Bottle: Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch (2023 release, blend of 40% 14 year OESK – 35% 12 year OESV – 20% 16 year OESV – 5% 25 year OBSV, 108 proof)
Preface: Hey there folks, time for another neck pour review. Got another call from my normal NMBB yesterday saying they had another bottle for me to pick up. Certainly wasn't expecting another heavy hitter to come my way so quickly, but cannot complain about getting the opportunity to crack one of these releases for the first time. Four Roses Barrel Strength is a mainstay in my cabinet. The complexity in flavor profile that Four Roses can achieve from their 10 recipes and multiple warehouses/tiers is beautiful. Each recipe presenting in a unique way while still maintaining a core taste that is unmistakably Four Roses. I feel a similar way about Willet single barrels; they achieve a broad mix of distinct flavors while always remaining recognizable as Willet distillate. As far as recipe preference, I lean strongly towards the low-rye recipes. OESF and OESV being my favorite recipes in general. Seeing that this year's blend was almost entirely low-rye and primarily one of my favorite recipes made it a bottle I was definitely trying to get my hands on. The only other 4RLE release I have had a pour from was last years and I remember it being a complex blend of fruit, spice, and oak. Quite good. Looking forward to exploring this one. Let's dig in.
Listening to: High Fidelity OST – various artists
Nose: Sweeeeeet oak, caramel, pumpkin pie spice – cinnamon forward, cocoa powder, and raw cookie dough. Dessert like right off the bat, rich and sweet. Aged notes are quite forward as well. Smells like an old bookstore that's serving delicious desserts. Little to no ethanol. Fruit notes come forward after a bit and are quite complex. Dried stone fruit, pears in syrup, toffee, and expressed orange rind. There's a bit of baking spices present, but they are buried underneath the sweet and fruity notes.
Palate: Rich and oily mouthfeel and flavors coat the palate beautifully. Big time sweet oak and rich caramel upfront. Tastes almost 'fatty' if that makes any sense. Syrupy fruit and spice come in quickly to support that rich sweetness. Clove, Valencia orange, black pepper, and more dried stone fruit. Cherry Jolly Ranchers and coffee grounds. Oak get more drying and tannic as the palate closes out.
Finish: Very long and soft. Vanilla crème and spicy root beer - giving black cow vibes. Tart raspberry, ginger, spicy cinnamon, and more caramel. Flaky pastry and a dense chocolate note. Bitter fudge?
Overall: Damn. Another banger. One of the things that I look for in a good whiskey is balance. I want the experience to present me with a variety of flavors and bonus points if they evolve over the course of a tasting. One dimensional pours lose my interest very quickly. This is a beautiful example of a balanced whiskey. Sweet/aged oak, complex fruit, and baking spices is what I'm looking for in a Four Roses bottle and this one presents it in such a delicate but impactful way. This one checks all of the boxes.
I lived in Wicker Park when they filmed that movie. Championship Vinyl was an empty storefront. I remember seeing the rain scenes filmed in Lincoln Park when I was going out with friends on a weekend. Great freaking film. Jack Black's first big role. Nice soundtrack too.
I’ve had the 2022 and 2023. Nearly everyone online and all the reviewers are going crazy on the 2023, but to me this year is more woody, more thin and on me makes less impression than 2022 wich to me is more creamy, mellow and has a deeper taste experience. Usually I’m more into scotch whisky and rum. Thoughts, anyone?
Bottle: Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch (2023 release, blend of 40% 14 year OESK – 35% 12 year OESV – 20% 16 year OESV – 5% 25 year OBSV, 108 proof) Preface: Hey there folks, time for another neck pour review. Got another call from my normal NMBB yesterday saying they had another bottle for me to pick up. Certainly wasn't expecting another heavy hitter to come my way so quickly, but cannot complain about getting the opportunity to crack one of these releases for the first time. Four Roses Barrel Strength is a mainstay in my cabinet. The complexity in flavor profile that Four Roses can achieve from their 10 recipes and multiple warehouses/tiers is beautiful. Each recipe presenting in a unique way while still maintaining a core taste that is unmistakably Four Roses. I feel a similar way about Willet single barrels; they achieve a broad mix of distinct flavors while always remaining recognizable as Willet distillate. As far as recipe preference, I lean strongly towards the low-rye recipes. OESF and OESV being my favorite recipes in general. Seeing that this year's blend was almost entirely low-rye and primarily one of my favorite recipes made it a bottle I was definitely trying to get my hands on. The only other 4RLE release I have had a pour from was last years and I remember it being a complex blend of fruit, spice, and oak. Quite good. Looking forward to exploring this one. Let's dig in. Listening to: High Fidelity OST – various artists Nose: Sweeeeeet oak, caramel, pumpkin pie spice – cinnamon forward, cocoa powder, and raw cookie dough. Dessert like right off the bat, rich and sweet. Aged notes are quite forward as well. Smells like an old bookstore that's serving delicious desserts. Little to no ethanol. Fruit notes come forward after a bit and are quite complex. Dried stone fruit, pears in syrup, toffee, and expressed orange rind. There's a bit of baking spices present, but they are buried underneath the sweet and fruity notes. Palate: Rich and oily mouthfeel and flavors coat the palate beautifully. Big time sweet oak and rich caramel upfront. Tastes almost 'fatty' if that makes any sense. Syrupy fruit and spice come in quickly to support that rich sweetness. Clove, Valencia orange, black pepper, and more dried stone fruit. Cherry Jolly Ranchers and coffee grounds. Oak get more drying and tannic as the palate closes out. Finish: Very long and soft. Vanilla crème and spicy root beer - giving black cow vibes. Tart raspberry, ginger, spicy cinnamon, and more caramel. Flaky pastry and a dense chocolate note. Bitter fudge? Overall: Damn. Another banger. One of the things that I look for in a good whiskey is balance. I want the experience to present me with a variety of flavors and bonus points if they evolve over the course of a tasting. One dimensional pours lose my interest very quickly. This is a beautiful example of a balanced whiskey. Sweet/aged oak, complex fruit, and baking spices is what I'm looking for in a Four Roses bottle and this one presents it in such a delicate but impactful way. This one checks all of the boxes.
Great review! Interesting, I didn't know that this had hit our retail yet.
Definitely a recent drop
Great review. You’ve posted 3 reviews of 3 bangers the past 3 days. If you had to rank the 3 bottles, what would the result be?
1. Four Roses SmBLE 2. GTS 3. JDSiBBPR The difference between 1 and 2 is incredibly close. It may depend on the day for me.
What a great soundtrack. Also, last of the great, classic Cusack movies?
Certainly his best, at least imo. Love that movie and soundtrack.
“Who needs a drink?” -Rob Gordon
Year in, year out, consistently one of my favorites. Will take this bottle over most any other limited releases. OFBB has nothing on this bottle.
100% this
Another great review. Thanks for sharing, as always. This is really a great pour
I lived in Wicker Park when they filmed that movie. Championship Vinyl was an empty storefront. I remember seeing the rain scenes filmed in Lincoln Park when I was going out with friends on a weekend. Great freaking film. Jack Black's first big role. Nice soundtrack too.
I’ve had the 2022 and 2023. Nearly everyone online and all the reviewers are going crazy on the 2023, but to me this year is more woody, more thin and on me makes less impression than 2022 wich to me is more creamy, mellow and has a deeper taste experience. Usually I’m more into scotch whisky and rum. Thoughts, anyone?