Distillery 291 is located on Nevada Ave., Colorado Springs, Colorado. Several months ago, they sent me three sample bottles of their whiskeys. Unfortunately, the bottles were misplaced and I just recently found them. My apologies to the distillery for this mishap. Matt and I tasted them soon after I found them. They sent me three samples to taste, but they appear to be barrel proof as I don’t see the brands as being sold at these proofs. They are Bad Guy Bourbon, made from corn, malted wheat, malted rye and beech-smoked barley. HR Bourbon, made from corn, malted rye and malted barley. M Colorado Whiskey, which is not listed on their website. Matt and I found them to be very solid whiskeys at these proofs, but would have liked to sample them at bottle proof. Here are our tasting notes.

Bad Guy Bourbon

Proof: 115.6

Age: No Age Statement

Nose:

  • Mike: Vanilla, apricots, citrus and oak.
  • Matt: Cream of wheat, vanilla, lemons and oak.

Taste:

  • Mike: Vanilla, lemons, apricots, cinnamon spice and oak wood. Tasted with a dried cranberry and the apricot and lemon come through stronger. Tasted with a pecan and there is less oak and spice, more apricot and less lemon.
  • Matt: Sarsaparilla, ginger, vanilla and oak. Tasted with a dried cranberry brings out black pepper notes. Tasted with a pecan enhances the vanilla and adds lemon notes.

Finish:

  • Mike: A bit hot with oak and cinnamon red hot candy. The dried cranberry reduced the heat but left the cinnamon spiciness. The pecan made the finish very dry with lots of oak and only a hint of cinnamon.
  • Matt: Oak, ginger and a hint of cocoa. The dried cranberry made the finish longer and added a note of tobacco. The pecan made it very oaky with notes of tobacco.

H R Bourbon 

Proof: 128.2

Age: No Age Statement

Nose:

  • Mike: A lot of alcohol dominates the nose. Vanilla and oak are all that come past the alcohol. (Note: a little water helped this Bourbon quite a bit)
  • Matt: A rye grass field with vanilla and oak.

Taste:

  • Mike: Vanilla, dates, allspice and oak wood. The dried cranberry brought out the dates and a black pepper spice. The pecan brought out caramel, pepper and a lot of oak wood.
  • Matt: Rye grass, vanilla, citrus and oak wood. The dried cranberry took the rye grass from the taste. The pecan made it a bit oily with caramel and black pepper.

Finish:

  • Mike: Long with lots of oak, spice and lingering dates. The dried cranberry made the finish very peppery. The pecan made the finish very long and dry with oak and pepper.
  • Matt: Intense oak wood that settles into leather and black pepper. The dried cranberry tamed the oak wood, but left the leather and pepper. The pecan made it very spicy with black pepper and leather.

M Colorado Whiskey

Proof: 126.9

Age: No Age Statement

Nose:

  • Mike: Vanilla with a touch of honey, wild berries and oak.
  • Matt: Caramel with raisins and other dark fruits, allspice and oak.

Taste:

  • Mike: Vanilla, honey, wild berries raspberries and blackberries, some baking spice and oak wood. The dried cranberry enhanced the berries and made the spice a definite cinnamon and allspice. The pecan brought out some lemonade notes.
  • Matt: Vanilla and caramel with raisins, white pepper and oak wood. The dried cranberry made it creamy like a vanilla latte with some pepper spice. The pecan brought out notes of Cocoa Puffs cereal.

Finish:

  • Mike: Medium long with oak wood and lingering berry sweetness. The dried cranberry made the finish very spicy with cinnamon and white pepper. The pecan made the finish very long with oak and cinnamon and lingering lemon.
  • Matt: Very oaky with white pepper and lingering citrus. The dried cranberry added some sweet vanilla notes to the finish. The pecan made the finish long with more vanilla and caramel.

I would pair these whiskeys with a cigar that has earthy tobacco and vanilla notes in the smoke. I would reach for a Jamie Garcia Reserva cigar.

Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller