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The yearly release of Evan Williams’s vintaged single barrel whisky. The folks at Evan Williams know how to pick them, and with every vintage gaining a few breathless reviews we expect good things from this one as well.
Ladle of Contents
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2010 Review:
“The Single Barrel whiskeys are an expression of the craft, art, expertise, and artistry that is distilled in the heart of the hills of Kentucky, the most protected and treated wooded area in the world.
Barrels range from 4 5/6 to 5 1/2 years of age and all are in good shape with good char.”
Color: Light gold
Nose: Ferns, vanilla, honey
Taste: Sweet corn, vanilla, maple, rye, baking spices, vanilla.
Finish: Medium, peppery with rye, maple, vanilla, walnuts, and baking spices.
Overall: The nose and taste of this bourbon betray the fact that it’s been aged in newly (charred) made White Oak barrels. The rye spices makes for a bold, peppery bon bon. The oakiness ranges from slightly woody vanilla to almost raw vanilla. It is well over ripe, but very enjoyable.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2010 Review 1:
Creamy mouth feel.
It’s cheap.
The spark of rye from the bottle up.
“Nose” is over cooked.
Appearance: Light gold, very young, slightly opaque.
Nose: Medium weight vanilla, caramel sugars, liquorice, toffee and honey.
Taste: Sweet vanilla, honey, caramel sweets.
Finish: Medium, very little pepper, vanilla, with some baking spices.
Overall: an easy going, mellow taste. It’s like a malt-and-light rye-heavy version of Ezra Brooks. You get big vanilla and honey, some pepper and some baking spices, but the cocktail feel of the spirit is noticeably absent.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2010 Review 2:
Nose: Vanilla, honey, caramel, nuts, maple, molasses, pepper, and prunes.
Taste: Baking spices, rye, molasses, sour cherries, vanilla.
Finish: The rye really lingers, with pepper, sour cherries, and a little honey.
Overall: Good, but the nose and tast make it fall short of excellent.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2010 Review 3:
Nose: Vanilla, honey, prunes, sour cherries, and pumpkin pie.
Taste: Caramel sweets, toffee, corn chips, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
Finish: Medium-long pepper, vanilla, prunes, spices, toffee.
Overall: A good flavored drink, but lacks class. Something about the spices doesn’t quite work in the mouth.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2010 Review 4:
“The Single Barrel whiskeys are an expression of the craft, art, expertise, and artistry that is distilled in the heart of the hills of Kentucky, the most protected and treated wooded area in the world.
Barrels range from 4 5/6 to 5 1/2 years of age and all are in good shape with good char.”
Color: Golden glass, yellow, clear liquid.
Nose: Vanilla, molasses, corn, oak, lemon peel, mint, rye.
Taste: Just a slight hint of the oak. Lots of vanilla, honey and cinnamon.
Finish: Medium-long, vanilla, honey, rye.
Overall: Intriguing, but not in a good way. The oak imparts a very mild grainy flavor. The rye is just barely there, and it’s not peppery. The spice is barely there as well.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2010 Review 5:
Nose: Vanilla, vanilla, oak, caramel, nuts, pepper, prunes, orange.
Taste: Honey, spices, vanilla, toffee, allspice, maple.
Finish: Vanilla, honey, baking spices, fruity whisky.
Overall: Light, but not in a good way. The oak is so mild it didn’t come out very well and the vanilla topped with honey made it too sweet.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2010 Review 6:
Nose: Vanilla, vanilla, and molasses.
Taste: Warm rye, vanilla, cinnamon, honey, nutmeg, pepper.
Finish: Long, a little peppery and fruity.
Overall: A bright, spicy, delicate whiskey.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2011 Review 7:
Nose: Vanilla, pear, molasses, plums, honey, pepper, baking spices.
Taste: Mint, black pepper, molasses, baking spices, toffee.
Finish: Medium-long, some pepper, tingling spices, honey.
Overall: Light, but not in a bad way.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2011 Review 8:
Nose: Vanilla, honey, creamy sugar, vanilla, nutmeg, rye.
Taste: Creamy sugar, cinnamon, rye, pepper, pepper, nutmeg.
Finish: Medium-long nutmeg, vanilla, rye, baking spices.
Overall: Pretty, but not in a good way. The sweetness of the sour mash bourbon dominates the nose and palate, but it’s not annoying.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2011 Review 9:
Nose: Warm honey, honey, vanilla, citrus, rye, citrus, nutmeg.
Taste: Honey, molasses, pepper, vanilla, alcohol, rye, baking spices.
Finish: Medium length, spicy rye, honey, pepper, cinnamon.
Overall: A warm, spicy, sweet drink. The rye is barely there, and doesn’t really add anything to the palate.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2011 Review 10:
Nose: Vanilla, honey, caramel, honey, toffee, pepper, rye, toffee, pepper.
Taste: Honey, pepper, pepper burn, honey, rye, pepper, pepper burn, vanilla.
Finish: Medium length, spicy, pepper, honey, vanilla, rye, baking spices.
Overall: Very sweet, but not in a good way. The sweetness overpowers all the other flavors. It doesn’t taste like a single barrel bourbon.
