Taken: Neat in a Glencairn glass, rested for about 15 minutes.
Distillery: Distilled in Indiana. Produced and bottled by the Traverse City Whiskey Co., Traverse City, Michigan.
Proof: 109.4, non-chill filtered.
Age: 6 years.
Selected by: T8KE for r/bourbon. Barrel# 18-1854.
Mash bill: 75% Corn/21% Rye/4% Malted Barley.
Price: $89.99.
Appearance: Golden caramel.
Nose
Brown sugar, rich toffee, butterscotch, cherries, apricots, orange creamsicle, vanilla, floral, sage, and cinnamon spice. The cherry infusion is tastefully done, so that the bourbon comes first rather than the cherries being too dominant. There’s also some really good oak here, too, and more complexity than I expected.
Palate
With a very good, creamy mouthfeel, the palate matches the nose, starting with flavors of brown sugar, butterscotch candy, and toffee, followed by cherries, peaches, vanilla bean, green tea, and allspice. There’s a bit of youthfulness, but also some tasty barrel character, fruit, and a nice pop of spice. The balance is very good, and it drinks well at its proof.
Finish
Allspice continues through the finish with more fruit notes of cherries and orange peel with some good tannins of soft leather, oak, and tobacco. More oak develops over time for a long finish, that closes the sip with worn leather, pipe tobacco, sage, cherries, and orange peel.
Conclusion
What impressed me most about this release is how tastefully the cherry infusion is crafted. T8KE’s notes on this release mentioned it maintained a natural flavor that accents the bourbon, and it’s lived up to that description. This release began with a solid foundation before the cherry infusion, including upfront notes of stone fruit and a good amount of caramel barrel character. If you’re thinking the TCWC cherry whiskey would make a great Old Fashioned or a Manhattan, you’d be correct. But it’s also a very good, versatile, neat-drinking sipper.
Rating: 6.2/10.
1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average.
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite.
10 | Perfect | Perfect.
