Shenk's Homestead Small Batch Kentucky Sour Mash Whiskey Release 2023 45.6% 700ml

Details：

Distillery: Michter's Disstillery

Bottler: Distillery Bottling

Bottling serie: Small Batch

Vintage: /

Bottled: 2023

Stated Age: /

Casktype: /

Casknumber: Batch L23E1508

Number of bottles: 2920

Strength: 45.6% 

Size: 700ml

Tasting notes：

Nose: The nose is distinctly different from previous years’ Shenk’s. I am finding much more telltale notes of the malted rye being used with every sniff I take. Scents like chocolate, mint and espresso beans are easy to pick out. More traditional notes like caramel, ground cinnamon and seasoned oak remind me of the Michter’s roots underneath it all.

Palate: Sweet and inviting flavors greet my tongue after each sip. There’s notes of toasted brown sugar, vanilla extract and cinnamon. Rye-forward spices like anise and clove seem to hint to the high-rye content. The malted rye reveals itself as more of an Andes after-dinner mint with a good balance of mint and chocolate. The tannins are a little more toned down than I was thinking they would. Did they cease to use the Chinquapin Oak barrels for a portion of this whiskey?

Finish: If you were thinking that the finish would reveal something different from what I listed so far, I hate to be the bearer of bad news. Lingering notes of chocolate and coffee hang around with some high-rye flavors like mint, cinnamon and mild white pepper. Oak and caramel seem somewhat mundane compared to the other notes I have found so far.