Woodford Reserve
“Men always want to be a woman’s first love—women like to be a man’s last romance”
An extremely high profile bourbon (virtually in every bar and supermarket in the UK and often on offer) They report on their website that their bourbon comprises more than 200 detectable flavour notes, from bold grain and wood to sweet aromatics, spice, and fruit & floral notes. Not sure we can reach the heady heights of finding all 200!
Without doubt, this is a fantastic introduction to the world of bourbon. If we are ever asked to recommend bourbon to someone who has not tried it before, or has only recently started drinking it, this is usually in the top 3 recommendations. Whenever this whiskey is revisited in a bar where shall we say the choices are limited, you are thrown back to the early years in our whiskey history and immediately reminded what a perfectly balanced bourbon this is.
It has a creamy and buttery nose with toasted oak and vanilla. There may also be just the slightest smokey spice there too. The second grain is obviously rye but it is not a high rye bourbon, but the spice is there on palate along with cereal sweetness, with creamy rich caramel notes. The finish is long with honey notes and you just cannot escape the lingering creaminess here either.
Woodford Reserve’s standard portfolio selection are all excellent starting points in your whiskey journey. Double Oaked in particular has always been a firm favourite of the Gents. This high profile bourbon has behind it a high profile distillers team. The relatively new Master Distiller Elizabeth McCall and Master Distiller Emeritus Chris Morris who has been leading the way in whiskey innovation at Woodford for over 20 years.
Do you ever really not stop loving your first love? Embrace your youth, revisit your past and pick this bourbon up the next time you see it. You won’t regret it and fall in love with this bourbon all over again.
