Taconic Distillery is the second stop on my visit to Hudson Valley NY distilleries this summer. Located in beautiful rural Stanfordville, Taconic Distillery was established in 2013 by Paul Coughlin and Gerald Valenti. All of the grains that Taconic Distillery use are locally sourced then distilled, barreled and bottled in house. Tours of the distillery are not available, but they have a great tasting room where you can get a glimpse of the vertical still and tanks next door. For $15 per person, they offer 2 cocktails and 3 samples from their tasting menu served in a Taconic Distillery logo’d Glencairn that you keep. There is no food onsite but you can bring your own to eat inside or on the many outdoor tables overlooking the beautiful landscape. They have a very friendly staff that didn’t mind answering all my questions. One of our favorite pours that afternoon was the Mizunara Cask finished bourbon. Let’s get to it.
Taken: Neat in a Glencairn glass, rested about 15 minutes.
Distillery: Taconic Distilllery.
Proof: 107.
Age: NAS but is 4 years, finished in a mizunara cask for an additional 6 months.
Mash bill: 70% Corn, 25% Rye, 5% Malted Barley.
Price: $99.
Appearance: Dark golden caramel.
Mizunara (translates to “water oak”) is a native Japanese oak tree that has to be around 200 years old before it’s the right size to be used for making casks. These barrels are hard to come by and sell for around $6,000 or more each. The known notes from a mizunara cask are sandalwood, coconut, vanilla, kara incense and spice.
Nose
Butterscotch, vanilla bean, plums, matcha, sandalwood, dill, cloves, allspice and oak. Overall, this a great smelling nose with a lot of sweet caramel blended with tropical and herbal notes. Pretty fantastic.
Palate
This has a very good viscous mouthfeel. The palate is not as complex as the nose but still very delicious. There’s a lot of butterscotch, vanilla and sandalwood, with some berry notes in the mix. Herbal notes of dill, allspice and oak are well balanced; with a good amount allspice kicking in, covering the palate. I love the way the mizunara oak brings out some tropical notes and contributes a sharper than typical spice that’s hard to describe. I like the proof point. It works very well to elevate this profile while also creating a very enjoyable sipper that drinks below its proof.
Finish
Caramel, berries vanilla, and cloves ride along until the allspice takes over, lingering on the whole palate and cheeks. After more time you are left with gentle oak tannins for a medium finish.
Conclusion
I’ve somewhat changed the conclusion of this review for the website since I first posted it on r/bourbon almost a year ago. Back then my impression was this bottle had been seriously lacking a more genuine mizunara finish. After coming back to it, I realized there was more a bit more mizunara influence than I previously thought. My thoughts are the same regarding it needing to be finished in mizunara for about four to six months longer, and still believe there was a missed opportunity to create something a lot more special. A year or two aged longer in American oak first wouldn’t hurt either. Taconic Mizunara is very good but there are still elements that hold it back from being great, which is too bad because the potential is there. Last summer I was told by Taconic that they discontinued the mizunara finished bourbon because the barrels became too expensive. That’s disappointing considering this was my favorite bottle in their lineup.
Rating
6.4/10
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.
