American Whiskey Review #49: Loup River Nebraska Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Distillery: Loup River

Region: St. Paul, Nebraska

ABV: 43%

Price: $45

Batch No.: #4619

Age: 2 Year.

Color: 1.3, Russet/Muscat.

Nose: (according to the wife) Not a whole lot going on here, just some caramel.

Palate: Much like the nose, there isn’t a whole lot going on. There’s a caramel with a bit of baking spices mixed it. It has a pleasant amount of warmth without any youthful burn. Fairly smooth but not a whole lot going on flavor-wise.

Finish: Short. Tinge of the baking spices, not a whole lot going on again.

Conclusion: Loup River is a small distillery in central Nebraska run by a farmer who puts grains he grows himself into his whiskey. I’ve reviewed his corn whiskey in the past and found it to be surprisingly good. His bourbon doesn’t quite live up to the same standard. It’s very easy to drink, being a lot smoother than you’d expect a youthful whiskey to be. The few notes that do pop up in the caramel and baking spice are very pleasant, especially with the tad bit of warmth, there just isn’t enough going on. Not bad, but I think I’ll stick to his corn whiskey.

Final Score: 72.

American Whiskey Review #49, Bourbon Review #36, Whisky Network Review #281

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.