Up tonight is another entry in my rundown through all ten recipes in the Four Roses Single Barrel lineup. All the bottles in this series are from various private selections so they vary in profile but my hope is the underlying characteristics of each recipe will shine through and I can pick my favorite. I started with the lower rye OE series and am now working my way through the higher rye OBs. At the end of the series I plan to review a couple crazy vattings of Four Roses Yellow Label Barrel Proof that I learned about here.
59.0% ABV; Aged 11 years, 8 months; Selected by Midtown Wine & Spirits Nashville TN
Nose: Deep rich oak, cinnamon, and molasses. The sweetness is dense. Heat is very toned down. A nice balance of bitter, sweet, and spice.
Taste: Initial flood of darker sweets like cocoa which eventually leads to cinnamon spice. I distinctly taste sweet sugary cinnamon gum like Big Red. Fair amount of charred oak starts to come in at the end. Very viscous mouthfeel, it feels heavy.
Finish: As with the OBSF, long cinnamon finish. Charred oak starts initially but once the spice takes over it doesn't let go. This one last longer in flavor than heat which is a great thing. The heat is more of a dull warmth which is nice considering the high rye content.
Notes: I was very much looking forward to this bottle. It's very similar to an OBSK that recently won the SF World Spirits Competition and also similar to last year's 2013 Limited Edition Single Barrel. So how does this recipe stack up? Well, it's very good. It's bold in flavor, it's dense, there's a lot of sweetness, and the long spicy finish is tasty. The Four Roses notes say "Rich in Spiciness, Full Body". Well, it nails all those for sure. On the downside, that's not the most complex summary of highlights. If I want to be hyper critical I think this one loses points for being a two dimensional. It lacks the intricate fruitiness and dimensional complexity that I crave in a mind bending Four Roses pour. The K yeast was a downer for me in the OE line and while it's better in the higher mash bill I don't think K is my favorite compared to the other strains. All in all it's still incredible compared to most everything else out there.
Rating: A-
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