I went to pour a new glass of my eighteen day old whiskey and had a momentary heart attack. I forgot to remove the bung before opening the spigot, so only a small bit of whiskey poured out before the stream turned into drops. It took me a second to realize it hadn't all evaporated. Close call!
After removing the bung, more gorgeous whiskey sprang forth from the mini barrel. I immediately wondered, did the initial pour contain some second-rate whiskey? Is there a cavity inside the spigot where the whiskey can end up aging less, or was the initial flow normal whiskey allowed out by the air already inside the barrel?
As usual, science, our savior, is the answer. And science demands more whiskey.
Here are the two pours of whiskey, my questionable first pour on the left and a second control pour on the right. The volumes are different which makes comparing colors at an angle difficult, but here in real life the colors and nose are identical.
Speaking of the nose, talk about sugar! All the banana / pastry smells from the unaged mash are present but the unpleasant sting is entirely gone. I am still not certain I'd call the nose appetizing, but it may just be that I haven't had any similar aged bourbons of a similar composition. It is still somewhat simple compared to the complexity of the Macallan 12.
Holding the eighteen day old on the tongue is decidedly pleasant. I would even pronounce it drinkable! The unaged is enjoyed best as a science project, but I've had less interesting whiskies than this two and a half week old! The pepper in the finish is greatly diminished, replaced with something sweet I can't quite describe.
What am I to do with two ~identical glasses of whiskey? Science of course! I've added some water to the whiskey for the first time and the results are dramatic. The nose and pallet have both lost quite a bit of the sugary feeling, but I'm actually not convinced this is for the better. The whiskey seemed more unique when its flavor was so dominate, but perhaps something more subtle will be better long term. I need some judges here for another opinion!
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