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Michter's Sour Mash Small Batch Whiskey Company on Label: Michter's Whiskey Type: American Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages: 45% Corn, 45% Rye, 10% Malted Barley Proof: 86° Age: NAS Further identification: Barrel No 19K2140 Shenk's Homestead Kentucky Sour Mash Whiskey Company on Label: Michter's Whiskey Type: American Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages: Undisclosed Proof: 91.2° Age: NAS Further identification: Batch # 20F1432, Bottle 1777 of 1807 Michter's Small Batch Bourbon Company on Label: Michter's Whiskey Type: Bourbon Mash Bill Percentages: 79% Corn, 11% Rye, 10% Malted Barley Proof: 91.4° Age: NAS (around 8 years?) Further identification: Barrel No 20E892 Michter's Sour Mash Small Batch Whiskey Review: Slight marshmallow and coffee bean on nose. Caramel, pepper, spice. Sweet fruit come out on swirl of the glass. Very mellow. Fresh sawn oak. Slight grass note. Low proof but a spice and a thin creaminess spread over tongue. Shenk's Homestead Kentucky Sour Mash Whiskey Review: Butterscotch, citrus & heavy leather nose. Sour & toasty. Rich marshmallow nose with some citrus hints. Caramel. Way more of a rich syrupy palate with citrus fruits and oak. Dark fruit shows on finish. A clear step above the other two glasses. Michter's Small Batch Bourbon Review: Peanut nose... Muted. Nothing specific jumping out on this one. Maybe a light citrus fruit and leather. New found spice on tongue. Leather for sure now. Lowest (toughest) proof to taste on this flight. Final Ranking: Shenks > Sour Mash > Bourbon

Booker's Little Book Chapter 01 "The Easy" Company on Label: James B. Beam Whiskey Type: Blended Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages: Undisclosed Blend Proof: 128.2° Age: 4 (Blend of 4 year old bourbon, 6 year old rye + malt whiskeys, and 13 year old corn whiskey) Further identification: 2017 Release Booker's Little Book Chapter 02 "Noe Simple Task" Company on Label: James B. Beam Whiskey Type: Blended Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages: Undisclosed Proof: 118.8° Age: 8 (Blend of 8 year Kentucky rye, 13 year Canadian Rye and 40 year Canadian corn whiskey) Further identification: 2018 Release Booker's Little Book Chapter 03 "The Road Home" Company on Label: James B. Beam Whiskey Type: Blended Bourbon Mash Bill Percentages: Blend of several mash bills (77% Corn, 13% Rye, 10% Malted Barley & 63% Corn, 27% Rye, and 10% Malted Barley) Proof: 122.6° Age: 9 (Blend of 9 year, 11 year and 12 year bourbons) Further identification: 2019 Release Booker's Little Book Chapter 04 "Lessons Honored" Company on Label: James B. Beam Whiskey Type: Blended Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages: Undisclosed Proof: 122.8° Age: 4 (Blend of 4 year Kentucky brown rice bourbon, 7 year bourbon, and 8 year Kentucky rye) Further identification: 2020 Release Chapter 1 Review: Strikes me similarly to the start of Michter's 10 year. Rich oak says old but refined. Nose is really balanced though, falling almost too bland. Peanut, shiny metallics, and an overly buttery/rich mouth coating that lingers. Really tastes like it should be a regular Booker’s batch. Chapter 2 Review: Lightest! Dusty oak, citrus/Pinesol note I love, chocolate and sweet fruit like strawberry cereal on nose. Rich full proof mouth coating with no burn. Marshmallow sweet creamy char. YUM! So good I went for a second glass of this; second pour: Vanilla, spice and fruit immediately on nose. Deep, rich citrus nestled into a strong oak. Floral first, then caramel. Thinner, but rye spice packs a pretty mean jab into you but that fades into a nice, creamy cherry finish. Pepper and floral notes linger long. A little too spicy at times is my only complaint. Chapter 3 Review: Light caramel, graham cracker (no, ginger bread!), slight cherry nose. Pepper. Way better mouth feel than nose. Cherry cola, spice, butter, creamy caramel. Rich stinging finish! Feels like something that would be a really nice "in the woods" drink to me for some reason. Chapter 4 Review: Clean, citrus; high proof, summer grass with old oak. Smells like a farmhouse beer hall. Instant THICK mouth coating w/ cherry & caramel. Ginger bread and pepper. Thinner like a Weller Special Reserve. Nice. Final Ranking: Chapter 2 > Chapter 3 > Chapter 4 > Chapter 1

Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit Single Barrel Bourbon Company on Label: Wild Turkey Whiskey Type: Bourbon Mash Bill Percentages: 75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Barley Proof: 101° Age: NAS (around 8-9 years?) Further identification: Warehouse A, Rick No 40, Barrel 1516 Wild Turkey Rare Breed Barrel Proof Bourbon Company on Label: Wild Turkey Whiskey Type: Bourbon Mash Bill Percentages: 75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Barley Proof: 116.8° Age: NAS Further identification: 2019/early 2020 purchase Kentucky Spirit Review: Citrus primarily, but also pepper, cherry and spice all present on nose. Really punchy & alive. Late nose after resting turns much creamier, with other notes of butter and soup herbs. Citrus & cherry carry well into the palate. Rye spice continues to dance well in the background. Citrus can't hide a slightly unwelcome white wine tannin mouth feel. Nuanced & thin, but slightly oily and herbaceous. This beats Rare Breed on nose and finish, but falls slightly short on palate. Rare Breed Review: Creamy caramel, leather, darker black pepper and a hotter cherry on nose. Late nose turns really dusty with a cherry pop still present. Cinnamon candy and pine are also still coming through on the nose. This one is a conundrum; it is both mellow and easy on the palate at times and others super spicy and rich. The variations on the palate are interesting and keep you guessing. At times the creaminess subdues the spicy cherry. I would guess based on this experience that this is older. Light marshmallow & vanilla is perfectly rich. Only lacks in finish; but has a more experienced palate than the Kentucky Spirit. Final Ranking: Rare Breed > Kentucky Spirit

Company on Label: Barton 1792 Whiskey Type: Wheated Bourbon Mash Bill Percentages: Undisclosed Proof: 91.2° Age: NAS Further identification: Purchased 2020 Review: Dust, citrus zest and fresh linen is very apparent. Grass. Back to bleached linen again. Palate is different than the nose. Creamy oak. Fruit is very light in the background. Overall very approachable (read: low proof). Now that is has been open a while it is not overpoweringly sweet like previous pours. Very herbal for a wheater actually. Occasionally I will get a weird flavor like dirty pennies which is very off putting. Usually good for one pour but by the end of the glass I’m definitely ready for something else. Rating: 3/5

Company on Label: Hood River Whiskey Type: Finished Bourbon Mash Bill Percentages: Undisclosed Proof: 90° Age: 8 years Further identification: Batch 004 Review: Bright, fresh-sawn oak with some citrus. Vanilla that wants to turn to marshmallow but isn't quite there. Light floral notes. When it turns darker it is a peppery molasses note I get. Palate is rather thin, with a synthetic cherry note taking over. The basis of molasses is still present. Unrefined vanilla and still very floral. Chocolate notes jump from the depths of light spring flavors at times. What it lacks in depth it makes up for in complexity. This is one you can't write off at one sip. It changes quite a bit throughout the glass. Mouth feel is good but little to no finish definitely leaves me with more to be desired out of this pour. Definitely a better experience today than whenever I opened this one! Rating: 3/5

Company on Label: Heaven's Door Spirits Whiskey Type: Blended Straight Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages: Undisclosed (69% Bourbon, 31% Rye Blend) Proof: 95.7° Age: 7 years Further identification: 69% Batch I05-52 Bourbon, 31% Batch B15-64 Rye. Bottle 010/120. Selected by Burlington Wine & Spirits. Caramel, pepper and a medicinal cherry are all in the forefront of the nose. Raisin and a port wine. Some spice is present and makes the nose sting a bit. Palate is really surprising explosion of citrus and herbal fruit medley. This has a ton of flavor and creamy mouth feel for 95.7 proof. Really approachable still with all the flavors. I shared and introduced this bottle to 6 others after a strong workout this evening and there were only good responses. Interesting change of pace, but not a pour I would hunt down hard I don’t think. Definitely one to share with people who want a big flavor experience without a high proof smack! Rating: 3/5

