Episode Transcript
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>> Announcer (00:00):
On the next episode of sips, suds and smokes.
>> Brent (00:03):
This is our, uh, faraway, uh, series two show. We
all look forward to these shows every year. Boy,
we're happy about this one. So we're going to be
tasting this year's Buffalo Trace antique
collection. And here are the whiskeys we're going
to be tasting new for the Buffalo Trace antique
collection this year. The 2025 E. H. Taylor
(00:25):
Bobbled and Bond Bourbon. The 2025 Thomas H. Handy
Kentucky Straight Rye, the 2025 Sazerac 18 Year
Old Kentucky Straight Rye, the 2025 Eagle Rare 17
Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon, the 2025
William LaRue Weller Kentucky Straight Bourbon,
and the 2025 George T. Stagg Kentucky straight
(00:46):
bourbon. Boy, this sucks. It's just terrible.
Terrible.
>> Harm (00:51):
Somebody's got to do it.
>> Announcer (00:53):
We'll be right back after this break.
>> Justin (01:05):
M.
>> Announcer (01:17):
Brought to you almost live from the dude in the
basement studios.
>> Harm (01:21):
Why?
>> Announcer (01:22):
Because that's where the good stuff is. Sips, suds
and smokes with your smoking host, the good old
boys. And now it's sippin time.
>> Justin (01:53):
Foreign.
>> Brent (01:58):
Hey.
>> Harm (01:59):
Yes.
>> Brent (01:59):
It's sipping time again. Welcome to this sips
episode where everything good in life is worth
discussing. This is our fall release show number
two.
>> Justin (02:10):
You dragged me into this, didn't you?
>> Brent (02:11):
Oh, uh, well, somebody's got to. Yeah. So, yeah,
we'll wait for this one all year. And this year we
are very happy.
>> Justin (02:23):
Happy.
>> Brent (02:24):
Very happy.
>> Justin (02:25):
How happy?
>> Brent (02:26):
Well, we do six on a show, and every year we've
done the Buffalo Trace antique collection, which
was five, but this year they added one. So now it
is six. So now we can do one whole show.
>> Justin (02:38):
They did it just for our show. I'd like that.
>> Bob (02:40):
That's very nice.
>> Justin (02:41):
Very considerate.
>> Brent (02:42):
They're great people, aren't they?
>> Justin (02:44):
Very considerate.
>> Brent (02:44):
Love, Harwin. He's. He's a heck of a guy. Well,
this is made man Bob. And joining me today are
made man Brent.
>> Justin (02:54):
It's always a pleasure, especially days like
today.
>> Brent (02:56):
Yeah, good old boy Justin.
>> Bob (02:58):
Couldn't be happier to be here.
>> Brent (03:00):
Uh, good old boy Harm.
>> Harm (03:01):
I could be happier.
>> Brent (03:03):
I doubt it.
>> Harm (03:03):
I mean, this is not a scotch show. But you gave me
btac. I'm okay. I'll be here. That's fine. Thank
you. I'm present.
>> Brent (03:10):
He exists in a plane of misery that is just
unknown to normal mortal man.
>> Harm (03:15):
So, yeah, somebody described the other day
Laphroaig as, uh, misery. Um, and burning tires.
Yeah, that's where I like to be.
>> Brent (03:23):
Yeah, well, I get. I get the burning tire part,
the misery part, I don't like so much.
>> Harm (03:28):
It's a, it's a very Scottish thing.
>> Brent (03:29):
Well, our sip segments are all about wine,
distilled spirits, tea, coffee, anything else you
can sip. And again, this is our uh, far release,
uh, series two shows. Um, we all look forward to
these shows every year. Um, and boy, we're happy
about this one. So we're going to be tasting this
year's Buffalo Trace Antique collection. And here
(03:50):
are the whiskeys we're going to be tasting new for
the Buffalo Trace Antique collection this year.
The 2025 E.H. taylor Bottled and Bond Bourbon. The
2025 Thomas H. Handy Kentucky Straight Rye, the
2025 Sazerac 18 Year Old Kentucky Straight Rye.
The 2025 Eagle Rare 17 Year Old Kentucky Straight
(04:11):
Bourbon, the 2025 William William LaRue Weller
Kentucky Straight Bourbon and the 2025 George T.
Stagg Kentucky Straight Bourbon. Boy, this stocks
just terrible. It's terrible.
>> Harm (04:26):
Somebody's got to do it. I mean, uh, we, we do
this for you. We, we throw ourselves on that
grenade.
>> Brent (04:33):
Well, honestly, we kind of do. You know, I've had
people say, well, why taste the ones that nobody
can get? I said, well, honest can get them is
because of the show and they're kind enough to
share them. A lot of times maybe you're going to
pull the trigger and maybe scalp one somewhere.
Uh, but you can't afford to buy all of them. Well,
if you can listen to this, you can sort of live
(04:53):
vicariously through us and maybe from our tasting
notes, pick which one you want and not get the
wrong one.
>> Justin (04:59):
So, you know, plus we have to drink arcane on some
occasions.
>> Brent (05:04):
Yes, yes.
>> Bob (05:04):
Yeah, people balances.
>> Brent (05:06):
People always forget. You know, sometimes, you
know, sometimes you get the really good ones and
sometimes, sometimes you get the really not good
one. So, uh, it all balances out. It's karma.
There's a yin and yang to it.
>> Harm (05:14):
So I seem to be more emotionally scarred than that
one than you guys were.
>> Brent (05:18):
Yeah, well, yeah, I'm sure that I know your mom,
so. Yeah, well, so we're going to be tasting and
rating these whiskeys with our signature sounds.
Let's have Justin give us one of them.
>> Bob (05:30):
Oh, let's go with five.
>> Brent (05:32):
Okay. We won't be hearing that today.
>> Justin (05:35):
No, not at all. Why don't we hear two?
>> Harm (05:38):
You do a sound we won't hear today. No, you do
something. Do a sound we won't hear today. Okay.
>> Justin (05:44):
Five sips.
>> Harm (05:45):
That's, that's the sound we're gonna hear the
most. Come on. Do what we're not gonna hear.
>> Bob (05:49):
Oh, one, we're not going to hear.
>> Harm (05:51):
All right.
>> Bob (05:52):
Two.
>> Justin (05:54):
Nice spot. What else do you have?
>> Brent (05:58):
Isn't that nice?
That sounded a little Boris Karloffy to me. That
mhm was. That was interesting.
>> Bob (06:03):
So sneer Halloween.
>> Brent (06:04):
Yeah. Okay, well, let's get started. We're going
to have Brent tell us about our first whiskey.
>> Justin (06:10):
Thanks, Bob. This first one is the EH Taylor
Bottled and Bond Bourbon. It's 20, 25 release.
It's 100 proof, 50% ABV. So EH Taylor Bottle and
Bond bourbon is the first new addition to the
Buffalo Trace antique collection since the Thomas
H. Hattie joined the portfolio back in 2006. This
(06:30):
is aged 15 years and four months in the
distillery's warehouses and hand bottled at 100
proof to meet the bottle and Bond standard. This
bears Colonel E.H. taylor's signature just as
every bottle under his watch did. The color on
this. This is a nice copper, I'm gonna say like an
80s copper. 80s to 90s copper penny there. Um, on
(06:52):
the nose I just get a huge, huge hit of cherry
vanilla honey. And I know it's difficult to say
this, but I actually like got creaminess on the
nose. And that's not something you can like, you
know, like smell. But you just, you can tell, you.
>> Harm (07:08):
Can tell when something's creamy from the smell.
You can, There's a. Yeah, it's, it's just, it's a
sensation that uh, it's, it's that, it's that
lactic acid smell, I guess. You know, there's the,
yeah, like the.
>> Justin (07:20):
Creamy soda when you have one of those, you know.
But on the palate, um, I got big, bold baking
spices right off the bat. Dark cherry, some oak
tannins.
>> Harm (07:29):
I don't get the cherry like you do, man.
>> Justin (07:31):
I get more vanilla and.
>> Brent (07:33):
Yeah.
>> Justin (07:33):
And then it's. But, but this one here is very
front forward on the palette to me. You know, on
the front it doesn't quite reach the back. Even
though when you, even when you do the whole
Tennessee, uh, chew it, it just kind of doesn't
follow all.
>> Harm (07:46):
The flavors on the front.
>> Justin (07:47):
Yeah, yeah, all the flavors on the front. It's.
And it's nice flavor. Uh, and it, and the night.
The one thing with about the finish. So it kind of
finishes off like a little bit of a dusty. After
everything kind of fades off a little bit. You get
that dusty note from like a 70s dusty. Overall, I
really enjoyed it.
>> Announcer (08:04):
Harm.
>> Harm (08:05):
I, I agree with you. Except I do not get the
cherry on the nose, but on the palette, it is
right there at the very front. I, uh, got more
vanilla than you did, a little leather. I got some
Jordan almond coming out on the nose. And, um, on
the palate, it's a huge, big step up from the
original. The regular ball and bond that, you
know, we get on the. On the shelves. But there's a
(08:26):
gorgeous oakiness to this, and I think that's
maybe where your creaminess is coming. On the
nose, it's like, it's got. It's just got this, um,
the sensation. And on the palate, it's not. It's
not that creaminess that you'd expect, but it's
got beautiful wood, uh, oak grip to it, um, on the
(08:48):
sides. But you're right. The flavor is mostly at
the front, a little bit mid palate, but in the
back, there's not much there.
>> Justin (08:53):
Yeah, it just, it falls off. It skips the back of
your palate for. For some reason, but it doesn't.
Doesn't take away from it at all.
>> Harm (09:00):
The finish is kind of medium. I mean, I enjoyed
it. Justin, what'd you think about it?
>> Bob (09:04):
On the nose I got caramel, was, uh, light, a
little vanilla. Pears and pralines. On the palate,
I don't get pralines, man.
>> Harm (09:13):
I'll give you vanilla and pearl.
>> Brent (09:15):
He doesn't get pr. Do you get prawines?
>> Bob (09:19):
The palette was rich, lush caramel, vanilla oak,
classic bourbon palette. For me, um, the finish
was mid palette. Fades off pretty quick, but it
was very good.
>> Harm (09:34):
Bobby. Bobby Joe.
>> Brent (09:35):
Well, it's. It's funny when you have six killers
like this in front of you, how you. You just, you
know. Well, you know, this one, I mean.
>> Bob (09:42):
If this was under the tree, who, who wouldn't be?
>> Brent (09:45):
It's like the guy sitting at Hooters going, you
know, she's the least attractive girl, right?
Hooters. It's like, you know, it's. It's. It's
absolutely delicious. It's sweet honey, cherry and
marshmallow. On the nose, the palate. Mhm. I got
(10:05):
it more when we first opened it up, but it's got a
little air and it's died down a bit. But I get
cola.
>> Harm (10:11):
Yeah.
>> Brent (10:12):
Um, like a mix of, like, cola and a little bit of
cherry cola. The oak is there, the char is there,
and we were discussing it before you guys came in.
There's that dustiness on. On the finish for me
that. It does it. Nobody asked.
>> Harm (10:25):
A candy diamond.
>> Brent (10:26):
It harkens back to Um, a dusty, you know, 70s
whiskey kind of. Um, I'm getting about 80% palate
cover. Just the very back is. It's missing on me.
Um, and again, splitting hairs. It's a fantastic
whiskey. And if I could find one of these at
retail, you bet I'd snap one up.
>> Harm (10:43):
So, uh, you find any of these at retail?
>> Brent (10:46):
Just get it, please.
>> Harm (10:47):
Yeah, don't mess around.
>> Brent (10:49):
Yeah, but we'll be back.
>> Justin (10:58):
Hey.
>> Brent (10:59):
And we're back. And we were just wrapping up our
discussion on the Buffalo Trace antique E. H.
Taylor bottled and Bond 25 release. Anybody have
anything else to say before we rate it?
>> Harm (11:10):
There's nothing left to discuss. Let's do a
rating, man. We got five other whiskeys to do.
>> Brent (11:13):
We're gonna give the H. Taylor bottle to bond.
Well deserved. Four sips.
>> Harm (11:17):
There you go.
>> Brent (11:20):
That's gonna take us to our next whiskey, and
we're gonna have Justin tell us about that one.
>> Bob (11:24):
We're gonna talk about the 2025 Thomas H. Handy
Kentucky Straight Rye. It's 64.9% alcohol by
volume or 129. 0.8 proof. The Thomas H. Handy
Sazerac straight rye whiskey takes its name from
the New Orleans businessman and owner of the
(11:44):
legendary Sazerac coffee house who first used rye
whiskey in the classic Sazerac cocktail. This
whiskey is 6 years, 3 months old at the time of
bottling up from last year's, um, 127.2 proof. It
was aged number four, Cheryls from Char.
>> Harm (12:04):
Barrels 129. Yeah.
>> Bob (12:07):
As I said in the beginning.
>> Harm (12:08):
Did you. Yeah.
>> Bob (12:10):
The number four.
>> Brent (12:10):
Thanks for listening.
>> Bob (12:12):
Are barrels from the Cumberland Cooperage in
warehouses L, N, Double A and Double D, my
favorite. On the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh
floors. With 31% of the original whiskey lost to
evaporation. Or they didn't see me that night when
I got in the warehouse.
>> Harm (12:33):
I see what you did there with the double D. I just
want you.
>> Brent (12:35):
To know that I.
>> Justin (12:36):
He was. He was talking.
>> Bob (12:39):
So the color was like a darker copper than the eh.
Taylor we just reviewed. Um, the nose is intense.
I got like, the smell of burning kerosene lamp.
>> Brent (12:51):
What?
>> Bob (12:52):
Uh, rye.
>> Harm (12:54):
No, he's not wrong. He's not wrong. There's a
sweet kerosene.
>> Brent (12:58):
Oh, he's wrong all the time.
>> Harm (12:59):
No, he's not. This, uh. Yes, he's wrong all the
time. But there are times that sometimes, you
know, like a broken clock. Twice a day. Twice a
day.
>> Brent (13:07):
He's a broken digital clock.
>> Announcer (13:10):
Never.
>> Bob (13:10):
Right.
>> Harm (13:10):
Yeah. Those aren't actual numbers.
>> Justin (13:13):
He just flashes. 12.
>> Harm (13:15):
Yeah.
>> Brent (13:18):
Like my dad's VCR.
>> Harm (13:19):
Yeah.
>> Brent (13:20):
Yeah.
>> Bob (13:21):
After. After it aired for a while, I got, like,
stronger wood note on the palate. It was, um,
spicy oaky. I got, uh, raisins, rye oak. The
finish was long and sweet. Huge rye. This is a
huge whiskey. I loved it. What'd you think, Brent?
>> Justin (13:43):
Yeah, I enjoyed every. Everything about this. Uh,
this brings me back. I think Kahane kind of
dropped off a little bit, you know, the last
couple years where it was really good. But this
just brought me back to some of the older. Some of
the older bottlings. And it's. It's. It's vibrant.
It's. It's just. It just really. All those flavors
(14:04):
just pop at you and, you know, just grab you, and
I enjoy that. That's what I want. Uh, and, uh, you
know, and I don't know why, but mine has little
chunks floating around in it.
>> Bob (14:14):
You know, I have the sediment, too.
>> Justin (14:15):
Yeah, yeah, that's a good thing. I think that adds
filter.
>> Bob (14:19):
Is it non chill filtered? I don't know.
>> Justin (14:21):
Yeah, just kind of like. I just kind of, like,
adds to. For me, you know, just. Just seeing that
little sediment, kind of like. Yeah, that's what I
want, you know.
>> Brent (14:29):
So I want you to basically just put your hand
under it, filter the big chunks out. That's all I
care about. You know, anything too big to go down
the neck of the bottle when you fill it. Other
than that, I don't care.
>> Justin (14:40):
Right.
>> Bob (14:41):
I'll just put those in the solo stove. It's going
to smell great.
>> Harm (14:44):
I don't care.
>> Justin (14:45):
But, yeah, beautiful finish. It's just enjoyable
all the way around.
>> Harm (14:50):
All right. So on. When this first was poured and
we let it. Let it breathe a little bit, I got
violet candies on the nose. Very subtle. And then
it went to the fruit and spice and oak. After
that, as you swirl it, that violets. The violets
go.
>> Justin (15:04):
Yeah. The first note that you get was that violet.
>> Harm (15:07):
The floral violet note went away, and. And now I'm
getting more like orchard fruit. And, um, on the.
The nose is a little bit. Not as interesting to me
as it used to be. I thought that. I didn't. I
didn't think the nose was interesting. I thought
that violet was more interesting. The nose, it
smells like an okay rye, but then you taste it.
>> Brent (15:28):
Boom.
>> Harm (15:28):
And that's where everything just changes. To me, I
thought the nose is lacking. The palette is where
everything is. All the excitement they use. Brent
used the word vibrant again. He's. He's. I
appreciate that. Because that's the exact right
word to use. This is vibrant. This is just it. It
makes you feel alive. The spice is absolutely
(15:51):
gorgeous and balanced. The fruit is subtle. Um,
that note, I forgot Justin's, um, kerosene note.
From far away. Kerosene lamp. Just put your nose a
little bit further away. He's absolutely right.
But it's subtle and the finish is pretty damn
long. This is really good. This is, uh. This is a
(16:12):
big step up from last year's Handy. I'm very
happy.
>> Brent (16:15):
If this doesn't make you happy, there's something
broken in your. Oh, never mind. I forgot who I'm
talking to.
>> Harm (16:19):
Yeah, but I prefer scotch still. Bob, what do you
think?
>> Brent (16:23):
This is fantastic. This is. This, like Brent said,
this is. This is the handy of old. This is the
stuff that they first came out with.
>> Harm (16:30):
Yeah.
>> Brent (16:30):
And this was always the one you could find. Mm.
You would find a random bottle with this. All the
other Btex you wouldn't find on the shelf, but you
would occasionally find this one just sitting
there. And the snobs wouldn't buy it. And I'm
like, you guys are idiots. You're missing out on
water.
>> Harm (16:45):
I'm putting water in my handy. Although there's.
There's no. There's nothing left in the glass. I'm
just rinsing.
>> Brent (16:49):
Just.
>> Harm (16:49):
I'm just rinsing the glass and drinking the rinse.
>> Brent (16:53):
This one is just fantastic. I mean, honestly,
there's. The only thing could make it better is if
they shipped us a case. Um, this candy apple,
bright fruit, the violets are there when it first
came in. They've blown off a little bit now. Huge,
bold, right in your face. Just grabs you and
shakes you and just let you know that it's there.
(17:14):
How they get this out of a six year, three month
old whiskey blows my mind.
>> Harm (17:20):
How good this one double D wearer has.
>> Brent (17:23):
Um, it is absolutely fantastic. It's.
>> Harm (17:27):
I am very aroused.
>> Justin (17:29):
Um.
>> Brent (17:30):
Yeah. This is all day long. The 2025 Thomas H.
Handy Kentucky Straight Rye. Five sips.
Oh, my goodness.
So let's have Harm tell us about our next whiskey.
>> Harm (17:44):
So our next Whiskey is the 2025 Sazerac 18 year
old Kentucky Straight Rye, 45 ABV, 90 proof. The
collection of rye whiskeys was barreled in spring
2006 and 2007. The barrels were new white oak,
number four char from Independent Stave Cooperage
and aged 18 years and five months on floors two,
(18:05):
three of floors two and three of warehouses. Okay.
And L, with 77% of the original whiskey lost to
evaporation.
>> Justin (18:13):
That's a lot.
>> Harm (18:15):
70, uh, 2% lost last year. Uh, in last year's.
>> Brent (18:19):
In last year's.
>> Harm (18:19):
Last year's release, yes. The color. Who cares?
It's brown. Drinking down. It's. It's. It's a
beautiful. It's a beautiful, shiny copper. Uh, the
nose on this. Now, this is the handy's older,
elegant sister.
>> Brent (18:36):
Yeah. Different. She's completely different.
>> Harm (18:38):
Mature. She's subtle.
>> Brent (18:42):
Layered.
>> Harm (18:43):
Layered. She's got a beautiful shape. And his
young friends all lust for her, but they will
never have her. This is so good. This is complex.
Uh, on the nose, it's a little bit of dill, orange
oil, oak. Uh, there's, uh, an herbal note. Besides
(19:04):
the dill, I'm getting, like, a little bit of
menthol, uh, and some other green herbs on the
palate. Like I said, mature. This is layers of oak
and spice. And, um, there's a floral note to it.
It's gripping, like white flowers. And there's a
(19:25):
good oak grip. Um, the finish is long. The spices,
and, um, they have caraway seed on their note, and
I have to agree with that. It's kind of that if
you've ever had gilka kumo or a good anise. But we
have a commercial coming up, so I'm keep talking.
(19:47):
And we're back. Uh, the auto commercial may or may
not hit me. Whatever. So the nose I was talking
about, it's. It's got a beautiful caraway finish.
Uh, it's long, but not, like, infinite. It's just.
I love this whiskey. It may be. It's. It's. It's
hard to judge this one right after the handy. But
anyway. Justin, what do you think?
>> Bob (20:08):
So when I first smelled this, um, I got, like, a
Kohl's menthol cigarette thing that completely
blew off, and now it's replaced by lemon pledge.
And then I got vanilla and toffee notes. They're
prominent.
>> Harm (20:22):
Okay, so twice a year. He's right.
>> Bob (20:25):
And, uh, palette, I got spice cake and cedar. And
the finish.
>> Harm (20:33):
Yeah, well, you know, that's just like, uh, your
opinion, man.
>> Bob (20:39):
The finish, I got, like, um, fruit basket and
spice and, like, a warm.
>> Harm (20:47):
So you're talking about eating the wicker basket
itself.
>> Bob (20:50):
Fruit in it.
>> Harm (20:50):
Oh, the food, too.
>> Brent (20:51):
He used to. That's a fair question, too. So
remember who you.
>> Bob (20:54):
That's a fair question.
>> Brent (20:55):
What'd you think, Brett?
>> Justin (20:57):
Yeah. Um, you know, once these get up to 18 years
and stuff, you expect it to be woody a little bit.
You know, you have those oak tannins and stuff.
And this one delivers with it. This one really
kind of.
>> Harm (21:07):
But it's not overly. No, no, no.
>> Justin (21:09):
But it delivers. It still delivers. It's not over,
but it, you know, you, you, you can appreciate it.
It's like, yes, that's what I want in this. And
this is what I'm getting. And you can tell it's
those lower.
>> Harm (21:20):
Cooler floors that's been aged, uh, on.
>> Justin (21:21):
Right, exactly. You get that, that, you know, the
oak tannins, that leather, those spices that. And
you've mentioned the white flowers. Yeah, yeah.
That came after you mentioned it. I was like, you
know, I didn't quite know what to say was because
it was like, uh, I didn't know what kind of fl.
You know, some kind of herb there that I just
couldn't pick up, you know, and it was nice.
>> Harm (21:42):
Reminds me of white flowers. I don't know what. I,
uh, can't think of the name because I'm not a
botanist, but you know, daisies, carnations.
>> Justin (21:51):
It's more like mum's the word.
>> Harm (21:53):
Maybe magnolia or gardenia.
>> Justin (21:56):
I don't know. Yeah. But it's, it is as that note
to it that you can, that you can pick up and
overall, another one. This is. Gosh, they, they
know what they're doing here, you know, and this
is why they're. This is why they, this is why they
put these out. They're. They're special.
>> Brent (22:13):
That's what your mom used to say.
>> Justin (22:14):
About you always said about me. And that's why I
rode the special bus, the short one. They made
that bus just for you. It's short.
>> Bob (22:21):
The tinted windows.
>> Brent (22:22):
Yep. Yeah, they all have tinted windows that don't
roll down. Yeah. Keep them from falling out. Um,
what more can I say? It is a lovely, beautiful,
layered, nuanced whiskey that has done nothing but
get better since we've opened it, as far as I'm
concerned. And the complexity of this is just,
(22:44):
it's as it sits there, it's just evolving in the
glass. Um, a fantastic whiskey. We're going to be
giving the 20, uh, 25 Sazerac 18 year old Kentucky
straight rye. Five sips.
Oh my goodness. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So that takes us to Brent and our next whiskey.
>> Justin (23:05):
Thanks, Bob. This is the 20, 25 eagle rare 17 year
old Kentucky straight bourbon is 50.5% ABV or 101
proof. And the barrels for this year's release of
The Eagle Rare 17 were filled in the spring of
2007 and the barrels were new white oak, number 4
char from Independent Stave. They were aged 18
(23:26):
years and 4 months on floors 1, 2, and 3 of
warehouses L, Q, K and P with 89% of the original
whiskey lost to evaporation. Geez, I know. Last
year was 86%, but, gosh, you just think about
that, you know. The, um. The Eagle Rare 17 is
bottled at 101 proof in tribute to the original
(23:46):
Eagle Rare brand launched in 1975. This one's got
a nice bold at an 80s, copper color, bright
brightness to it. The, uh.
>> Brent (24:00):
Um.
>> Justin (24:00):
On the nose, I get pepper, the leather, cherry
tobacco. It's just. Fills your nose. It's.
>> Harm (24:07):
That's white pepper, right? White pepper, yeah.
>> Justin (24:11):
Yes. Um, but, oh, then on the palate, I get. First
off, on the palate I get caramel. Then cherry kind
of pops through that and I get a. You know, some
tobacco, some old leather. Um, just a beautiful
palette. It's a great mouth feel. Um, finish. The
finish on this one just doesn't end. It just. It
(24:31):
just keeps going and going.
>> Harm (24:32):
At 101 proof, this is surprising because it had.
It had the longest finish of all these whiskies.
All six in front of us, right?
>> Justin (24:38):
It had a super, super long finish to it, you know,
and you get that vanilla on that finish. It just
kind of. Just kind of lingers off with vanilla.
And it, uh, doesn't stop. I mean, uh, there's
nothing bad to say about this, about this whiskey
here.
>> Brent (24:52):
What's bad is our sample bottle is empty. That's
what's.
>> Harm (24:54):
Yeah, that's the worst. Oh, my God, look, I love
you guys at, uh, Buffalo Trace. Harlan, you're the
best, but those sample bottles are way too small,
man. They're way too small.
>> Brent (25:05):
A gallon would be nice.
>> Justin (25:10):
Gallon jugs, you know that every year.
>> Brent (25:12):
When this box arrives, I grab it and run back in
my office, and my secretary laughs at me. She
goes, you look like Gollum in his ring. I'm like,
you don't understand.
>> Harm (25:22):
What don't you understand?
>> Brent (25:23):
You know, there's this one in the King of Kentucky
and the Four Roses boxes that come in, and every
year I'm like, you know, hoarding them. Don't
touch my precious. I mean, this is a fantastic
whiskey. Absolutely fantastic. It's just the
caramel, the soft leather, the cherry on it just.
>> Justin (25:41):
Wow.
>> Brent (25:42):
And it just. It stays with you and stays with you
and stays with you and stays with you. This.
>> Harm (25:46):
This. This is the one that proves it's not all
about proof. No, definitely. I mean, 101, but it's
still stunning.
>> Brent (25:53):
Well, when that long ago, they boosted it to 101,
remember?
>> Harm (25:56):
Yeah. So used to be 90 back in the day.
>> Brent (25:58):
And I think, I think 101 is their sweet spot on
this one because this one is absolutely fantastic.
Justin, you got anything to add?
>> Bob (26:05):
Oh, yeah, I get um, like 1988 El Dorado leather. I
get a nice Connecticut cigar.
>> Harm (26:15):
I thought it's Corinthian. Is it Corinthian?
>> Brent (26:17):
Rich Corinthian. I got the chair Cordoba.
>> Bob (26:22):
This has an amazing mouth feel to it. This is like
you spend a life driving a Ford Escort and then
you finally get that like Lex flagship to drive.
It's just first class all the way.
>> Brent (26:36):
You get the Aston Martin, I think.
>> Harm (26:38):
Yeah, first class, I think. I like, I like his
Lexus analogy because it's got that soft, supple
ride. He just likes driving on a cloud.
>> Brent (26:47):
He just likes Lexus because it's the name of his
favorite stripper.
>> Bob (26:52):
Tipper. Well, don't be cheap.
>> Harm (26:54):
Yeah.
>> Brent (26:54):
So we're going to be giving the 2025 eagle rare 17
year old container Kentucky straight bourbon a
well deserved five sips.
Oh my goodness. Yes, yes, yes.
>> Harm (27:07):
I'm still tasting. I had my little sip a while
ago. It's just still going. Cherries and vanilla.
>> Brent (27:13):
Let's have Justin tell us about our next whiskey.
>> Bob (27:17):
Oh my God, I'm so lucky. 2025 William LaRue Weller
Kentucky Straight bourbon. It's 64 and a half
percent alcohol. By volume it's 129 gorgeous
proof. This year's offering of the weeded classic
was distilled in December 2010, January 2011 and
(27:41):
January 2013. The barrels were new white oak,
number 4 char independent stave and were filled at
114 proof. The whiskey was 12 years and 7 months
old at bottling aged on floors 3 and 4 of
warehouses D, Q, N, P and I Bingo. For those with
(28:06):
the uh, bingo cards. I29, I29 and 55% of the
original whiskey was lost to evaporation. So on
the nose I got um, beautiful vanilla maple syrup,
a little bit of cedar to round it out. The nose
(28:28):
was subtle, I have to say. Subtle in a good way,
but subtle. The palette was like vanilla, oat oak
and wheat chex. Um, the finish was super long and
it had like nice fruit notes with the oak and
vanilla. This is like a warm hug that will keep
(28:50):
you going all winter long. What did you think,
Brent?
>> Brent (28:53):
Wait, wait. Warm hug? I met your parents. You
don't know what a hug is.
>> Bob (28:58):
I didn't get it from them.
>> Brent (29:00):
Oh, wait, I'm talking to Harm.
>> Justin (29:01):
I know what a hug is. Yeah, yeah. The. The hug on
this one is your entire mouth. I mean, this,
coach, your entire mouth. This is.
>> Harm (29:11):
If you're older than six years old, you don't need
a hug.
>> Bob (29:15):
That's what she told you.
>> Justin (29:16):
Yeah. She was tired of giving you hugs.
>> Brent (29:19):
She also told you you're under 6 years old and you
don't need one either, but, you know. Yeah.
>> Justin (29:24):
And then on the nose of this one I did. The first
thing I picked up was maple. And then I got it
followed by vanilla. Um, and, uh, we'll. Ah.
>> Harm (29:32):
And it was followed by a commercial.
>> Brent (29:34):
Come back.
>> Harm (29:34):
Followed by a commercial. Hey.
>> Brent (29:41):
And we're back. Brent, you were waxing poetic on
the William LaRue Weller.
>> Justin (29:46):
Yeah, well, I was enjoying the nose. You know, I
had that. Really, uh, Enjoying it very much
enjoying it. Uh, then on the palate, the one thing
right off the bat is it just. You get this. The
whole entire mouth is just encoded.
>> Harm (30:00):
You know, this was the one with the best mouth
feel today.
>> Justin (30:03):
Oh, for sure.
>> Brent (30:03):
You know what she said?
>> Justin (30:05):
Yeah. You have this. You got that vanilla in
there, that little bit of a spice on there. Um,
just a little bit of light oak on there. I mean,
this is. It's an amazing. It's just an amazing
drink here.
>> Harm (30:19):
You can't tell it's 129 proof.
>> Justin (30:21):
No, there's no way in the heck if you would. If
you had a guess, I would be guessing, you know,
like 105, 110 maybe. You know?
>> Harm (30:28):
Exactly. To me, it feels like it's right around 1,
105, like you said.
>> Justin (30:32):
Yeah.
>> Harm (30:33):
It's not high proof. It's not low proof. It's just
good.
>> Justin (30:36):
But you're deceived by the. Yeah.
>> Brent (30:40):
Yeah.
>> Harm (30:40):
Oh, my God.
>> Justin (30:41):
Yep. And the. And those fruits don't come along
until the. Till you're like, to the finish. That
is when I start picking up those fruits.
>> Harm (30:47):
I didn't even really get the fruit notes, Brian.
I'm getting. You said maple first. Yeah, that's
exactly what I got. Maple, then the vanilla. But
the mouth feel is what changes everything. The
mouth feel is so amazing. All I'm, um. To me, it's
all about the vanilla and the oak and the baking
spices that come in. I really don't get the fruit.
I mean, what. What, Justin, do you get the fruit
(31:09):
on this one?
>> Justin (31:13):
Um, on your finish, it comes maple syrup.
>> Bob (31:16):
That's as close as I get the fruit. But it's not
really fruit. That's kind of.
>> Harm (31:20):
I don't know what that. The mic is here.
>> Bob (31:21):
I don't know what that is, but it's not fruit.
It's diabetes in a bottle.
>> Brent (31:28):
He's confused by this.
>> Harm (31:28):
Microsoft M. There's no residual sugar. There's no
residual sugar in maple syrup, in this, in the
whiskey.
>> Bob (31:33):
Yeah, I know.
>> Justin (31:34):
That's why I.
>> Harm (31:35):
It tastes like diabetes because. Yeah, because no
sugar, but it tastes like diabetes. It's not that
sweet, but you know, weeders are like that.
They're. They tend to be softer and sweeter than
the rye. I usually prefer rye whiskeys, but this
is just one of my favorites.
>> Justin (31:49):
This is just gorgeous.
>> Harm (31:51):
Bob, uh, what do you think?
>> Brent (31:52):
Did.
>> Harm (31:52):
What, did you get the fruit too or not?
>> Brent (31:53):
They are softer and sweeter, but they also, as a
rule that I've noticed, take longer to mature.
>> Harm (31:59):
They definitely take longer to mature.
>> Brent (32:00):
Weeders, they need more time.
>> Harm (32:01):
That's why you can get a 23 year old pappy.
>> Brent (32:03):
Yeah.
>> Harm (32:03):
Which is why usually 23, they're over the hill.
>> Brent (32:06):
Which is why this, which is a mix of 15, 14 and 12
year old whiskey. Uh, you know, this is why this
one's so damn good. It's just. Oh man, I want
waffles every time I smell it.
>> Harm (32:18):
We didn't mention that it was a blend of different
ages. They. They're required by law to put the
youngest. So 12 years, seven months.
>> Brent (32:25):
He mentioned it when he did the reading. Thanks
for joining the show. Good for you.
All right, just say the right thing.
>> Harm (32:34):
Say the thing I want you to say. I'm experiencing
whiskey. I'm not listening to him too.
>> Brent (32:38):
We're experiencing something. I don't know what,
but I. This is, this is always one of the best
whiskeys of the year. And this year is absolutely
no exception. This is. Where does it say
absolutely fantastic. Dear Lord. Here, please,
please, please. We're going to give the William
(32:59):
Rulu Weller Kentucky straight bourbon 2025 BTEC
release a well deserved five, six.
Oh my goodness.
>> Justin (33:09):
Very well deserved.
>> Brent (33:11):
And that takes us to our last whiskey of the day.
Executive privilege. This is the one that you
review every year.
>> Harm (33:20):
The moment the world has waited for.
>> Brent (33:22):
Yes. So this is the 2025 George T. Stagg Kentucky
Straight Bourbon. My Death Row whiskey. 71.054%
ABV. 142.8.
>> Justin (33:36):
142.
>> Brent (33:39):
Yeah.
>> Harm (33:40):
Or as Randy says, so 144 is hazmat.
>> Bob (33:45):
140.
>> Justin (33:45):
40.
>> Harm (33:46):
So this is hazmat.
>> Justin (33:47):
It is, yeah.
>> Bob (33:48):
So, so don't bring it on the plane.
>> Brent (33:51):
Beautiful.
>> Bob (33:51):
In the airport before you go.
>> Brent (33:53):
Dark bronze color. Oh, uh, this thing, when it
grabs your nose, it just shakes your whole head.
Just the oak on this, there's a deep dark vanilla,
dark, dark molasses and brown sugar.
>> Harm (34:12):
Oh dear Lord.
>> Brent (34:14):
And let's, let's take a sip and see what it says.
Absolutely mind blowingly good. Um, last year was
a little bit down, I think.
>> Justin (34:30):
Yes.
>> Brent (34:30):
I mean it was still great. Don't get me wrong.
>> Harm (34:32):
Last year was, was not up to par compared to the
previous one.
>> Brent (34:35):
This year.
>> Harm (34:36):
Oh God.
>> Brent (34:39):
This is like stag from you know, 07 earlier. This
is just.
>> Harm (34:48):
Yeah.
>> Brent (34:48):
Mind blowing. Vanilla, uh, tobacco, cherry,
molasses. It's that brick to the face, that brick
to the teeth that I love so much. It does not
disappoint whatsoever. Hold on, I'm just gonna
commiserate. Boy, that escalated quickly. Mhm. I
(35:11):
mean that really got out of hand fast. Yeah. So
what do you think, Brent?
