This Bourbon is from the Long Road Distillery in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Their Distiller, Jon O’Conner sent me this bottle along with a couple of other bottles of products they make there after a request for bottles to review for the new Tasting Notebook Susan and I are working on for publication next year. You have to like their style when the label reads “We don’t source whiskey, we source ingredients”.

They call their distillery “Long Road” because they are taking the long road in producing their own products. I like what I have tasted so far. It is still young but it has a good flavor and I can tell that they are not taking short cuts in production. I hope you enjoy this whiskey as much as I did.

Long Road Straight Bourbon

Proof: 93

Age: 2 years old

Nose: Fresh corn, vanilla and pepper with a hint of peach and yeasty bread dough in the background.

Taste: Corn, vanilla, pepper and that peach and oak remains in the background. A little more age will probably bring them forward. Tasted with a dried cranberry reduces the corn flavor but strengthens the pepper. Tasted with a pecan and the oak comes forward to the point of being astringent – not a good pairing.

Finish: Long, dry with oak and pepper. The cranberry makes it very peppery on the finish and the pecan makes it very oak forward and very astringent.

I enjoy this Bourbon neat. It also works very well with the cigar I chose to pair with it – A CAO Flatheasd Steel Horse. The cigar smoke is sweet with some chocolate and leather by itself. The Bourbon added some nice caramel notes and a bit of pepper spice to the smoke.  The smoke added a real nice vanilla creaminess to the Bourbon. A very good experience.

 

Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller