Last week I participated in an American Whiskey Tasting in Den Bosch at De Whiskykoning. The ‘Whisky King’ is a specialist retailer with heaps of whisk(e)y on display ranging from the very cheapest Red Label to the most expensive 1939 Linkwood at 2.500 euros. So you bet you can find a bottle to your liking and budget there!

Apart from the range of bottles in store there are also a lot of tastings held at Friday nights. Last year there were ‘recession’ tastings consisting of ancient Springbanks, 30 year old whiskies, 25 year old whiskies, so pretty awesome!

Hirsch Selection Special Reserve Corn Whiskey, 45%
Very light on the nose with less sweetness than I expected. Corn bread. The taste gets sweeter and sweeter with every minute, but the finish turns a little bitter. Apart from the sweetness its a rather thin whiskey, watered down a bit too far. The finish also has some chilli pepper. Not my cup of tea.

Dickel Barrel Select 2006, 43%
Very sweet with lots of brown sugar, banana and caramel. The taste is, again, lighter than expected, with some white oak shavings and quite some tannines. The finish is very very short. After half an hour it gets more and more herbal like soup or bouillon. The nose is good but the rest was a bit off putting.

Jefferson’s Reserve batch 66, 45.1%
The nose has a lot to offer with clove, cocoa, cookie dough, banana and in the end, buttered toast. The taste has quite a lot of rye and a hint of pepper. Less dry than I thought it would be. The finish turn more fruity. A very very nice dram with a lot of complexity and it doesn’t go bad in the end!

Eagle Rare 10, 45%
Very nice, but reviewed earlier (to a lesser rate than I remembered)

Blanton’s Barrel Proof (barrel 132), 65%
Anise, sugared jelly candy (is this a Dutch thing?), sugar and licorice. The taste is VERY strong (at 65% ABV, so no surprise), dry, very cloying and wood. The finish offers peppers, sambal, spices and tobacco.

Rittenhouse Rye 23yo, 50%
Quite crisp with a lot of rye, coffee, chocolate and mocha. The taste is very complex, dry and with quite some cereal. The finish has some sour rye (or acidic) with clove, a light sweetness and a little bitterness. Its a struggle to get much out of it, since there is a LOT going on. I think I spent an hour with this dram and could spend many more. Very very good.

So, a very nice tasting with a good build up. The Rittenhouse was terrific, as I expected after having tasted the 100 Proof and the 25 year old. Love to buy one of those older ones, but clocking in at 200 euros, they’re a bit expensive.