This is the fourth yeast strain tasting in my Four Roses series with a blind tasting of the F yeast strain. I have 3 picks ranging from 9 to 10 years and from 110 to 117 proof. None of the bottle are from Texas this time with a bottle from Beastmasters Club, the 2018 Kentucky Derby Festival and K&L Wines.
There’s another blind tasting video to pick my favorite and then I topped off the glasses and sat down to write these more detailed notes.
Four Roses OESF Kentucky Derby Festival
Age: 9 years 1 months
Abv: 117
Warehouse: KE
Barrel: 56-2A
Neat
Nose: Herbal, sweet caramel , vanilla and faint spice notes.
Taste: Lots of caramel, some vanilla, a bit of oak and mint. Average mouthfeel given the proof.
Finish: Medium length finish with caramel, mint and warm spice notes
Ranking: #3
2 Stars - Very good whiskey: I would want to have a bottle
Four Roses OBSF Beastmasters Club Crude Oil
Age: 9 years 5 monthss
Abv: 113.4
Warehouse: UN
Barrel: 37-2T
Neat
Nose: Earthy nose with some vanilla and caramel notes as well.
Taste: Fruity and spicy with caramel and oak notes. Great mouthfeel.
Finish: Very long with rich red fruit and baking spice notes.
Ranking: #1
3 Stars - Excellent whiskey: I would be willing to hunt down a bottle
Four Roses OESF K&L
Age: 10 years 1 months
Abv: 110.6
Warehouse: AN
Barrel: 14-20
Neat
Nose: Sweet caramel, vanilla, rye spice and faint oak notes. Very typical bourbon.
Taste: Sweet caramel, red fruit, rye spice and oak. Solid mouthfeel for the proof.
Finish: Medium to long finish that is more of the same from the taste.
Ranking: #2
2 Stars - Very good whiskey: I would want to have a bottle
Conclusion
I shouldn’t have been surprised when the Beastmasters won since it already won my blind B recipe tasting. The F yeast strain was the one I had the least tasting experience with and it was solid with the Beastmasters pick really standing out. The nose was just ok on that one but everything else was outstanding. The K&L pick was exactly what I would expect from a good Four Roses Private Select but didn’t stand out from a lot of the other picks in this series. The Derby bottle wasn’t quite at that level but was still very tasty.
Next up is the elusive O yeast strain next week. It’s supposed to be fruity which is great for my palate.
TL;DR: F is a solid strain and the Beastmasters pick was awesome.