Company on Label: Old Forester Whiskey Type: Bourbon Mash Bill Percentages: 70% Corn, 18% Rye, 10% Barley Proof: 128.7° Age: NAS Further identification: Warehouse L, Floor 3. Liquor Depot Store Pick; this sample was provided to me from bourbondipity_ on Instagram in a sample swap Nose: Mmmm, this is going to be a good one. Very vanilla forward. Well in hand in the proof department, this noses like a sweet flower. On deep pulls of air, some sweet pepper appears. After a sip it's like a flavor switch has been turned on. Rich apricot and peppery vanilla are like a summer hug. Smooth, thin molasses and some light blood orange. Nose is turning into a creamy caramel which will always be a welcome note to me. Some light meatiness is coming out now. I've always been intrigued by this note; what causes that specific sensation? Yummy maple syrup. This one is very rapidly evolving. Now shedding the rest of its build up shivers, this settles into a full circle return to a high flying vanilla and apricot. Hint of smoke is present in the molasses. The final note is one of bright oak and dusty vanilla bean. Palate: Oh! There's the proof. Whew! Nice introduction here for an unassuming palate. Syrupy chocolate drizzled plums. Canned peaches and loads of sweet allspice coats the tongue. The allspice and caramel transferred very well from nose to palate. Definitely can tell this is a barrel proof offering, but once the initial shock is gone it drinks well below the 128.7 on the label. The heat that rises on a good sip is slow moving; rolling across the tongue with the pace & intensity of caramel dripping down oak bark. Some low intensity citrus zest, closest to lemon, but probably not a 'real' fruit in current existence. A little more towards the tannic profile of 1910 rather than 1920 here, I'm not growing tired of the proof or the sweetness at all. Sometimes these things can weather a palate but this is very well balanced all the way through. Not explosive or punishing on the finish: this is a great sipper. Rating: 4/5 With any single barrel or individual store pick offerings, the notes and rating in this review may not reflect the same as a different barrel selection.

Company on Label: Old Forester Whiskey Type: Bourbon Mash Bill Percentages: 70% Corn, 18% Rye, 10% Barley Proof: 134.9° Age: NAS Further identification: Warehouse G, Floor 7. Ball Sq. Family Selection Store Pick; this sample was provided to me from bourbon_fiend_and_finder on Instagram in a sample swap Nose: Leather, pepper, caramel, tobacco and a dank, wet, dark oak nose. It's like oak has been drizzled in molasses. Faint fig and citrus are trying to escape the heavier notes early on. A little smoke gives a faint sting to the nostrils. Very syrupy and powerful. It's actually kind of hard to discern individual scents in this as the overall mixture of air that enters your nose is just so intense. This might be one of the very rare exceptions that a bit of water is required to fully experience this pour. Things are settling down now (without water, I'm a trooper), but the smells are still intensely spiced with cloves, some nutmeg, and a lovely brown sugar. A silky smooth vanilla does well to hide the peanut shell note I found on the palate, but I can still tell it's hiding in there. About halfway through this glass, I'd have to disagree with my first assumptions about this needing water; things have mellowed out wonderfully. The vanilla is followed by a bright wave of white canvas. Palate: Big mint and herbal explosion forward on first sip. Immediately a rich creamy cherry mouth coating. Citrus and molasses are back. Citrus rises up with heft on strong finish like a metallic lemon zest. Rich dark chocolate is darker than any I've tried; surprisingly, despite my whiskey preferences saying otherwise, I'm actually not a big sweets guy. Pepper note is nestled perfectly into that leather & molasses base. Crazy potent flavors all through this. My only complaint might be a little too much citrus for my preferences. The aftertaste suddenly surprises me with a flash of peanut shells which immediately regains my attention. That's one of my favorite notes and a big reason you'll find me gravitating to some of the Booker's batches. This definitely drinks at a similar proof to those, clocking in at a whopping 134.9. Try taking larger sips or chews of this and you are certainly reminded of that fact. The flavors that follow are all more approachable than the initial bite. I'd say the overall feel of this has evolved from the citrusy pop of the start to a nice cherry soaked peanut shells. It reminds me of a jacked-up version of 2021-02 Booker's "Tagalong Batch". I do dig this, but think it could use just a touch more refinement to smooth some of those intense jagged edges that are present on this one before it reaches greatness. Floor 7 may just run this hot! Rating: 3/5 With any single barrel or individual store pick offerings, the notes and rating in this review may not reflect the same as a different barrel selection.

I'm just getting started here, but I have been on Instagram for some time already, and have been drinking good whiskey for a lot longer than that. 2021 was a transformative year for many and it served as the kickoff year for this review website. I hope you can find if my palate aligns with yours so that we can share in sampling many more pours together! Cheers, Nick