Maker's Mark Bourbon Review

Hi everyone,

And yet another low end Bourbon here today. Today we have Maker's Mark.

Who was Maker?

What was his mark?

These questions remain unanswered, even by the distillery's own website. Perhaps it's an existential Bourbon from a transcendent Maker?

(BBQ Not Reviewed)

Hold on, hold on. I found it. The founders wife liked some marks on pieces of pewter. Bit random.

Anyway, how's it taste?

Maker's Mark 45%

Colour: Bronze/Gold

Body: Light/Medium

Nose: Light and fragrant. Very waxy and herbal- Eucalyptus, Mastiha oil (think pine needles), mineral charcoal note, vanilla, vanilla ice cream, honey, mint, some aromatic spice.

Taste: Good mouthfeel. Waxy and sweet arrival. Sappy green oak, developing charcoal and rye-esque spice.

Finish: Medium length. More generic spiciness and charcoal fade.

Definitely not transcendent. A very average Bourbon I think. Apparently, there's no Rye in the recipe for this so I guess the spiciness I was getting is coming from the oak.

63/100

Thanks for reading!

American Whiskey Review #24

Whisky Network Review #486

American Average: 69.7

Network Average: 74.4

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Knob Creek 9 Small Batch Review

Hi everyone,

More Bourbon reviews? From Dave? Never.

Yep, I’ve got about three left after this and then you’re caught up on my experience with Bourbon so far.

So, this is another from Jim Beam, with an age statement and a higher proof. Does that make it better? Does having a funny name make it better? Let’s find out.

Knob Creek 9 50%

Colour: Bronze

Body: Medium

Nose: Lots of freshly crushed mint, vanilla pod, some wax, oaky honey, some rose, caramel, some spicy rye/grainy notes in the background.

Water: More chocolatey and fudge.

Taste: Lots of honey, vanilla, sugary honey, woody maple syrup, some oak, caramel and toffee.

Water: Aromatic oak and sandalwood then herbal.

Finish: Medium length. Lingering oaky spice, a little heat.

Despite the funny name, age statement and higher proof this is a bit ‘meh’ for me. A lot of very average Bourbon flavours. Although I did like the minty-ness on the nose, I don’t feel like the taste brings anything special or different.

65/100

Thanks for reading!

American Whiskey Review #23

Whisky Network Review #485

American Average: 70

Network Average: 74.4

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Jim Beam Black 6yo Review

Hi everyone,

Toady I’ve got another low end Bourbon for y’all. This time it’s from Jim Beam, and it’s the black with an age statement of 6 years. It also says it’s triple aged, which is a confusing term in this context, but what they are trying to say is that it’s three times the age it legally needs to be to be called whiskey in America. Think it still has to be aged 3 years if they’re selling it in Europe.

 

Jim Beam Black 6 43%

Colour: Bronze

Body: Light

Nose: Very herbal and citrus-y. Clove, grass, mint, lemon, lime, a tiny bit of orange, a bit of spice, very waxy, some sweetness, vanilla, some apple, a bit of honey. Some charred wood.

Taste: Charred wood, some young heat, wax, then some spice develops with some sweet apple, some mint and ginger too. Not much balance here either.

Finish: Short length. Woody apple notes, some charcoal.

Better than the white label, which is awful stuff. I much prefer the Evan Williams Extra Aged personally.

58/100

Thanks for reading!

American Whiskey Review #22

Whisky Network Review #484

American Average: 70.2

Network Average: 74.5

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Evan Williams Extra Aged Review

Hi everyone,

So, this is sort of, but not really, blind review. In that, I had no idea what this cost, which distillery it’s from or how it fits into the Bourbon world. Prices are a bit distorted here in the UK but I hadn’t seen this Bourbon about and I’d always been curious as good ol’ Evan, as he's a lad I talk about almost every weekend.

See, apparently, he was Welsh, although I can’t actually find anything to back it up (I didn’t look that hard). Well, of Welsh descent, and his family apparently started a distillery in Pembrokeshire in South Wales. So, it fits into the history of Welsh whisky, which I talk about quite a bit at work.

Anyway, how does this one taste?

Evan Williams Extra Aged (Black Label) 43%

Colour: Bronze

Body: Medium

Nose: Sweet vanilla, Caramel and honeycomb, liquorice and some dry oaky spice backs it all up.

Taste: Soft first with burnt caramel, toffee then an unexpected sweet burst with the honeycomb, then the spices come in with nutmeg and oak. A little harsh virgin oak comes through after a bit.

Finish: Medium length. Oak then tingling spices. Nutmeg in particular.

Perfectly drinkable Bourbon, I really liked the honeycomb notes I found on this.

69/100

Thanks for reading!

American Whiskey Review #21

Whisky Network Review #483

American Average: 70.7

Network Average: 74.5

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Bulleit Bourbon Review

Hi everyone,

Another basic Bourbon from me today, this time an NPD (even I'm using the acronyms now!) from Diageo.

I've heard that Bulleit uses a higher percentage of Rye in the mashbill, which I think definitely comes across, but doesn't make it anything to frantically write home about.

Bulleit Bourbon 45%

Colour: Bronze

Body: Medium

Nose: Rye spice, cinnamon, ginger, floral notes with lavender, almond, herbal, wax, black tea, vanilla.

