Barrell Craft Spirits – Dovetail Whiskey
- Distiller: Barrell Craft Spirits
- Spirit: Whiskey Finished in Rum, Port, & Dunn Vineyards Barrels
- Aged: Unstated
- Proof: 124.34
- Purchase Price: $89.99
About The Distillery: Barrell Craft Spirits was started by owner Joe Beatrice in 2013. Joe questioned the premise that starting a full-blown distillery was the only way to go about entering the whiskey game. He built the distillery on the premise of sniffing out great releases from established producers and creating unique and tasty blends to share with the whiskey world.
Blends. Where to begin?
Blends are one of those things that people are either morally for or against. Some people are purists and believe that whiskey is made to be distilled and bottled in its native form. I’ve even run across people that scoff at the idea of anything other than a small batch or single barrel, seeing it as a cop-out for having to create something that can stand on its own.
Me? I love ’em!
Blends are just an extension of the unlimited possibilities that whiskey brings us, and can unlock unique and interesting flavors that wouldn’t have been present in either iteration. I actually mess around with blending myself at my home bar.
It’s pretty awesome that companies are beginning to treat blending as a science and art, creating unique flavors and combinations for us to enjoy!
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Nose
(4.5)
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Palate
(4)
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Finish
(4)
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Value
(3.5)
Summary & Score
Nose: Molasses, rum, butterscotch, port, raspberry jam, and sweet corn make up a very complex, sweet, and juicy nose.
Palate: Dark chocolate, cooked molasses, black pepper, baking spices, dried herbs, and leather run through the palate making it a balance of sweet and savory.
Finish: Dry and savory with notes of dried rose hip, leather, baking spices, cabernet, and toasted walnut.
Final Thoughts: The pour is darn good. I’m a big fan of how the blend moves through the sweetness of the port and rum in the nose, to savory in the palate, and dry and earthy on the finish.
The pour isn’t classic. I mean that in a good way. In that the pour itself is unique, meshing flavors you wouldn’t normally associate with a whiskey to create something unique and new which is pretty cool.
The only thing that we were critical on is the price. If you’re looking for something unique and different, it’s worth a buy. However, at almost $90, you’re in the cost territory of a lot of heavy hitters near and dear to many whiskey enthusiasts heart. Or even 2-3 bottles of many daily drinkers. It’s a tough price-point for any whiskey. But, that being said, it definitely stands out as a unique pour that doesn’t try to be another carbon-copy of traditional higher-shelf drams.
Thumbs up!
