Taconic Distillery Cognac-Finished Bourbon

BourbonReviews

Sep 10

Taconic Cognac Cask Finished Bourbon.jpg

For this release, Taconic takes their NY Bourbon and finishes it in Cognac barrels for an unspecified amount of time.

Eye: Honey-colored, no rim - the liquid just slides down to the pool in a Glencairn.

Nose: Red wine is front and center just when you’re thinking you’ll get white and brings a musty-in-a-good-way aged wine body. The bourbon notes you’d expect are noticeably light here, but I find myself not missing them too much.

Palate: The red wine from the nose pairs well and accentuates a rye-forward bourbon palate. A bit tannic with very little heat. If I was blinded, I’d think this was more a barely-legal rye rather than a bourbon…the rye is just that strong. Mouthfeel is coating yet light.

Finish: Rye bread, spicy within reason, medium length.

Overall: For me, a bit too rye-forward for a bourbon. More age might tone down the rye notes and let the corn shine (just an assumption since rye tends to mature quicker than bourbon in the cask). This does show off the finishing well, if unexpectedly leaning towards the red wine rather than white wine side of things.

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)