Welcome back to anadda whiskey day. Wow, 2 in a row! This surely won’t last long. I’ve been holding onto this bottle for a very long time, and it’s been eating away to watch it sit and taunt me. Finally, I have popped the top, poured a glass, and thought just a little bit on the flavors present in this iteration’s post.
Jameson Black Barrel
Dublin, Ireland
~$35.99
40% / 80 Proof
Nose - The nose on the Black Barrel is quite a treat. I get heavy notes of dark fruits and berries, honey and nutmeg, with a slight hint of barrel char on the end.
Palette - Not too dissimilar from the nose, but something that comes as a bit of a surprise compared to most reviews I’ve done - as the dark dried fruits, honey and buttery, soft notes pass by, you realize just how incredibly smooth this whiskey is. Without a doubt one of the finest Irish vesches I’ve slooshied.
Finish - As above, the astonishingly well rounded, smooth body of the palette falls down softly with only a subtle heat that warms momentarily but sends you back for more. The experience is delightful, and again, one of the smoothest finishes I’ve had in a very long time.
Thoughts - This bottle is well designed. I mean that even outside the tasting notes - the bottle shape itself is a refined, upscale, smooth and balanced rendition of the stark, bold, screw-cap bottle that Jameson’s flagship whiskey ships in; And that design principle is nearly the exact difference of Black Barrel and Jameson Whiskey. Black Barrel is absolutely one of the finer offering’s by the ancient distillery, and by god, they’ve done a fantastic job with it. The smoothness on the palette and ease of the finish are both staples of what can make a great sipping whiskey. It’s classy, it’s enjoyable, and it’s fun to drink and talk about. I would highly recommend this bottle to anybody interested in trying an Irish that holds it’s own against some of the big names out there - the Black Barrel is a smooth killer.
Here’s a few other shots of the bottle with varying color profiles that I just couldn’t decide on which I liked the most. All colors created with wall-mounted RGB panels and highlighted with a Luci Light original.
