Calumet Farm Single Rack Black 16 Year Bourbon Review
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- Опубликовано: 2 окт 2022
- We've heard from so many people that this is the bottle of the year. Does it live up to the hype? We're tasting Calumet Farm Single Rack Black 16 Year Bourbon for the first time, and we definitely have some thoughts. While we're at it, let's put Calumet Farm 16 up against Calumet Farm 15 and see which if there's a major difference. Is the $150 price tag worth it for this release of Calumet Farm's flagship bourbon?
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Julie, love the Skelly tee! Big fan of Social Distortion here!
‘22 Woodford Batch Proof 118.3 is my fav ….so far this year.
So I recently came across a store that has the Calumet 16 on sale for $120. They have the 15 year for $125. I feel for that price the 16 is a definite buy.
And I’d like to mention that Julie picked a great tshirt to wear on this episode. Cheers!
Got Calumet 16 at Costco a few days ago in Northern California for $119.95! It's a delicious pour.
The 16 year is a brilliant pour. Better than last year's. Will definitely be in my end of the year best bourbon blind. I have 2 bunkered. Total Wine has them for $125. $8 a year is a great value.
$125 is certainly more reasonable.
Please do another review of this in a month or so....really curious. It is a very hyped bottle.
Catching up on episodes I missed. I picked up the Calumet 16, but do not any other Calumet bottles to compare. I really like the 16, and I got it for $124. I guess I could compare it to the Lucky Seven Proprietors 15 Year. I finally found the Larceny BP A123 a few days ago. Along with it, I also picked up 2XO Phoenix Blend and Barrel Vantage. Love the channel.
During a Patreon livestream last week, we tried our bottle of Cal 16 versus a different batch that some channel supporters sent to us. Their batch was absolutely delicious. If our batch had been as good as theirs, we would have had a totally different view of this bottle.
$150 is the retail.... High, but I don't think unreasonable.... I am a big fan of the Sam Houston 15
Thanks again for the honesty 🥃 Cheers
Great, honest review. I’ve had these in my hands and have passed…glad I did! Think I’ll just sip on my OF 1920! Cheers to you both!🥃😊
LOL maybe Phil's crazy! Totally possible.
Review Frank August bourbon 100 proof it’s new
I was blown away by the ECBF C922. I was one of those that talked up the Calumet 15.
I picked up Calumet 16 for 130 and I’ve had a couple pours. As of now I prefer my Knob Creek 12&18, JDSBBP, ECBP’s, and my Sam Houston 14! Hoping it opens up more down the road!
If you live on the west coast, we're convinced the batch we received isn't nearly as good as the other batches across the country. It's a shame, because we loved a couple other batches, but the bottle we got is really not good.
@@TheBourbonVan California ( San Joaquin Valley)
Appreciate the emphasis on price vs expectation. I'm not against freebie reviews but it's tough to be as critical when it's your own dime. I've yet to sample any Calumet. I can get the 16 for $145, 15 for $125 and 14 for $120. Also the 8yr for $46 but haven't seen much love for it. Too bad. My fave so far this year is Larceny B522. Old Forester SB close 2nd. Cheers!
Do you ever make it to the DC area? I’m a PNW native and would love to meet up!
I am surprised.... we did a nice line up with 14-15-16....the 9 people there were all in for the Calumet 16 over 15... so delicious is the 16...the wood on the 15 made it a bit unbalanced for me. I appreciate your reviews.
What about the 14? Better than the 15?
Thanks for this, I have been considering the 14,15,16 but may just buy the 15 now! You saved me $30
Definitely return to the 16 later into the bottle and re-review. I'd be curious. For me, eventually it became my fave over the 15 and I picked up a second bottle. It had more intense flavor and a sticky syrupy texture as compared to the also excellent 15. Love your reviews! Cheers!
Whiskey of the year… the B and C batches of Larceny Barrel Proof. I also really like the JD triple mash
Whiskey of the year? I vote for Woodford Reserve Master Distillers Collection Batch Proof 2022, delicious. Or maybe the Larceny Barrel Proof C922
Great video as always. Just tried the Calumet 8, 15 and 16 at the Nashville whiskey festival. All pleased me, but there’s a big difference between the 8 and 15, loved the 15; then I tried the 16, I was very pleased. Great chocolate notes and the cherry notes were outstanding to me, understated, not medicinal at all. The only downside for me is the price.
Appreciate the honesty. Part of me wanted to save up for this, but I think I will lean towards the Stellum Fibonacci Blend Rye. Cheers!
Hey, kudos to you two for being honest about your opinion! Agreed there's been a lot of hype for the Calumet 16 and from some bigger channels so it might have been easier to just go with crowd, convincing yourselves it was that good. I keep seeing it at various stores right at that $150-$165 range and I keep passing. I did get the Calumet 15 for $110 though from Costco. I thought it was a little too oak forward for me at first, but I really enjoyed it after I got a few drinks into it.
We agree on the way the Cal 15 came around. Maybe the 16 will as well, but Phil revisited it twice in the 2 weeks since we recorded this video, and it's still not hitting his palate. Different strokes for different folks, we guess!
It's amazing and I hate to spend over 100 on a bottle ever. It's 135 by me and I loved it so much i bought a back up.
$135 is certainly more reasonable.
They are so good. I've bunkered 2.
Happy to hear your continued honest reviews! Valuing the Price vs Flavor is always going to a judging factor, and with so many different budgets it will always be a subjective answer. You guys have a nice way of analyzing all factors and not being too critical or overhyped about anything, just calling it how you taste it.. I haven’t opened my 16yr to compare with 15yr & 14yr. I do however look forward to you guys revisiting this someday in the future to see how it hits you at another time, my guess is still the same answer… Cheers to another great review🥃
Thanks a lot, Joe. Some people seem to be getting upset with us because they're focused on the age, whereas we're focused on the experience. For $150, we expect greatness, and while this whiskey is very good, it lacks the mouthfeel and finish that we'd expect from that price point. Perhaps we got a down batch? Alas, we really wanted this to be great.
Thanks for the review. I'm still undecided. I'm half way through a bottle of 16 and couldn't figure out what I disliked about it. Does anyone else get bubble gum flavor?
We definitely get a generic/dime store bubble gum flavor.
MSRP I think is $134.99, it's a pretty great value at that point I think, but it's still good at 150-160.
I lucked out and picked up a bottle of the 16 year for $125.00. I have not opened it yet, currently have too many open bottles. I got a bottle of 15 last year for $100.00. I am not a huge fan of the 15. I heard the 14 year is really good. I have not had the 14 year? Have you two?
I tried the 16 and was blown away. Bought a few more bottles. One of the best I’ve ever had.
If you know of something better, (and available), please let me know.
The medicinal flavor is a turnoff for me. I simply don't care for that flavor, so there's tons of available bottles I'd prefer. If you love it, more power to you!
What is the "Rack No." of your bottle? I'm very curious to see if it was different from mine which is W4006.09.
@@dnovelle1
Mine is the same as yours. With the mixed reviews I wonder how much variation there is between batches.
@@joeblo5516 I think there's quite a variance personally. I don't like our bottle because there's too much cherry for my liking, but some like you really like it. It's what is great about bourbon for it's really to each their own. I've just never liked cherry bombs like this bottle is.
@@dnovelle1
I don’t taste any cherry at all.
Good forthright review on the Calumet 16. There have been a lot of cheerleaders for this bottle since it’s release, myself included, and it will be interesting to see how this one stacks up on whiskey bottle rankings at the end of the year. One bottle that comes to mind that is climbing the charts in my collection this year is the Chattanooga Whiskey BIB Vintage release. It is hitting all the right flavor notes and zooming up my list. Cheers!🥃
Would love to get out hands on more Chattanooga! Also, Remus VI is blowing us away, but people keep dogging it. 🤷
Saw the 15 yesterday for 109.99….hard to pull the trigger…great review..
I'm with Phil on this one. I get why people love it, but the medicinal cherry is not something I enjoy. Off the top of my head, some bottles that I liked this year include some Lucky Seven 14-year picks, Larceny B522, and this year's Woodford Reserve Master's Collection. 🥃
Happy to know I'm not alone, Jeff. Lots of brands are putting out great bottles this year - Makers, Woodinville, Wilderness Trail, Starlight, Frey Ranch, and many more. I get that this bottle is more available than most, but the competition is getting better and better as time goes on and small distillery stocks age even more.
I agree with Phil! I was so excited about this after thoroughly enjoying the 15. I can’t shake the medicinal note. I wouldn’t spend 10 dollars on this for the simple fact I don’t enjoy drinking it.
I'm so glad I'm not alone!
Love the Cal hate, keeps them on the shelf. Just picked up another 15 for $110 and a 16 for $117 here in KY. Big fan of the Barton profile in general and these have aged notes you don't get in younger bourbons. Are they the best thing ever? No, but they're delicious, fairly priced given the age, and actually available at retail or on sale for even less.
Also saw the Remus VI reply. Can't wait to hear Phil fawn over a predominately 8yr MGP Blend that will retail well north of $100 in most markets after shitting on this. I can absolutely get well aged mgp that's as good or better than VI for less.
I’m with ya on the medicinal taste. Mine has been opening up for a couple months and still the same. Not my favorite. 🙂 Thanks for the great review.
Thanks Kevin, we knew this one would ruffle some feathers. We're honestly surprised to have so much company in our thoughts. Cheers.
The 16 yr old is a great pour, better than 15 in my opinion however I think Bardstown Fusion # 4 gives it a run for it's money. I think I would give them a tie
Have you went back to this bottle? Hopefully it’s opened up for you.
Still terrible. We discovered that there were different batches, and the batch we got was terrible. We enjoyed other batches that were sent to us much more.
Thank you for this. I am a collector who can’t afford to over pay for mediocre bourbon. Scratch the 16 off my list of wants for now.
Cal 16 definitely up there for whiskey of the year. Chocolate cherry cordial bomb. The 15 cherry was more medicinal in flavor. Come back to the 16 looks like you're still near the neck pour.
