[Review] Shady Mile 21% Rye Bourbon

Once upon a time, the folks at Shady Mile Bourbon asked if I would be willing to sample their bourbon expressions? Of course I said sure. But after getting beaten down by life (see my Apology post), I eventually got around to sampling their wheated bourbon. Then, after dealing with more hospitalizations, health problems, and everything else, I realized I forgot to review their rye bourbon. All apologies to the fine folks at Shady Mile Bourbon. Despite the delay, I was determined to give an honest and thorough review of Shady Mile's rye expression. As I finally sat down to savor the long-awaited sample, I couldn't help but wonder if the extended wait would affect my perception of its flavors and nuances.

How Do I Review?

Now, before we get started, let me explain how I review bottles. I like what I like. I can detect different flavors and tastes but don't expect me to post a review saying I am “getting a slight hint of wet pavement with a bit of dried corn husk on an adobe wall” or something wild... I'll give you my honest impression, plain and simple, and there will be no sugarcoating. After all, I'm not Willy Wonka. Also, while I'm at it, let's get this disclaimer out of the way.

Disclaimer: Samples of the products reviewed were provided by the respective company for a no strings attached review.

With that out of the way, let's get on with the review.

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Product: Shady Mile High Rye Bourbon
Company: Specialty Cellars
Classification: Straight Bourbon
Distillery: Green River Distillery (DSP-KY-10)
Proof: 90 (45% ABV)
Mashbill: 70% corn, 21% rye, 9% malted barley
Color: Medium amber
Price: ~$30
Method: Rested in a Glencairn for 20 minutes

Nose: The aromas on the nose are somewhat lacking. There are notes of black cherry, almonds, and honey, but they fail to completely stimulate the senses.

Palate: The taste sensation on the palate falls short of expectations. While there are some peppery spices, baker's chocolate, and sweet caramel corn flavors, they do not completely deliver on their potential.

Finish: While present, the finish is unremarkable. Additionally, the young age of the bourbon is evident in its flavor profile, indicating that it has not yet fully developed its potential.

Overall: Now, don’t get me wrong; despite my remarks, this is not a bad bourbon. The problem is that it’s just a young bourbon, and it tastes young as well. In my opinion, both of the Shady Mile Bourbon expressions could improve with a little more age, so I’m going to give this one a high two out of five.

I look forward to Shady Mile Bourbon's next release and the opportunity to try these expressions after they've matured a little.

[Review] Shady Mile High Wheat Bourbon

The “backstory” above is taken from the Shady Mile Bourbon website. I honestly have no idea if it’s true but it sounds awesome.

Now, this review has been a long time in the making. A couple of months ago Shady Mile Bourbon asked me to review their two bourbon releases. I said, "Sure, I'd be happy to" and then life got in the way. The next thing I know my wife is in the hospital and I am suffering from ongoing medical complications and I’m not allowed to drink alcohol. I finally got to where I could drink again and what do you know, it is Bourbon Heritage Month. I decided to coincide my review for Shady Mile with the opening of the NFL season. My selections for the 9th and 10th days of my 30 Days of Bourbon Challenge were the Shady Mile Wheated Bourbon and the High Rye Bourbon, respectively. I enjoyed both expressions and prepared my notes but the more I thought about it, the more I became dissatisfied with my tastings. Both bottles are young and it shows but what if I did another tasting after they had a month to… breathe?

Before I get into my actual review, let me explain how I review bottles. I like what I like. That's it. I can detect some of the different flavors and tastes but don't expect me to post a review saying I am “getting a slight hint of wet pavement with a bit of dried corn husk baking on an adobe wall in New Mexico on a Thursday” or something wild like that. I'll give you my impression, plain and simple, and there will be no sugarcoating. After all, I'm not Willy Wonka. Also while I'm at it, let's get this disclaimer out of the way.

DISCLAIMER: Samples of the products reviewed were provided by the respective company for a no strings attached review.

Now, let's get on with the review. I am extremely partial to wheated bourbons so I decided to try the Shady Mile High Wheat Bourbon first. 

• Product: Shady Mile High Wheat Bourbon
• Company: Specialty Cellars
• Classification: Straight Bourbon
• Distillery: Green River Distillery (DSP-KY-10)
• Proof: 90 (45% ABV)
• Mashbill: 70% corn, 21% wheat, 9% malted barley
• Color: Medium amber
  
• Price: ~$30

Method: Rested in a Glencairn for 15-20 minutes; tasted a second time after a month

Initial Tasting

Nose: Light alcohol, cinnamon, cherry with a hint of chocolate

Palate: Cherry is back along with notes of honey, caramel and vanilla

Finish: Warm lingering medium-to-long finish with a sweet pepper spiciness

Second Tasting After A Month

Nose: Still young but the alcohol has dissipated, cinnamon, cherry but the chocolate is more pronounced

Palate: Cherry is back along with notes of honey, caramel and vanilla, maybe a little tobacco and cereal 

Finish: Warm lingering medium-to-long finish with a sweet heat giving hints of cereal/bread

Conclusion: Not what I have come to expect from a wheated bourbon but it is young. The chocolate notes caught me by surprise and the caramel played well off of that. My initial impression was "it was okay" but after revisiting it a month later, I could see it becoming part of the rotation, especially future releases that will have more age to them. I'll say it gets a 3 (just barely) out of 5.

