Michter’s 20 Year Limited Release
Quick Stats:
Distillery: Michter’s
Spirit: Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Age: 20 Years
Proof: 114.2
MSRP: $700
From The Distillery:
“While we regularly sample all our Michter’s barrels to see how our whiskey is aging, we pay even extra special attention to our barrels once they are over 17 years old. At Michter’s we consider 17 to 20 years the ‘Fork In The Road Point’ when certain barrels of whiskey can achieve an extraordinary level of quality. It is these particular barrels that our Master Distiller Dan McKee personally selects for our very limited bottling of Michter’s 20 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon.”
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Nose
(5)
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Palate
(4.5)
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Body
(4.5)
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Finish
(4)
Summary & Score
This is one of those pours that I’ve been pining after for a while. After about a year of gunning for it and almost pulling the trigger, the staff at The Silver Dollar in Louisville, KY were kind enough to front a pour for our review.
Michter’s has outdone theirselves on this pour. The nose is surprisingly sweet. It’s full of sweet caramel cream and vanilla with lighter notes of oak. We expected to be blown away with wood in the nose, but that wasn’t the case. It’s almost like a dessert.
The body had an intense oak flavor, but in a very enjoyable way. It’s not overtly charred oak flavor, more of a toasted and roasted oak combination. It’s hard to describe, even when that’s literally what I do all the time. But, it’s the way that Michter’s uses and understands their barrels that leads to a unique and delicious wood profile. However, sweet vanilla cuts through the wood and lends a nice underside to the palate that balances the savory flavors of the wood.
The body is bold, but not overly hot. Sitting at 114.2 proof, you’d expect it to be hotter than it is. The heat doesn’t overshadow the boldness of the flavors at all.
The finish is nice and dry. It fades into the classic flavors of leather and char with undernotes of cinnamon roasted pecans coated in vanilla sugar.
Overall, it’s a pour that was worth the wait. It has a suggested retail price of $700, but we’ve been hard-pressed to find it under $2,500. That being said, if you can find it at or near retail, it’s definitely a special occasion bottle that will wow.