>> Justin (35:15):
Yeah, this one, last year's like you said, was a
little bit, a little bit down. It was still, still
good. But this year came back with a vengeance. I
mean really came back. And this, uh. And I don't
know if it's because of the proof, but the, you
know, or the non chill filtering because this one
also has the. A uh, little bit of um, sediment in
it and stuff which I, which I do enjoy.
>> Harm (35:37):
You know, I think he's just, you know, putting
stuff in your glass.
>> Justin (35:40):
That's okay. I don't mind.
>> Harm (35:41):
There's nothing in my glass.
>> Justin (35:42):
I don't mind.
>> Brent (35:43):
My glass is clean all. Don't worry about it.
>> Justin (35:46):
Yeah. You got something else to drink, that's all.
>> Harm (35:48):
Yeah. Make sure. You gotta wait. You gotta wait
for the pills to dissolve. Yeah. Fully.
>> Brent (35:53):
Yeah. Swirl it around a little bit and you won't
see that anymore.
>> Justin (35:56):
But um, yeah, the mouthfeel on this one really
gives you a punch. The uh, again, this one covers
your entire palate. You know, that's.
>> Brent (36:06):
This covers your palate, this covers your throat,
this covers your soul.
>> Justin (36:09):
This is. Yeah, yeah. This one goes down, you know,
at 142. You just wouldn't think something would
be.
>> Brent (36:16):
You know.
>> Justin (36:19):
So powerful and yet so smooth at the same time.
It's, you know, if it's uh, if, if that's the way
to do it. Justin, what are you thinking?
>> Bob (36:28):
I'm thinking this is best stag I've had in 10
years. I think that um, it's got that beautiful
smell after I've made A couple of pounds of pat.
Uh, brownies. You know, like Costco brownies have
that nice smell with oak and the vanilla, too.
>> Brent (36:48):
There's oak and brownies.
>> Harm (36:51):
I told you about the time my wife made, um,
brownies on her birthday with my birthday bourbon.
>> Justin (36:55):
Yeah.
>> Harm (36:55):
Yeah.
>> Bob (36:56):
And I got a green tomato note along with the
classic bourbon flavors. Um, and the proof. I'm
sorry the finish doesn't end. I think I've been
drinking, folks, but it's so amazing.
>> Harm (37:08):
So I. You, uh, guys should have, uh. We should
have cameras on this show. You should have seen
Brent's face when I put water in this. I just put
some water in it because, hey, it's 142 proof. I
said, is water gonna hurt it?
>> Justin (37:20):
Yes.
>> Harm (37:21):
No.
>> Brent (37:21):
Yes, yes.
>> Justin (37:22):
Yes.
>> Harm (37:23):
The nose.
>> Justin (37:23):
Yes.
>> Harm (37:24):
The nose is more oaky with the water.
>> Brent (37:26):
No.
>> Justin (37:27):
Yes.
>> Brent (37:27):
No.
>> Harm (37:29):
The palate is still gorgeous. It did not need a
drop of water. Just doing 142 doesn't it doesn't
need it didn't help.
>> Justin (37:37):
See?
>> Brent (37:39):
Waste of time, waste of effort, waste of water.
Wasted whiskey. Well, we're going to be rating the
2025 George T. Stag, uh, Kentucky straight
bourbon, 26 sips. Um, no, we'll give it five.
Oh, my goodness. Yes, yes, yes.
>> Harm (37:56):
You are biased, my friend.
>> Brent (37:58):
These go to 11. Yeah, that goes to 11. Well,
that's all the time we have for today. Yeah, I can
be biased. I'm running a soundboard.
>> Harm (38:05):
That's true. So somebody take his button for the
joy.
>> Brent (38:09):
Want to thank everybody for joining us today.
Yeah. Thank you, Brent.
>> Justin (38:13):
It was nice being dragged in today.
>> Harm (38:15):
Yeah.
>> Brent (38:15):
Thank you for making the sacrifice.
>> Justin (38:17):
Sacrifice.
>> Brent (38:18):
And ah, thank you, Justin.
>> Bob (38:20):
Can't thank you enough. This was an amazing
experience.
>> Brent (38:22):
Thank me. Thank the lovely folks at Sazeracs for
sending us the samples every year.
>> Bob (38:26):
Thank you, Sazerac.
>> Brent (38:27):
Yep.
>> Harm (38:28):
Wow.
>> Brent (38:28):
And thank you, Harm Prom.
>> Harm (38:31):
I often say thank you, but I rarely mean it.
Today, I mean it. Thank you.
>> Brent (38:37):
That's about it.
>> Justin (38:38):
I don't know.
>> Brent (38:39):
I'm hearing this on the sound cue, so. Well, this,
uh, this is, uh, made Man Bob for sip suds and
smokes. Thanks for joining us. Remember, life's
too short to drink bad.
>> Bob (38:47):
Whiskey, and we didn't today.
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>> Justin (38:59):
Give it a little taffy.
>> Brent (39:01):
Tap, tap, taparoo.
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(39:24):
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>> Justin (39:30):
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Come back, join us for another episode and keep on
sipping.
(40:05):
This has been a one tan hand production of Sips,
Suds, uh and Smokes, a program devoted to the
appreciation of some of the finer slices of life
from the dude in the Basement Studios, your hosts,
the Good Old Boys. We'll see you all next time.