Kavalan Soloist Cask Strength Vinho Barrique
Kavalan Soloist Cask Strength Vinho Barrique
57% ABV, NAS
Vinho Barrique Cask
Taiwan
Eye: sunset orange, a gorgeous and unusual color. Medium rim bleeds very slowly.
Nose: some heat up front but also caramel sweetness. Red wine mustiness, like an old, well-aged vintage. Cooked red fruit and bourbon-y notes on the nose. Really delightful. Oaky tannins open up just a few minutes in. Hints of maple lead to an almost Old Fashioned (cocktail) scent.
Palate: Again some heat up front, leads into corn sweetness. My mouth literally watered at the caramel and plum/red fruit flavors bursting through the heat. Flavors of orange and dark muscovado sugar in the background further evoke the Old Fashioned. A buttery note that’s nice but odd…like not a flavor but also not a mouthfeel, just a buttery essence? Medium bodied.
Finish: long, mostly hot in the throat but sweet corn in the corners of your mouth.
Overall: a bit hot throughout, but I kind of like it for this pour. There are Old Fashioned notes everywhere. The red wine cask is less pronounced than I expected (really only in the nose) but perhaps it gives some of that oak profile that lasts throughout.
Rating: 5.8
10 | Insurpassable | Nothing Else Comes Close (Blanton’s Straight from the Barrel)
9 | Incredible | Extraordinary (GTS, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof B518 and B520)
8 | Excellent | Exceptional (12+YO MGP Bourbon, Highland Park Single Barrels)
7 | Great | Well above average (Blanton’s Original, Old Weller Antique, Booker’s)
6 | Very Good | Better than average (Four Roses Small Batch Select, Knob Creek 14+ YO Picks)
5 | Good | Good, solid, ordinary (Elijah Craig Small Batch, Buffalo Trace, Old Grand-Dad Bottled-in-Bond)
4 | Sub-par | Many things I’d rather have (A.D. Laws Four Grain, Compass Box “Oak Cross”)
3 | Bad | Flawed (Iron Smoke Bourbon, Balcones)
2 | Poor | Forced myself to drink it (Buckshee Bourbon and Rye)
1 | Disgusting | Drain pour (Virginia Distilling Co. Cider Cask)
Recent Whiskey Reviews
