So we have recently had the Bulleit 95, but thanks to our Father’s Day gift of whiskies to recommend we have the 12 year and figured we’d put this one on the usual Wednesday. This too unlike Cascade was also just a sample size, but unlike that French Oak Crown Royale – we wish we had a full bottle of this.
While we could pontificate on the merits between the 12 year and the 95 edition, and while we have a whole section for this – let’s be plain. The 95 Straight for ~42 points, this got ~48 points. This is what separates you from being a slightly above average 6, to a damn well earned 7 (close enough) and that’s all we need to say.
What they Say: “Our 95% rye mash aged in select barrels for 12 years delivers a bold, rich taste.”
Taste: 6.0 – This is decidedly less sweet and more on rye flavor with a bit of an overproof heat to it. Overall okay, but not the party piece.
Aftertaste: 8.0 – You get a much more muted oak and rye here, alongside some of that heat. However, it’s the fact that the taste in your throat swells like a typhoon, along with the warmth it goes from okay to all-encompassing.
Burn/Smooth: 7.0 – That has what some could say is a burn, but it’s not sharp. It’s also majorly dulled by the warmth this brings, so much so it’s barely lost anything points-wise.
Aroma: 8.0 – The 95 you had to dig to get that good smell, this only makes it richer, more oak-y, and above all in your face. It’s frankly astounding.
Honesty: 8.5 – Once again the look here is spot on, and we’re fans of the Bulleit design. This, however, gets a few more points than the 95 did because this actually comments on the whiskey, but (and this is critical) they do so in a way they’ve actually pulled off. When we compare the taste to weather event you have earned the usage of bold + rich.
Mixability: 5.33
W/ Rocks: 5.0 – It mellows out any of the hard edges here to a smooth stone. The backend gets a bit more smoke, but it’s so much lost in power that it’s not worth doing this.
Whiskey and Coke: 5.0 – It’s not a bad whiskey and coke, but then why would you commit such a sin? We did it for the review – you should not.
Old Fashioned: 6.0 – It’s an interesting take, but by nature of that bit of ice this does still lose a step.
Value: 6.0 – This is a dollar more than the more popular and easier to find 95, but we encourage you that if you can – try it. That taste is so uniquely good that despite some niggling faults and a woefully inadequate cocktail selection – it’s damn worth it.
Google Shop Average: $30
Website: https://www.bulleit.com/
Reviewer Scores:
BuffaloJern: 7.5
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Metric Score: 48.83/70 |+| Metric Average: 6.98 |+| Reviewer Average: 7.5
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Final Thoughts: In this reviewer’s eyes there is but one single fault, one roadblock for this whiskey that would make it a staple of my life. It’s the fact that as an Old Fashioned not only is it merely okay, but it loses to the 95 straight. If that amazing taste carried in just a bit of ice, bitters, sugar, and garnishes we’d literally never stop talking about it.
