🥃Whiskey Frankenstein - Evan Williams 107

Ezra Brooks and Evan Williams Whiskey Blend with a graduated cylinder whiskey Frankenstein

My personal sweet spot in the proof-flavor continuum is between 100-110 proof (albeit with some notable exceptions). For things that are barreled at 125, I find that this amount of dilution serves only to make the whiskey more drinkable and doesn't unduly harm flavor. Recently, I took a look at some Ezra Brooks Cask Strength, contract distilled by Heaven Hill, and was intrigued. The heaven hill stocks used shared the same mash bill as their hallmark Evan Williams line (heck, they may even have started life intended to be dumped into Evan bottles). This gave me a lovely 120 proof base to dilute down into my preferred ABV range. I toyed with the idea of using some Evan Williams Single Barrel as the complementary bottle, but ultimately decided that it would be too disproportionate (EWSib is only 86.6 proof). The stalwart Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond will stand in as the Ezra Brook's dance partner for this exercise.

Vámonos!

🧪Preparation

I blended the two spirits to arrive at the target 107 proof point for a 50ml sample - 17.5ml Ezra Brooks and 32.5ml Evan Williams BiB.

Whiskies were measured using a 100ml lab-quality graduated cylinder wielded with questionable skill. Mechanical agitation (stirring/shaking) is applied at the time of blending and prior to consumption. Blend married for about a month before tasting and was agitated prior to final consumption (I've been working nonstop and didn't get to it for a bit). Let rest for 10 minutes in Glencairn.

👅The Tasting

Nose has plenty of orange peel and vanilla but definitely is rough around the edges, some of the white label at work there. Not bad as long as you don't take too large a whiff. Prickly on the palate - medium thickness with some astringency, hot brown sugar and kerosene. A little bit of Heaven Hill mint creeps in a la Vick's Vapor rub. Finish is surprisingly short, clementine and lily blossom.

🏆Verdict

2 - Inferior - This blend takes the worst attributes of both the Ezra Brooks and the Evan BiB and mixes them into an oily mess. It's not intolerable but both are much better on their own. I think the difference in age of the two bourbons is partially to blame. Don't try this one at home. One thing is for sure though, if Heaven Hill did put out a real well-aged Evan Williams 107 I would be a buyer.

Now that the hard work is over, time for a real quality PHD (pretty huge drink). Thanks for reading!

💀Scoring Reference

1 - Abysmal - Maybe I'm the monster? This is a war crime.

2 - Inferior - So preoccupied with the knowledge that we could, we didn't stop to think if we should.

3 - Neutral - A simple average of its parts. At least we did no real harm.

4 - Superior - "Jinkies Gang", we might be on to something here. Target whiskey is improved.

5 - Genius - Mad Science does have it's perks; this is a breakthrough. Better than all inputs.

🍺 Costco's Kirkland Vintage Ale 2025 - Review & Tasting Notes

Fall is in the air, and that means we have yet another year of Kirkland's Vintage Ale! Brewed proudly by Deschutes (pronounced "Da-Shootz") in Bend, Oregon, this Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout spends nine months in the wood, picking up what the whiskey left behind (mostly vanillin and tannins). Bottled over the summer, this particular beer is from Lot B. Neither Costco nor the packaging give us much additional detail beyond the ABV and style. I remember finding last year 's edition to be solid but nothing to write home about, fairly dry but a pleasant pour. The use of the work "vintage" to me implies that some changes may be made year-to-year but we'll have to see if our taste buds can help us validate. How does the 2025 vintage fair? 💅Style: Bourbon Barrel Imperial Stout 🛒Sourced: $7.99 Costco, GA for a 22oz bottle. $2 cheaper than the 2024 edition! 💥Hops: Not Mentioned sadly. Other ingredients include chocolate malt, milled oats and Dutc...

🍺🍷🥃 Beer, Wine, and Spirits Rebate Website Master List

If there is anything I love more than a good drink, it's saving money buying that good drink! The rules for providing discounts on alcohol differ substantially between states with some allowing outright discounts or coupons and others entirely disallowing any sort of purchase incentive. Thankfully though, in my native Georgia as well as most states, a simple reimbursement approach is permissible. Alcohol Rebate Site Master List The following sites are relatively stable for each manufacturer. New offers usually come out every few months. None of these are affiliate links and I provide no assurance as to the process. I have saved so much money using rebates and hope you have similar success. Best practices and general process advice will be presented at the bottom. New sites will be added as I uncover them. Beer Rebates Boston Beer Company Brands - Angry Orchard, Dogfish head, Hard Mountain Dew, Samuel Adams, Sun Crusher, Truly, and Twisted Tea. Some brands may not have active...

☕ All Java Monster Flavors Tasted & Ranked

As a habitual caffeine abuser, I have a soft spot for Monster, both for their expansive lineup of flavors as well as their support for Sports and E-sports. Coffee is my standard caffeination vector, so the Java Monster suite of products is the perfect mix of bean flavor and energy boost. In this post, I'll provide my personal rankings and rationale for what is a very strong lineup. Note that I have not been compensated in any way for this write-up... I just like them. Currently, Monster Energy 's Java Monster lineup has five available flavors: Mean Bean - Vanilla Irish Crème Loca Mocha - Chocolate Salted Caramel Café Latte There are two "triple shot" versions of the Vanilla and Mocha which contain 300mg of caffeine though their flavors are very similar to the base versions above. At this point, we should also take a moment of silence for the two cold brew flavors, sweet black and nitro latte. The nitro latte was a personal favorite and I quite liked the sweet black,...

🥃Review #20 Elijah Craig Barrel Proof - Private Barrel Distiller's Selection

📚 Background: Released in three batches per year, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Straight Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey is almost always a hit with aficionados. Barrel proof means that, of course, the whiskey is not cut with water after being dumped from the barrel. The "Private Barrel" moniker further tells you that not the barrel was specially selected and not batched or blended. This can cut both ways as single barrel whiskies sometimes differ significantly from their batched counterparts which have the benefit of distiller curation to even out any off notes. If your local store owner's tastes align with yours, their barrel picks may be better than anything else you can find. On the other hand, a less conscientious selector may pick you a big loser of a barrel. This bottle comes from Costco which means that the private barrel is a "distiller's selection" and not picked by a Costco employee specifically. Typically for these big releases the manufacturer will try...

🥃 Review #34: ASW Fiddler Toasted Wheat Cask Strength Bourbon

Founded by University of Georgia graduates Jim Chasteen and Charlie Thompson, American Spirit Whiskey Distillery ("ASW") is a craft producer out of Atlanta, GA with the plant registry DSP-GA-20014. As Southern Pot-Still Pioneers, they are one of the few producers to distill in the ancient Scottish Tradition of small, grain-in batches (where grain solids are left in for the remainder of the distillation process) though they also partner with Midwest Grain Products to source distillate for further aging, finishing and blending before bottling as is the case here. This bottle is from the June 2023 batch which is a blend of two principal spirits. ASW's master distiller, Justin Maglitz, is accomplished old-time string music fiddler and he often experiments with various factors between batches. As such, the "Fiddler" brand name fits perfectly. No two batches are truly the same, but all of the ones I've had so far have been to my liking. This bottle shares the same...

Castle & Cairn

Search This Blog