 Check back tomorrow for my Shady Mile High Rye Bourbon review. Until then...

Bourbon Review: Uncle Nearest 1820

Since I reviewed Uncle Nearest 1856 with my last review, I decided to go ahead and review Uncle Nearest 1820 as a follow up. Now the 1820 expression is an 11-year-old Single Barrel release and is aimed at the premium market. Just like 1856, this is a Tennessee Whiskey in that they have used the “Lincoln County Process” on it and filtered it through maple charcoal. Now I know this is labeled as a bourbon review and this is Tennessee Whiskey, but after all, isn’t it still bourbon that just has the additional filtering step? Or am I wrong for thinking that way?

Also, in my last review I took the time to explain the back story of Uncle Nearest so I won’t go into that here. I’ll just get on with the review.

Product:  Uncle Nearest 1820 Premium Whiskey, Nearest Green Single Barrel Edition, Barrel # TN-1, Bottle 12 of 130

Age: 11 years

Type: Tennessee Whiskey

Proof: 110.5 (55.2% Alc./Vol.)

Tasting method:  Sampled in a Glencairn glass, neat after sitting for approximately 15-20 minutes.

Appearance: Dark bronze to mahogany depending on the light. Left some decent legs on my Glencairn.

Nose:  Vanilla and oak with a hint of spice (baking spices maybe)

Palate: Vanilla and oak once again with a hint of caramel and brown sugar

Finish: I thought it had a long finish with some residual spice notes that were counter-balanced by what I thought was butterscotch or maybe it was the brown sugar raising up again.

Conclusion:  As someone who thoroughly enjoyed the 1856 expression, I was excited to try the 1820 and I was not disappointed. Yes, the price was more than double the 1856 but, in my opinion, Uncle Nearest nailed it with this release.  I would definitely grab a bottle of this if you get the chance.

Well, there you have my totally untrained and amateur opinion. Maybe it provided a little bit of insight into another wonderful bottle of sweet brown elixir. Thanks for taking the time to read it and if you have tried the 1820, leave a comment below and tell me what you thought. Until next time, drink more bourbon! Cheers!

Bourbon Review: Uncle Nearest 1856

Last week we reviewed a mead with Viking Blod and this week we shift the spotlight to bourbon. Well, it could be a bourbon but it is actually a Tennessee whiskey, it’s Uncle Nearest 1856.

Before I get into the review, I think we should talk about exactly who was Uncle Nearest and how it came about to have a whiskey named after him. We all know about how Jack Daniel ran away from home as a teenager and found refuge at the Dan Call farm where the preacher told his master distiller to teach young Jack everything he knew. Now it just so happens that Call’s master distiller happened to be a slave named Nathan Green but everyone affectionately referred to him as Uncle Nearest. It was Uncle Nearest that taught young Jack Daniel how to distill whiskey and more than likely greatly contributed to the charcoal filtering that is synonymous with Tennessee whiskey, now called the Lincoln County Process. Somewhere back in time, with the rise of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee whiskey, the story of Uncle Nearest got lost. But when JD started to celebrate their 150th anniversary, I guess they got a little nostalgic and Uncle Nearest was given credit where credit was due. Then Fawn Weaver took up the mantle of setting the record straight and telling the true story of Uncle Nearest, as well as launching the brand to honor him. For more information, check out the Uncle Nearest website.

Now let’s get on with the review. Uncle Nearest is bottled at 100 proof (50% Alc./Vol.) and I sampled the whiskey in a Glencairn glass after letting it sit for approximately 15 minutes.

Appearance: In the bottle, the whiskey had a bronze or dark copper color which didn’t change much in the glass although there did seem to be a slight orange tint around the edges. That may have been a flare from the lighting though.

Palate: First impressions on the initial taste was more of the caramel and vanilla. Subsequent tastings revealed hints of cinnamon and maybe dried fruit and toasted nuts. As you swallow you get a peppery spiciness but it is not overpowering and is well balanced with the sweetness of the juice. There seemed to be an underlying taste of oak and corn throughout the entire experience.

Finish: The oak and spiciness stay with you during the long finish that is balanced by hints of caramel and molasses. It provided a good mouthfeel that seemed to evenly coat my mouth with sweet, spicy stickiness that urged me to take another drink.

Conclusion: Uncle Nearest is a sourced whiskey coming from two undisclosed Tennessee distillers (one is probably George Dickel) but the folks have done a decent job blending them. While Uncle Nearest is waiting on their own mash, which is currently being distilled at Corsair Distillery in Nashville while they build their own distillery in Shelbyville, they will continue to source their juice. But that is not necessarily a bad thing and if you get a chance to grab a bottle of 1856, by all means give it a try.

Well, that’s all I have for now. Until next time, drink more bourbon, drink more mead and remember to always drink curious!