The Malt Cask

Since I started my whisky journey about 6 years ago, my main focus has been Scotch. I have of course ventured out of Scotland with some Irish, French or Asian whiskies but I could still explore further. America is another one I need to spend more time with, being Bourbon, American whisky, rye, Tennessee or any other variants. I think I have managed to try most of the 'entry' bottles so far from Woodford, to Makers, to Jack Daniels, to Rittenhouse, Wild Turkey or Buffalo Trace. I have also pushed a little further with Blanton's Gold, Few Rye and some Balcones, but there is definitely a long way still to go. Today, I am still on a more 'everyday' Bourbon, with Eagle Rare 10 years old, 45%, from the Buffalo Trace distillery. Compared with the standard bottle of Buffalo Trace, Eagle Rare has been aged for at least 10 years. Both product come from the same mash bill #1 which is low in rye (less than 10%) with potentially a small amount of malted barley (around 5% from wh...

A few posts ago, I reviewed my first bourbon, the Woodford Reserve distiller's select. As I mentioned then, American whisky wasn't something I drunk too much of, purely because of the image I had of it. Then came Balcones True Blue during a tasting and Woodford, my first purchase. Since then, I decided to try others. I am doing with bourbon what I have done with scotch: I start with less expensive and readily available bottles, generally purchased at a local supermarket, before going further up in the range, or not... So after Woodford, I got a bottle of Maker's Mark (which I will review in a coming post) which in my mind isn't as good as Woodford. Talking to some of the guys at the Whisky shop, they suggested Buffalo Trace and last week, I came across an offer on the bottle so decided to give it a go for £18.  Buffalo Trace is one of the biggest bourbon producer, with many brands such as Eagle Rare, Blanton's, Col. E. H. Taylor, George T. Stagg or Pappy Van Wink...