I'm not a huge fan of smokey whiskeys but LOVE port-finished whiskeys, and this is one of my favorites. It's just smokey enough, but has that sweet finish that I love so much. It's so good...
Whiskey knowledge distilled! Thanks. Side note....There is a fruit that is described as the most delicious fruit and the most expensive...the MANGOSTEEN! One of the reasons why it is so expensive is first it is delicious, but also it is can only be grown in hot climates and it goes bad very quickly. I challenge the Whiskey Vault/Whiskey Tribe to distill it!😌
An all time fav of mine, ~7-8 yr "speysideish" bought at auction and finished in VA Port barrels. expert stuff, the palate never varies, I've been on this for 4 yrs, no flavor drift...
I have this bottle and didn't care for it at first. I came back to it after this review and found more flavor. Then, (and I'm surprised you guys didn't add water) I added just a few drops of water and it really opened up. It got sweeter and more well-rounded. Cheers, guys.
By god, you're right! Equally so with letting it breathe a little. Not something I find I have to do with scotch, but for whatever reason this one seemed to benefit from sitting out a few minutes. But water does a similar thing in no time at all. ^^
This port cask VA whiskey is the first and to this day the ONLY bottle I ever dumped down a drain. Five years ago in 2018. Simply didn’t have the palate for it.
TEXAS WORLD TOUR! What a great merch idea for the channel. Daniel's mystery ghost tour. I think it would sell out. The shirts that is, not the tour. 😅😂🥃
So, to anyone on the fence about this one, Danial's comment about this being put in its place by other entry level scotch doesn't ring true for me, personally. Specifically those mentioned -- Macallan 12 and Glenmorangie (Couldn't find Balvenie 12, but it's over $100 for a standard 750ml bottle here, and I missed that reference the first watch anyway. ) I tried them side by side a couple times across a few days and again today, and I found it difficult to even taste the finish from Macallan 12 double cask side by side with the VHW port cask. Glenmorangie 10, while being much more "scotch like" than the VHW, lacked the lingering finish and overall depth of flavor Macallan and the VHW have. (trying it on its own a few days later)... The VHW is a bit like if scotch were actually trying to be a bourbon, texturally, especially without adding a few drops of water. But the finish on it is pretty darn scotch like to me, and with water it really sweetens up and approaches the "budget scotches" in terms of friendliness and in my opinion, exceeds them slightly in intensity of flavor. (bearing in mind that here in Virginia there's no such thing as a budget scotch! It's all expensive as can be. ) ... Having said all of that, every time I buy a bottle of this port cask finished whiskey, I'm always a tiny bit underwhelmed on the first taste... when I think of it like scotch. I have to sit with it for a long time and really breathe it in to come away with this glowing comparison. It's also not one some of my friends like, even those who appreciate whiskey. That can detract from its charm for me sometimes. But if you have occasion to try it, I'd highly recommend you do so, and bring water. It's a good whiskey, if one caught between two worlds. A Virginia distiller's homage to Scottish whiskey. No peat. Good amount of fruit and grain and barrel... The bottle has fiddly bits :3
Damn...you could make a great tour shirt. Just looked up a list: Athens, Dublin, Edinburgh, Geneva, Liverpool, London, Moscow, Naples, Newcastle, Paris...but now that I think of it, half of these are just British, so if you only did 1 or 2 with British names, that'd be 7 cities
I need a big bottle of single mom. Ive only got the little shooter from a bit ago. Im not opening that. Maybe some more jackalope cause I really like that one too.
It's funny. I just bought another bottle of this yesterday and swear the wine influence was dialed up on it compared to before. After my family and I got past the shoulder/neck pours, it started to resemble the dram I remembered with a bit less wine. Trying it next to their other finishes, like the cider cask shows that the wine definitely plays a role, but probably doesn't show up how you'd expect because of either the distillate or the climate it was aged in, where oak flavor influence tends to occur before real age and maturity. Water and time in the glass really help this one to me. . . In other news, I got word from a rep at the distillery they are soon (2024, perhaps) going to stop adding scotch to this one and rebrand it to VDC instead of VHW, and that they've been reducing the quantity of scottish malt they add over the last few batches, from more-or-less 50/50, down to probably about 25/75 or less. I haven't found any batch numbers or info on their website to back up the claim, but if a marketing rep tells you this stuff in an email, chances seem pretty good that its true to me. :) Something to keep an eye on!
The VA distillery port cask taste like a funky barnyard to me - almost like dry hay that is used in a horse stable. I have to be in the mood for it, but I often have better options. Isaac Bowman is a better VA brand imo
Something funky in that whiskey and it isn’t consistent. I’ve tried it twice in mini bottles (I live in Winchester VA) and it was different from bottle bottle and I spit it out
I've tried a 4-pack line-up of their single malts, 3 of which are finished malts. Oh my god. In a word: boring. I still have half of each mini left to try and I'll give them all another go but still... There is just absolutely no complexity to their products, at least what they had put out in 2021/2022.
I don't know if I've seen a whole lot of positive reviews for the Virginia Distillery stuff. I've had a few samples and they've all been underwhelming to gross. 🤷🏼♂️ Youthful, metallic, unbalanced.
I'm not a huge fan of smokey whiskeys but LOVE port-finished whiskeys, and this is one of my favorites. It's just smokey enough, but has that sweet finish that I love so much. It's so good...
Whiskey knowledge distilled! Thanks. Side note....There is a fruit that is described as the most delicious fruit and the most expensive...the MANGOSTEEN! One of the reasons why it is so expensive is first it is delicious, but also it is can only be grown in hot climates and it goes bad very quickly. I challenge the Whiskey Vault/Whiskey Tribe to distill it!😌
An all time fav of mine, ~7-8 yr "speysideish" bought at auction and finished in VA Port barrels. expert stuff, the palate never varies, I've been on this for 4 yrs, no flavor drift...
I love that you can see the old vault in the "Magnificent Bastard" title card for 2-3 frames.
Never noticed that, bit it's great!
I have this bottle and didn't care for it at first. I came back to it after this review and found more flavor. Then, (and I'm surprised you guys didn't add water) I added just a few drops of water and it really opened up. It got sweeter and more well-rounded. Cheers, guys.
By god, you're right! Equally so with letting it breathe a little. Not something I find I have to do with scotch, but for whatever reason this one seemed to benefit from sitting out a few minutes. But water does a similar thing in no time at all. ^^
GOOD MORNING YOU MB'S.... 🥃
Happy Humpday
I've had a similar whiskey from them, but can't remember if it was port finished or not. I just remember REALLY liking it
This port cask VA whiskey is the first and to this day the ONLY bottle I ever dumped down a drain. Five years ago in 2018. Simply didn’t have the palate for it.
TEXAS WORLD TOUR! What a great merch idea for the channel. Daniel's mystery ghost tour. I think it would sell out. The shirts that is, not the tour. 😅😂🥃
So, to anyone on the fence about this one, Danial's comment about this being put in its place by other entry level scotch doesn't ring true for me, personally. Specifically those mentioned -- Macallan 12 and Glenmorangie (Couldn't find Balvenie 12, but it's over $100 for a standard 750ml bottle here, and I missed that reference the first watch anyway. )
I tried them side by side a couple times across a few days and again today, and I found it difficult to even taste the finish from Macallan 12 double cask side by side with the VHW port cask. Glenmorangie 10, while being much more "scotch like" than the VHW, lacked the lingering finish and overall depth of flavor Macallan and the VHW have. (trying it on its own a few days later)... The VHW is a bit like if scotch were actually trying to be a bourbon, texturally, especially without adding a few drops of water. But the finish on it is pretty darn scotch like to me, and with water it really sweetens up and approaches the "budget scotches" in terms of friendliness and in my opinion, exceeds them slightly in intensity of flavor. (bearing in mind that here in Virginia there's no such thing as a budget scotch! It's all expensive as can be. ) ... Having said all of that, every time I buy a bottle of this port cask finished whiskey, I'm always a tiny bit underwhelmed on the first taste... when I think of it like scotch. I have to sit with it for a long time and really breathe it in to come away with this glowing comparison. It's also not one some of my friends like, even those who appreciate whiskey. That can detract from its charm for me sometimes. But if you have occasion to try it, I'd highly recommend you do so, and bring water. It's a good whiskey, if one caught between two worlds. A Virginia distiller's homage to Scottish whiskey. No peat. Good amount of fruit and grain and barrel... The bottle has fiddly bits :3
HAPPY HUMPDAY MB's :)
Yay! Something I can get! I know what I'm picking up on the way home today!
