Little Book is a Blended Whiskey. That is not a bad thing in that they do not use any grain neutral spirits in making this whiskey, What they have done is blend 11 year old Bourbon, 8 year old Bourbon, 8 year old rye, 7 year old Bourbon, and another 7 Year old Bourbon from a different mash bill. It makes for an interesting whiskey, well worth the Little Book name. Little Book is the brainchild of Freddie Noe, who likes to create these blends. I recently got a bottle of Chapter Nine and Matt and I sat down to taste it. Here are our tasting notes.
Little Book Chapter Nine
Proof: 121.8
Age: Seven Years Old
Nose:
- Mike: Caramel, butterscotch, dates, allspice and oak wood.
- Matt: Caramel, cherries, cardamom and oak wood.
Taste:
- Mike: Caramel, dates, cinnamon, nutmeg, and oak wood. Tasted with a dried cranberry and the caramel becomes a rich buttered caramel and the cinnamon comes forward. Tasted with a pecan and citrus notes and chocolate come out to play.
- Matt: Caramel, cherries, peanuts, cardamom, buttered toast and oak wood. The dried cranberry enhanced the caramel and peanut flavors. The pecan brought out peanut butter and buttered toast.
Finish:
- Mike: Medium long with oak wood, baking spices and lingering caramel. The dried cranberry made the finish long with oak wood and lots of cinnamon. The pecan made the finish very long with oak wood, baking spices, citrus and lingering chocolate.
- Matt: Medium long with oak and cherries. The dried cranberry made the finish long with oak wood and cardamom. The pecan made the finish very long with oak wood, cardamom and lingering caramel.
I would pair this whiskey with a My Father The Judge cigar. I think the rich vanilla and chocolate notes in the smoke would pair well with the sweet notes of the whiskey.
Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller