This is a whiskey developed at Castle & Key in cooperation with the Kentucky Black Bourbon Guild in Lexington. It is a whiskey that is a blend of Bourbon and rye whiskeys made at Castle & Key to be sold to support the Black Bourbon Guild’s scholarship fund to educate more African-Americans who want to get into the distilling industry. It is an excellent cause that is matched with an excellent whiskey. It is “Chapter One” because they hope to make this an on-going project. Matt and I sat down and tasted this whiskey and here are our tasting notes.
The Untold Story of Whiskey Chapter One
Proof: 106.6
Age: Four Years, six Months
Nose:
- Mike: Vanilla, rye grassiness with some peaches, baking spices and sweet oak wood.
- Matt: Vanilla with strawberries, honeysuckle flowers and sweet oak wood.
Taste:
- Mike: Vanilla, rye grass, peaches, cardamom, leather and sweet oak wood. Tasted with a dried cranberry and the fruit becomes peachy with some dried apricot and the spice is reduced. Tasted with a pecan and the vanilla and oak take center stage.
- Matt: A creamy vanilla latte and strawberry tart. The dried cranberry adds a little lemon and honey flavors. The pecan brings out chocolate, peanut butter and nutmeg spice.
Finish:
- Mike: Medium long with oak and fine leather. The dried cranberry shortens the finish and makes it sweeter with lingering fruit notes. The pecan made the finish very long with oak, leather and some lingering vanilla.
- Matt: Lots of oak and spice with hints of vanilla. The dried cranberry add notes of leather. The pecan added a lot of spice to the finish.
I would pair this whiskey with a cigar with lots of cedar spiciness in the smoke. I think an Arturo Fuente Between the Lines would be what I would reach for with this whiskey.
Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller