One of the plethora of Michter’s annual releases is the toasted barrel finish bourbon. I first tried this back at a Whiskies of the World event back in 2018 or so and was a fan. Of course when I asked how to buy a bottle the person at the booth laughed and said I probably wouldn’t be able to find it. Fast forward a few years and I finally found one! Let’s see how the 2021 batch holds up against a fond memory of an older release.
Michter’s Toasted Barrel Bourbon
Age: NAS
Proof: 91.4
Barrel No: 21G2032
Neat
Nose: Sweet and woody with rich, wet oak, caramel and more oak.
Taste: The same oak and caramel from the nose with some much welcome baking spice and vanilla.
Finish: A shorter clean finish with fading oak and vanilla.
Conclusion
Overall this is an easy sipper than packs a lot of flavor even if most of the flavor is oak. I happen to like sweet and oaky whiskey so thankfully this works for me. To get weird with it the nose especially reminds me of being at a park called Under the Oaks in Jacksonville Florida after it rained. That said this would have benefited significantly from something to give it more complexity and depth such as bottling at a higher proof, more aging or moving a single barrel release.
I am enjoying this bottle and would take it over similarly priced shelfie options but would not go out of my way to hunt for a bottle or overpay for it. I was hoping for more based on previous experience.
1 Star - Good whiskey: I would choose to drink this over readily available whiskies
TL;DR: Solid, but basic, bourbon with an extra dose of oak that makes for easy, flavorful sipping.
Scale
You can also follow me on Instagram(@atxbourbon) for more whiskey content!