THE BEST FOUR ROSES EVER PICKED
The whiskey you are about to read about is unquestionably the best barrel of Four Roses every picked. No one before or after will find a barrel this good, this elegant, refined, or this unjustly overhyped by the person that helped pick it. I single handedly (along with five others) selected the best barrel in the entire Four Roses rickhouse system (from the five samples they sent) and it is without a doubt the best bourbon I have tasted (in the last month or two).
Ok, maybe its not that good. But its good.
The first Davidson’s barrel of OESQ from February 2014 was my favorite store pick of the 20% rye OE recipes, and this Bull & Bush and Grapevine Liquor barrel of OBSO is my favorite store pick of the 35% rye OB recipes. There is something special about the way the flavors balance, how the heavy rye profile remains approachable but rich, and how the older age and darker color has zero indication of the profile compared to younger, lighter barrels. There is little subtly or nuance, just big woody sweetness, ripe dark fruits, and big cocoa and zipping spice.
What is also interesting about this barrel is that from a group of six, made up of three serious beer drinkers that dabble in whiskey, two serious whiskey drinkers that dabble in beer, and one of the owners/brewers of Denver’s Bull & Bush Brewery/whiskey bar, everyone picked this barrel. I have witnessed a half dozen selections, and always ask how the sampling played out when a new barrel comes into a store, and I can’t say I have ever heard of a barrel that was unanimous to such a wide variety of palates.