Thank you for the review 🥃
I prefer Virginia Distillery's Cider Cask Finished whiskey over this Port finished...
These entry-level whiskies of theirs are pretty good, but I'm a big fan of Courage and Conviction.
Are barrels that produce exceptional single barrel releases set aside for special use?
Damn...you could make a great tour shirt. Just looked up a list: Athens, Dublin, Edinburgh, Geneva, Liverpool, London, Moscow, Naples, Newcastle, Paris...but now that I think of it, half of these are just British, so if you only did 1 or 2 with British names, that'd be 7 cities
In this episode: The floor is mooch, and Daniel gets the vapors.
And people complain about the whiskies I have sent in... What the FUK? At least 90% of my donations I have drank :)
August 27, 2018, the date you reviewed this same whiskey
Yeah, and they literally said “this is an amazing whisky.” “It’s both rounded off and complex.” Lol
When you drink so many bottles you don’t remember what you’ve reviewed then maybe take a step back. Just saying.
Rex actually passed on "If you're not looking for the wood to give you anything..." My inner 12 year old is disappointed!
To Daniel: I will come see you on tour in one of the funny Texas locations.
I need a big bottle of single mom. Ive only got the little shooter from a bit ago. Im not opening that. Maybe some more jackalope cause I really like that one too.
"I'm 2/10s better than you."
"And I'm 2in bigger than you."
a fair clap back :D
Hey I actually have this one. Yeah I get zero port on it compared to some of my other port finishes. It's def different.
It's funny. I just bought another bottle of this yesterday and swear the wine influence was dialed up on it compared to before. After my family and I got past the shoulder/neck pours, it started to resemble the dram I remembered with a bit less wine. Trying it next to their other finishes, like the cider cask shows that the wine definitely plays a role, but probably doesn't show up how you'd expect because of either the distillate or the climate it was aged in, where oak flavor influence tends to occur before real age and maturity. Water and time in the glass really help this one to me. . . In other news, I got word from a rep at the distillery they are soon (2024, perhaps) going to stop adding scotch to this one and rebrand it to VDC instead of VHW, and that they've been reducing the quantity of scottish malt they add over the last few batches, from more-or-less 50/50, down to probably about 25/75 or less. I haven't found any batch numbers or info on their website to back up the claim, but if a marketing rep tells you this stuff in an email, chances seem pretty good that its true to me. :) Something to keep an eye on!
The VA distillery port cask taste like a funky barnyard to me - almost like dry hay that is used in a horse stable. I have to be in the mood for it, but I often have better options. Isaac Bowman is a better VA brand imo
So this one is considered finished blended malt. But I guess there’s no delineation between country of origin.
im waiting for the patron saint of benevolence and the benevolent titans
These guys have reviewed so many whisky’s, they literally forgot how much they liked it years ago.
I can't see Rex's torso. How is his head just floating there wtf
Didnt believe this but as soon as the video started. I too was shocked. I also see flailing arms
Something funky in that whiskey and it isn’t consistent. I’ve tried it twice in mini bottles (I live in Winchester VA) and it was different from bottle bottle and I spit it out
13:05... weird edit.. lol
I caught that too, had to go back to see if it was just my phone. What was up with that?
I have a bottle of this sitting in a cupboard. I was thinking about this one being a good summer bourbon after mowing the lawn.
Daugherty Camp
Daniel's shot was so off, we could hear it
In Australia we dine on meat pies that will blister the roof of your mouth.
I've tried a 4-pack line-up of their single malts, 3 of which are finished malts. Oh my god. In a word: boring. I still have half of each mini left to try and I'll give them all another go but still...
There is just absolutely no complexity to their products, at least what they had put out in 2021/2022.
I don't know if I've seen a whole lot of positive reviews for the Virginia Distillery stuff. I've had a few samples and they've all been underwhelming to gross. 🤷🏼♂️ Youthful, metallic, unbalanced.
new release name..
Years
Old
Malt
Of
Magnificence
Mostly
Again
YO MOMMA
Has to be bottled in Scotland to be scotch, come on boys you know this stuff