American Whiskey Review #48: Michter’s Single Barrel Bourbon 10 Year

Distillery: Michter’s

Region: Kentucky

ABV: 47.2%

Price: $16 for 2 oz

Barrel No.: #20C357

Age: 10 Year.

Color: 1.3, Russet/Muscat.

Nose: (according to the wife) It’s got a very interesting scent. Up front are some medicinal notes, smelling heavily of ginseng tea (임삼차). There’s a bit of menthol which is like a rush of something really cool. Following the menthol comes from a mix of other teas, a bit of black tea and a bit of floral. Very lovely to smell and fairly cool.

Palate: Mouthfeel is rather notably thin. There’s a nutty note that pops up first, it’s like a mix of a very creamy peanut butter (lots of peanut butter) and a bit of a slightly burned roasted peanut. Caramel comes in afterwards before a lot of oak follows. There’s a hint of maraschino cherry juice right at the end.

Finish: Medium to short in length. Cherry cola notes pop up along with lots of oak. The oak gives it a bit of a drying effect as well cutting things short.

Conclusion: If the Wild Turkey I reviewed yesterday had far too much oak, this Michter’s would be far closer to being in the Goldilock’s zone of “just right”. The nose is quite interesting, the mix of teas and a bit of menthol is a lot of fun. The palate could use a little more depth, though the peanut butter notes that come through are nice. The oak threatens to dominate and overtake everything, but it doesn’t quite do that and is quite nice. A tad less though would be my personal preference. Not a bad whiskey at all from Michter’s, though perhaps not worth the price.

Final Score: 79.

American Whiskey Review #48, Bourbon Review #35, Whisky Network Review #280

Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.