I first tasted the whiskey from Ironroot Republic in New Orleans at the first New Orleans Bourbon Festival. I was impressed with their one year old whiskey and the distiller. He later sent me a sample and I enjoyed that as well. Fast forward to this year and Tom Cole, the local brand ambassador for the company, stopped by and dropped off a bottle of their Harbinger Bourbon. Matt and I sat down to taste it the other day and here are our tasting notes.
Ironroot Republic Harbinger Bourbon
Proof: 115
Age: 36 Months Old
Nose:
- Mike: Corn, vanilla, leather and oak wood.
- Matt: Corn, dark chocolate, plums and oak wood.
Taste:
- Mike: Corn, vanilla, plums, leather, black pepper and oak wood. Tasted with a dried cranberry and the vanilla becomes a French vanilla. Tasted with a pecan and cinnamon and nutmeg spices come forward.
- Matt: Caramel, corn, plums, black cherries and oak wood. The dried cranberry made the taste a candy corn and leather. The pecan made it taste of buttered corn and caramel.
Finish:
- Mike: Medium long with oak wood and black pepper. The dried cranberry made the finish long and spicy with lots of black pepper. The pecan made the finish long and spicy with oak wood and red hot cinnamon candy.
- Matt: Medium long with oak wood and leather. The dried cranberry made the finish long with lingering caramel. The pecan made the finish long and sweet with oak wood, buttered corn and lingering caramel.
I would pair this Bourbon with a NUB Maduro cigar. I think the vanilla and tobacco notes in the smoke would pair well with the vanilla in the Bourbon.
Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller