Monday, February 23, 2015

Dickel Single Barrel

Nose: notes of anise and cough medicine. Not nasty medicinal, more like comforting medicine.  Tingly on lips and tongue, bitter and ashen on the swallow.  Again, with the quality here it isn't unpleasant, but it is a different taste to most bourbons. Sweetness is more toffee than caramel, but everything comes with the ashen smokiness over it.  If you have fond memories of somebody smoking, particularly having a drink, I find it reminiscent of that.  For me, I'm reminded of my father (who on the record didn't smoke), having a bourbon and water while the kitchen sink was smoking nearby.  That said, while working my way through a glass, the smoke and char flavors tend to add up and coat the inside of my mouth.  Much like you used to have to abandon the clothes that you wore out to the bar when they stank of smoke, your mouth may need a cleanser after this.

I drank most of this a shot at a time over a nice sized ice cube.  Water opened it up a little and the temperature took the edge off of the ash flavors.  This was a selection that lasted almost a year on my shelf.  I rarely reached for it as a desire, but grabbed it when I just wanted something and didn't want to sit and savor it.


Final remarks, it was good, probably a decent value in the upper $30s.  Interesting to sample for a little something different. Not sure I'll intentionally pick up another bottle without a specific recommendation on a barrel.

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