Day 15 gives us 1792 Ridgemont Reserve Bourbon, a “Whiskey” that’s 46.9% alcohol.
http://www.1792bourbon.com/
This is the first whiskey in the batch that’s been labeled as simply “Whiskey” in it appelation. It does say “Bourbon” in the name, and is described as one on the web, but for some reason not on this bottle. More on names later.
Taste-wise, there’s not much to this one. “It has a bit of a medicinal flavor,” I say. and Christina responds by opining that it’s “whiskey without a character. In fact, this is the most characterless whiskey I have ever had.” She then hastens to add that it’s “not bad!” I mostly find it inoffensive. A bit of water, added in hopes of getting it to open up, just makes it less interesting.
Wikipedia tells me that this bourbon is positioned as a super-premium one. intended to compete with Woodford Reserve, and that the Bardstown-based distillery (hey, Bardstown again!) was forced to change the name from “1792 Ridgemont Reserve” to just “1792” because of potential trademark confusion with the aforementioned Woodford Reserve.
As a fan of Woodford, I can tell you that despite any similarity in name, this could not be confused with Woodford once the bottle is opened. I’d use it in a mixed drink, but I’d feel bad about it. Not about the mixing, but about paying super-premium prices for something that compares unfavorably with Old Bardstown.
Two stars.
The updated rankings:
- Blanton’s Gold Edition
- Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7
- Noah’s Mill
- Bulleit
- Elijah Craig
- Evan Williams
- FEW
- Booker’s 7 Year
- Jefferson’s
- Four Roses
- Michter’s
- 1792 Ridgemont Reserve
- Roughstock Montana
- Old Forester
- Smooth Ambler Contradiction