Taste: Sweet and spicy, ginger, honey, a bit oily, mint, wax, a little fruit.

Finish: Medium length. Mint fades to spice.

Although it's a bit different to other Bourbons at this level and despite it being 45% (lots aren't in the UK), I would definitely class this as ok but nothing special.

67/100

Thanks for reading!

American Whiskey Review #20

Whisky Network Review #482

American Average: 70.8

Network Average: 74.5

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Buffalo Trace Bourbon Review

Hi everyone,

Today I’ve got a basic Bourbon from Buffalo Trace, just their standard edition at 40%. This is a Bourbon I taste fairly regularly because we give it out on masterclasses I do at work.

When I first wrote notes it was a while ago, so I’ve just re-tasted it again and got something quite different to what I was expecting. This is from a bottle I opened yesterday, so it’s brand new too. My guess would be that it’s down to batch differences.

Buffalo Trace 40%

Colour: Bronze

Body: Medium

Nose: Nutty and spicy at first, almond, clove, marzipan, cherry, Amaretto, a strange synthetic rubber note I’ve never had with BT before is growing, a little bitter coffee, some brandy, mint and rye.

Taste: Caramel starts, some fruit with cherries, marzipan, almonds. A little synthetic rubber again. Mint, candle wax and vanilla too.

Finish: Short/Medium length. Oak, rye, clove and liquorice.

Tasted this before and it was ok (65), but this batch I’m re-tasting has a weird synthetic rubber thing I haven’t had before and it’s really ruining the nose.

58/100

65/100 (Previous Batch)

Final Sore: 62

Thanks for reading!

American Whiskey Review #19

Whisky Network Review #481

American Average: 71

Network Average: 74.5

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Booker's 7yo True Barrel Strength Review

Hi everyone,

It's that time again. Time for David to give another Bourbon everyone loves a low score!

Yay!

In the firing line today is Booker's. Another Jim Beam special, this time at cask strength with the power whacked up to 11.

 

Booker's True Barrel Strength 7yo 63.7%

Colour: Dark Bronze

Body: Medium

Nose: Peanut butter, I am picking that out in these Beam's now, lavender, natural caramel. Intense spice and oak.

Water: Normal Bourbon flavours- Caramel, toffee, vanilla. Done well, but loses it's individuality.

Taste: Fruity, lemon, mango, building caramel and peanut butter.

Water: More normal Bourbon flavours, same as the nose. It's lost all its unique flavours.

Finish: Long length. Leathery, caramel. Not exactly complex but nice.

A bit disappointing, as I was expecting better. Still, a little better than Eagle Rare so...

74/100

Thanks for reading!

American Whiskey Review #18

Whisky Network Review #480

American Average: 71.5

Network Average: 74.5

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Basil Hayden's Review

Hi everyone,

Anyone remember a British tv show with an unstable owner, attacking his own car and badgering the guests?

Yep, Faulty Towers. The owner being Basil Faulty. Ah, you see where I'm going with this now...

So, did I expect a slightly deranged and belligerent Bourbon from the same first name?

No, not really but I didn't really expect a light and fruity Bourbon either.

Basil Haydens 40%

Colour: Light Bronze

Body: Light/Medium

Nose: Quite fruity for a Bourbon, orange juice, which is pretty unique, I also get oaky caramel, peanut shells, clove and liquorice root.

Taste: Light and soft, much lighter than other Bourbon's I've had. Orange juice, oaky caramel, peanut again, soft clove, liquorice and aniseed.

Finish: Medium length. Very soft, orange juice sucked through oak.

An interesting one from the Jim Beam stable. Blind, I might have guessed a virgin oak aged Scotch rather than Bourbon. Maybe.

Because of that, I quite liked this but I'd put it behind Four Roses SiB, so...

71/100

Thanks for reading!

American Whiskey Review #17

Whisky Network Review #479

American Average: 71.4

Network Average: 74.5

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Four Roses Single Barrel Review

Hi everyone,

Think I'm gonna try and review some more Bourbon's at the minute.

As said in almost every Bourbon review I do, I'm much more of a Scotch guy and my highest rated Bourbon so far was GTS with 80, my average for American Whiskey is 71.

Phew, now that's out of the way (again), let's get to it with a Four Roses I found in BrewDog.

Four Roses Single Barrel 50%

Colour: Bronze

Body: Light/Medium

Nose: Quite herbal and fresh with fruity oak. Liquorice, vanilla, sour green apple, a little mango.

Water: A sauna/hot wood note, a little mint.

Taste: Very creamy and mouth coating. A wave of creamy vanilla and slightly oily oak followed by liquorice, a herbal leafy note, a little juicy mango, then astringent charcoal with very drying oak.

Water: More fruity (good!) with some mint and that sauna/hot wood note from the nose.

Finish: Medium length. Juicy mango and drying oak.

A bit more fruity than some other Bourbon's I've tried, that can be caramel and vanilla bombs. Good but just a touch below Eagle Rare 10 for me.

72/100

Thanks for reading!

American Whiskey Review #16

Whisky Network Review #478

American Average: 71.4

Network Average: 74.5

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?