I’ve been meaning to write a Smoke Wagon review for a long time and with them launching in Texas later this year it seemed like the perfect time. So here are four of them haha.
Smoke Wagon is an NDP out of Las Vegas who are sourcing MGP, aging for some unspecified amount of time in the hot dry climate of Nevada and then either barreling them as single barrels or blending them for the rest of their line up. Beastmasters Club is a group out of New York that primarily did onsite barrel picks pre-COVID though they’ve moved to kits now. Thankfully all of these Smoke Wagon picks were done onsite. They also tend to have ridiculous names for their picks and over the top stickers. For the Smoke Wagon picks they decided to go with a series of magnets instead since the Smoke Wagon bottles don’t play nicely with big stickers.
I initially did this as a blind tasting video and then sat down to write up more detailed notes.
Reviews #238-241: Smoke Wagon Private Barrels Beast Masters Club Picks
Wide Hog Jeans
Age: 12 years
Abv: 118.4 proof
Warehouse: WG3
Barrel #: 5887
Neat
Nose: Sweet and herbaceous with fruit and brown sugar notes and just a bit of spice and oak.
Taste: Dark fruit, rich herbs, butterscotch, cherry and warm almost holiday spice. Very viscous mouthfeel that coats your mouth and tongue.
Finish: Medium to long finish with more of the spice from the taste and lingering butterscotch and cherry.
9 - a favorite I always try to keep on my shelf
Hot Pickle Tanning Oil
Age: 12 years
Abv: 115.4 proof
Warehouse: WG3
Barrel #: 5892
Neat
Nose: Brown sugar, charred oak, rye spice, herbal notes and vanilla notes.
Taste: More brown sugar and charred wood, less rye spice, some herbal notes. Nice, thick mouthfeel.
Finish: Long warm finish with lingering spices and herbs balanced with some sweetness and oak.
9 - a favorite I always try to keep on my shelf
Stachey Mustache Wax
Age: 12 years
Abv: 116.8 proof
Warehouse: WG3
Barrel #: 5897
Neat
Nose: Baking spices, clove, rick oak and sweet vanilla.
Taste: Bold rye and baking spice, subtler oak and butterscotch. Very viscous mouthfeel.
Finish: Very long, slightly dry finish with lots of baking and rye spice as well as oak and a touch of sweet caramel.
8 - an excellent bottle I’d like to have at home
Morning Wood Polish
Age: 12 years
Abv: 114.2 proof
Warehouse: WG3
Barrel #: 5910
Neat
Nose: Very oak forward, slightly bitter,
Taste: Dry oak then a wave of sweet brown sugar, vanilla, herbs, dried fruit and warm spice.
Finish: Long, dry, spicy finish with oak and baking spice notes with subtler vanilla and herbs.
8 - an excellent bottle I’d like to have at home
Conclusion
The Hot Pickle Tanning and Wide Hog Jeans were fantastic and picks like these two and the Chip’s Liquor Drink Smoke Every Day one really stand up to the old SAOS 10-12 year MGP picks in my opinion. The other two were great but not on the same level, particularly the Morning Wood Polish which was the last release of course :) They were about the same quality as the much cheaper Total Wine picks ($165 vs $99) I have from Vegas. Overall I am a big fan of Smoke Wagon and can’t wait for them to hit Texas especially since my Vegas connection has largely dried up in the COVID world.
As for Beastmasters Club I’ve enjoyed most of the picks I’ve gotten from them, with one notable exception, though when their prices occasionally diverge pretty away from retail prices they can be a bit hit or miss. That said if they have a bottle from a distillery I like at closer to retail prices it’s a buy from me.
TL;DR: 2 amazing picks, 2 very good ones. Smoke Wagon delivers.
8 - an excellent bottle I’d like to have at home
Great - A great deal, I’d buy it again
Scale
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