Eagle Rare 10 Year Old

This is part 2 of my kind of H2H between Buffalo Trace and Eagle Rare 10yo. Now, don't get me wrong, I have higher expectations for this. The only reason I'm having both tonight is because they are both BT mash bill #1, which is a low rye mash bill (10% rye?). Neat pour.

Nose: Quite Oaky, reese's peanut butter cups, brown sugar. This and KCSB are now the two most oak forward noses I've had grace my nostrils.

Palate: Pretty standard bourbon. Caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, dark cherry, chocolate, oaky. Fairly rich. Some dark fruits as well. Figs, blackberry, raisins maybe?

Finish: Oaky finish of medium length.

Overall: Above average bourbon at a decent price ($34.99+tax). Good, not great. Better than standard Buffalo Trace. It's much richer and full bodied with a bit more complexity. However, at similar price, I prefer Elijah Craig small batch over this, but not by much.

My first bourbon review so please go easy on me my American cousins!

I've picked this as a) it's open and will soon be gone and b) it's one of the best I've had so far. I hear this is a fairly well priced and available bourbon in America - over here one major supermarket stocks it for around £36 and it's available on-line. A tad expensive but in quality terms it is certainly not trying to pull one over.

All bourbons seem to carry notes of Turkish Delight or rose water, vanilla and a particular solvent/glue note and this is no different. What gets me with this one though is just how mellow and integrated they are. There's a toffee, fudge caramel thing going on that is really appealing and dark sour cherries, some sweetened nuts (maybe walnut) but softly so and an ever present but nicely toasted oak. Gorgeous colour too.

The form of this whiskey is amazing, frankly. It goes in quite unassuming and the sour cherries and a touch of oak start to come out; but initially not much happens. It's when I start to swallow or 'chew' this one that it purrs into life. I'll qualify it as a kind of rum and raisin fudge note that starts to build and grow. This just keeps on going for a long time and slightly changes from sweet to more sour and dry. Along the way some clove and cardamom say hello and is that Cherry Coke? I actually timed how long it took and I reckon well over twenty seconds from the start of this development until the finish, which is a lingering of dry, sour wood but that fudge note has done its work and is going nowhere.

There isn't much arrival or finish - this is basically one long development. The mouth feel is soft and rich and for a bourbon the subtlety of the alcoholic punch is again, impressive.

I find it needs no water but over time it will shift about on you with creamier vanilla notes coming out more.

I think I have a tipping point with the oak in bourbon where if it tastes or smells too much like a fresh cut plank in a carpenters shop or a bag of nuts, I'm out. This never gets close and I would say it is a predominantly sweeter bourbon rather than dry or sour but the overall balance is what impresses most.

Thoroughly enjoyable and the kind of bourbon I want to pour a large one of and take out on my imaginary porch and kick back in the recliner as I watch the sunset over the Mississippi. Ah well, my basement, a garden rocking chair and a screen saver of the Avon gorge will have to do!

I decided to take a short break from sampling all those whiskies I picked up at the festival. And, since I was a bourbon virgin (meaning that I'd tried only Jim Beam and Jack Daniel's before - which doesn't count), I went out and bought a bottle of this baby here. And it rocks!

NOSE: sweet, but not overly sweet, a little creamy and elegant caramel, brown sugar, bitter aromatic wood, candied fruit, vanilla, toffee, hints of milk chocolate, raisins. All that being said, it does have an alcoholic kick to it. Adding a drop of water releases its hazelnuts (Nutella like) notes. The nose of a beautiful single malt and rum notes as well. Rich, rum-soaked sponge cake. Intensely powerful. Wow. 23/25

TASTE: clean, dry, beautiful vanilla, oily, silky, milk chocolate, with dry aromatic wood, cinnamon, all-spice, a hint of moka coffee, roasted hazelnuts. A little sour note in here as well. Cola. All that is based on over-brewed black tea with bergamot, a little bitterness here as well. 23/25

FINISH: long, spicy, caramel, waffles, tannins. 23/25

BALANCE: 24/25

OVERALL IMPRESSION: 93/100 for a bourbon so far. If somebody happens to know bourbons that are richer and more complex in profile - please do tell me about them. This one, however, is a very good well-priced bourbon, in my book. And I hear that they stopped producing it with an age statement on the back, but I was lucky enough to get an older bottle with an age statement.

The Eagle Rare is a brand – on the market since 1975 already – from Buffalo Trace in Kentucky. They use Mashbill #1, which means there is less rye in the mix. The bourbon is bottled at 90 Proof, which translates into 45% ABV. It comes in a beautiful bottle and is only around 40 EUR, which sounds like a bargain to me.

The nose is rather sublte and still complex enough on toffee and orange peel, leather, honey and touches of oak. Some marshmallows appear, together with some spices.

It is soft on the palate and even a bit dry with touches of oak, dark fruit, cocoa and roasted nuts. Make that almonds. The orange peel and toffee from the nose are present here as well, but the spices are much louder than on the nose. Nevertheless, this remains a soft and round bourbon.

The finish is medium long and remains sweet on mostly toffee and honey.

This is actually a wonderful, sweet and very quaffable bourbon. Even is bourbon is not your cuppa, I think you will like this one. All round pleaser. Thanks for the sample, Jan.

I got very excited when I saw Eagle Rare 10 in Waitrose (upmarket UK supermarket) for a really good price (£36). Beautiful looking bottle design and I'm already a fan of Buffalo Trace, so had to try this.

This bottle has been open a while now (6 months) and there's about a third left. Whilst it has never really blown me away, it's a solid little number for the price.

So I believe this used to be Single Barrel and kind of probably is, as they are still bottled barrel by barrel. It's just that the bottling process means this is not 100% guaranteed now as you might get a bottle between two barrels, so they don't say it on the label. Think the Mashbill is Buffalo Trace #1 which is said to be 8% rye. same mashbill as the standard BT bottling. Just aged for 10.

Colour is clear light brown, oily in the glass. Nice looking Bourbon.

Nose: nicest thing about this. First the caramels and muscovado sugars, some nice strong grape and dessert wine vinous notes, there's some spice coming through but it's at the back, hints of orange and red fruit, definitely cranberry, maybe cherry, maybe strawberry, but it's hidden away. Second nose and the woods prominent. Quite fresh and clean oak, touch of vanilla.

Taste: At the front I'm getting that grapey, sweet wine vinous texture, brown sugars and caramels, spices coming through nicely, maybe a little bit of red berry fruit. Touch of cherry or cranberry. Wood character is there, fresh oak wood, touch of vanilla.

Finish is not huge. A little disappointing. Caramel and brown sugars, little spice.

A nice solid house bourbon but not reaching to greater heights, nowhere near the antique collection.

It's rich in color, but the viscosity is low.

On the nose, it's a real sweetheart, with perfume-floral notes, vanilla, and cherry. Like most Bourbons, there is a slightly astringent and gluey aspect in the background that reminds me of building airplane models or applying lacquer to wood. On further nosing, spices emerge: cinnamon, clove, and perhaps ginger; a bit of tobacco, a bit of cocoa. All of the classic Bourbon qualities are there, and they're gentle.

On the tongue, there's pronounced tobacco and wood, with a molasses-like sweetness and no flowers. The finish is medium-long and spicy. There's heavy cherry and perhaps a bit of cocoa when you smack your lips.

A dash of water increases the sweetness and improves the mouth-feel substantially. This is a distinctly sip-worthy Bourbon, especially with water.