inevitably take a hard stance when pressed. Some claim that Tennessee whiskey is its own category; others insist that it’s simply part of the greater bourbon category. Then we have the…