Michter’s 25 Year Old Straight Bourbon
Spirit: 25 YEAR KENTUCKY STRAIGHT BOURBON
Distillery: Michter’s Distillery
Aged: 25 years
Price: $830…. but good luck finding it for under $6500
Proof: 116.2
About The Distillery:
“Originally known as Shenk’s and later as Bomberger’s, the whiskey company which ultimately became known as Michter’s was founded by John Shenk, a Swiss Mennonite farmer, in Schaefferstown, Pennsylvania in 1753. In its earliest days, Shenk’s produced whiskey from rye grain, a favorite local crop in the Pennsylvania Blue Mountain Valley where the distillery was located.
Today, Michter’s has three locations in Kentucky – a 78,000 square foot distillery in the Shively section of Louisville, the architecturally significant Fort Nelson Building on Louisville’s Museum Row, and 205 acres of farmland in Springfield.”
About Michter’s 25:
“The grandes dames of the portfolio, Michter’s 25-Year Rye and 25-Year Bourbon
represent more than a quarter-century of maturation in the Distillery’s finest
barrels. Available only as stocks permit, these outstanding whiskeys are
extraordinarily rich in flavor.”
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Nose
(3)
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Palate
(4.5)
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Body
(4.5)
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Finish
(5)
Summary
Nose: Bold vanilla, mild orange citrus, and hints of wood which was surprising given the age and what you get on the palate.
Palate: OAK! spiced apple pie… oak, sweet caramel cream, cinnamon, and, oh yea, oak.
Finish: Pleasantly long and spicy finish, the oak really brings out a unique sweetness of the honeycomb
Review: I had a unique opportunity to attend The Twisted Tail Owner’s Collection Tasting when I first moved the Philadelphia. There, I was able to try a number of very rare and allocated bottles. Amongst the Pappy Van Winkles and the BTAC’s that were a part of the tasting, the most impressive bottle was the Michter’s 25. It was everything you expect from 25-year-old bourbon. George, the owner of Twisted Tail, was able to acquire one of the only 359 bottles of Michter’s 25-Year-Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon. Not only that, George graciously shared this bottle, along with other highly allocated bottles, in a nice “Welcome to Philly” tasting.
I found myself struggling to write about this particular bottle. I mean. what can I say about a bottle as rare and as sought after as this one? To be honest, I don’t even know that it was the best bottle I tried the night of the tasting–though it was incredible–it was more about the experience of being able to try such a rare bottle. It was being able to taste the history in this bottle. If you get the opportunity to try it, don’t pass on the adventure this bottle takes you on. 25 years is a long time in the whiskey world, especially the bourbon world. This bottle offers a unique experience to drinkers, almost allowing you to explore the past 25 years. A lot of you reading this weren’t even alive when this bottle was distilled. While I was alive, I certainly was several years away from enjoying my first whiskey. For a little context, the United States has had five presidents since this bottle was distilled. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have won two Super Bowls, the Philadelphia Eagles have won one Super Bowl and my Atlanta Falcons blew a 28-3 lead (with 2:12 to go in the 3rd quarter) to lose a Super Bowl in one of their two appearances during this time. The year that this bottle was distilled, Forest Gump won best picture at the Academy Awards, ER and Seinfeld were the top two rated shows on TV and POGs were the top-selling Christmas toy.
As I stated in the description, you can really taste the barrel with this pour. This will probably not be a favorite for those who don’t like a heavy oak taste. However, the aging seasons really show through the oak with a heavy spice, mellowed by a creamy caramel barrel flavor. The pour was incredibly smooth for an over 116 proof whiskey. My only criticism of this bottle was the nose. I was almost underwhelmed at the lack of depth offered by the nose, especially considering the depths that the palate provided. Overall, a remarkable experience with this pour.
A special thanks to George at The Twisted Tail in Philadelphia for hosting an incredible event. Cheers!
User Review
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Chris first became affiliated with Whiskey Culture when he met Greg at one of their regular hangouts, Whiskey Willy’s in Tampa, FL.
Their mutual love for whiskey and connecting with other whiskey enthusiasts quickly spurred a great friendship between them. Chris and Greg would share samples, and hunt bottles for each other as their travels took them around the country.
Chris regularly attended Whiskey Culture events, and was even invited to sit on the tasting panel for Whiskey Culture’s first private barrel pick!
Now in Philadelphia, Chris is a regular contributor for Whiskey Culture writing op-ed pieces and bottle reviews.
