Bourbon Heritage Month 2020 Day 30: Widow Jane Decadence
Widow Jane Decadence
Region: Bottled in NY, Distilled in KY (?) and TN (Dickel)
Proof: 91 (45.5% ABV)
Age: 10 YO
Batch 1, Bottle 1301
Eye: Dark, opaque maple syrup. Medium rim in a glencairn with quick droplet legs. When opened, the synthetic cork had a ring of maple crystals; these crystals also appear at the bottom of the bottle as sediment normally would.
Nose: Baked brioche drenched in maple syrup. Sweetness (maple) is there but is not overpowering. “Decadence” is the perfect word - nose is rich, dense, and slightly smoky. Minerality comes out with some air.
Palate: Powerful vanilla maple sugar. There is heat and a bit of the vitamin mineralogy from Dickel which, for once, is not a detraction but rather an addition to the palate. The maple candy builds beautifully without forgetting the bourbon base and leaves your lips sticky and wanting more.
Finish: Maple candy, sweetness, zero heat. The Dickel note lingers in the background.
Mouthfeel: Oily, medium to full bodied.
Overall: Finally, a place for DIckel juice where it fits. The maple, brioche, and slight minerality conjures a Saturday French toast breakfast as a kid. A great example of a finished bourbon done right.
Rating: 7.6
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)
