The final rating isn’t indicative of this being just an above average whiskey as much as it is that I’m giving it room to grow for their future releases. It’s not like this whiskey tasted young or harsh, but instead seemed like it had some more potential that we’ll never get to see because it was bottled somewhat young. The darker side of this bourbon shines on the finish, giving it a pungent quality that makes it seem older than it is.Īnd for all the uniqueness I liked about the contradiction of heavy bourbon notes and sweeter, lighter malt notes, I still felt like this one wasn’t quite done aging. Old Elk doesn’t mess with that formula and for that this sip really resonated well with my previous experiences with MGP whiskey. MGP bourbons have always had fantastic mouthfeels due to them typically being non-chill filtered. The finish may be the best part of this dram. Seasoned oak, espresso grounds and wet tobacco give it a rich, flavorful note to linger on while rye notes of cinnamon and cloves add a nice zing for complexity. But the finish leaves a darker more robust impact that seems different from the light and sweet notes I have experienced up to this point. And for around four years old, tobacco leaf and dark chocolate shavings really help round off the character of this whiskey.įinish: For a bourbon that lacked fruit notes so far, I’m surprised to find notes of prunes and figs. The rye grain is pushed to the back but contributes with notes of licorice and fennel seed. It’s bourbon character is shown with notes of oak spice, peppercorns and caramel chips but the malt whiskey side softens things up with flavors of Malt-O-Meal hot cereal, table syrup and cinnamon stick. Palate: The malted barley really makes for a unique drinking experience by wavering back and forth between bourbon notes and malt whiskey notes. The nose leans a bit on the softer side than most bourbon, but I’m assuming that is something the extremely high malted barley content is responsible for. There’s notes of cinnamon, oak spice and caramel latte. The nose comes off like a bowl of Frosted Flakes cereal was just poured. I sampled this neat and with a Glencairn. So now that we have all the facts, what does this bourbon taste like? Does Old Elk have a solid base for future single barrels? Let’s find out. It isn’t aged much over 4 years, but typically whiskies with a higher malt content tend to soften the harshness that young distillate has. The bottle before us today is a single barrel of the high malt mashbill I previously mentioned and is bottled at barrel proof (a rather low 107.4 proof). Most Old Elk bourbon is bottled at 88 proof and is a blend of three different bourbons. It must have been like moving into a new house, but being able to take a couple rooms you really liked from your old house with you. Metze convinced him to expand the lineup to contain a fourth whiskey as well the 95/5 rye whiskey that MGP is famous for. Every Old Elk Bourbon barrel is hand-selected by our distilling team, where they follow sensory and sampling criteria to ensure the barrels create a consistent blended profile year after year.Richardson was so pleased, in fact, that he lured Metze away from MGP and brought him on as the master distiller of Old Elk. To help age and blend the bourbon whiskey, Old Elk worked with three key partners to ensure the quality and consistency of our barrel-aged blended bourbon. The Old Elk Blended Straight Bourbon Whiskey recipe was created by the Old Elk Distillery team and Greg Metze. Old Elk Distillery is currently a production facility, with a vision to open a larger distillery in Colorado. This evolved into the collaboration of Old Elk Distillery with Master Distiller Greg Metze, whose visionary leadership refined and enhanced the Old Elk bourbon recipe to create a top shelf bourbon. We started with passion and vision: to transcend tradition by creating a timeless bourbon recipe and innovative process that elevates the bourbon landscape. This drinks way below the 111.8 proof and is sure to disappear quickly.Ĭheck out the companion selection, "Stormy Elk" Tasting Notes: Sweetness on the nose followed by subtle caramel and toffee and a nice medium length finish with just the right amount of heat. Bottled at: Old Elk Distillery (by Greg Metze)
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