I think it comes in @16th of my Favorite
Whiskey's of the year 🙄🤠💪🏽🥃 It's Good
Not Great 🙏🏽🥃🥃🥃 I'll see what happens at
the end of the year when I finalize my List 👍
I think that’s a fair placement, Joe!
would be cool to see them in a blind with a couple of other bottles that you think you preferred this year!
Absolutely, in due time!
I got this a few months ago and was underwhelmed by it. The flavors were great, but at that price point I expected them to really saturate my palate. I think it was just thinned out a bit too much. I'll have to go back to see if it is any better now. Personally, my biggest surprise this year was a Frey Ranch store pick (~134 proof). Its taste profile is definitely different than standard Kentucky bourbon, but its an excellent experience that I keep going back to.
We're completely with you on your thoughts, and Frey Ranch is awesome, especially at barrel proof! Woodinville Cask Strength picks have also blow us away. There are some great bottles out there with huge flavors that stick to the palate in a satisfying way. Cheers!
Personally I love this bottle. It is also my first Calumet. The only thing I can compare it to is a Sam Houston 15 SC -2 batch. Some similarities but the Cal 16 just reminds me of a rickhouse. The nose is beautiful, the oak and rich vanilla on the palate. But that is me and you are you. You are not wrong by any means any more than I am right. We just differ in opinion. That is what makes this hobby and the wonderful people you have the opportunity to meet and share these opinions with amazing. Thanks for holding true to your opinion and hope everyone can remember that is all it is. A place to share. May have to grab that Cal 15 now though ;) Cheers!
The Sam Houston 15 beat all three Cal for me! I am not a fan of the 16
I feel the same way about the 16 year, I was very underwhelmed. The 15 year was much more my speed. Hopefully the 16 opens up down the line. Nothing yet tho. 😮💨
Someone online told me the 15 and 16 are available here in Durham, but I haven't seen them and they aren't on the state's price list. We do have the 8, but I've seen so many bad reviews of that one, I skipped it.
Haven’t tried anything beyond these two so far. Let us know your thoughts if you grab them.
I have passed on Cal 16 a handful of times. In NJ it’s about $140. The Cal 15 is enjoyable, but I keep holding back on getting the Cal 16. Maybe this take can change my mind, salud!
We're definitely in the minority on this bottle. Julie likes it more than Phil, but neither of us were blown away by it.
Might want to compare a $150 Bourbon to a $150 Scotch, assuming that you like both types of whisky.
Are you still in the same place with cal 16? Has it evolved after opening?
We received several samples of other batches. It turns out that our batch is pretty lousy, but some of the other batches we've tried are delicious.
@TheBourbonVan I've been hunting one all this year and finally found it last Friday. I had the neck pour and will let it open up a while before another try. Fingers crossed!
Critical reviews are great. Love to hear the painful truth.
I will say the hype is hard to live up to on bottles sometimes. I always have to wait awhile and after the initial disappointment dissipates I’ll go back to it.
I put the Cal 16 I had up against an Old Carter LA-2 batch that I got the other day. No way the Cal 16 can be the best whiskey I bought this year with that OC sitting in my cabinet. 😁 Wasn’t even close Cal < OC
I’ve only had the 15, but what I’ve been hearing, 15>16. Given that + price difference + 15 stays on the shelf, imo best to buy up some 15s while they still sit around. Don’t know why Calumet sits on the store shelves tbh…
Man , I am totally opposite. I think the 15 is a cherry cough drop. I love the 16. Which I got a back up of. But hey that’s the fun of all this. Enjoy what you two do.
Cheers to that
I see Sam Houston 15 center-frame feeling sad it wasn't included.
The Sam bottle is Phil’s favorite of these.
@@TheBourbonVan I tried all three at a recent event and the SH stood out as the most unique. Interestingly the Calumet rep said that going forward, they are switching all sourcing from Barton to Bardstown.
At a drop or two of water! 16👍
I agree. Why spend that much on a bottle when you can get the same enjoyment from a $40 or $50 bottle? I’ll tell you why. It’s exactly as you said…it’s the hype. And there’s not much you can do about that. It’s the human condition. 😂
Lots of people very upset with us today, but if we all preferred the same things, everything would be allocated.
What bottles are best for the value, for well aged whiskeys? They are all $100+ even double. Let's not even mention secondary. Elijah Craig 18 90proof anybody? Barrell 15! $250+ Michter's 10, Knob Creek 15 & 18, Heaven Hill 17 (total unicorn), Well aged Four Roses (pure myth as far as I know). Tough pill to swallow but bourbon is not getting any cheaper.
All things considered Calumet is becoming a poor's man well age bourbon experience for what its worth. There is definitely different and better experiences "but different" for under $100. It might just be time for a blind. Calumets & Sam Houston against the value contenders!! CHEERS!! (Dickel 15 anybody?...lets keep it a secret)
I was also supremely disappointed with it! Too much cherry for my liking. Mine was definitely NOT worth the $149.99 I paid as well, but one thing to keep in mind is that there are different Rack No.'s for this release and there very well may be variance from Rack No. to Rack No.. Each Rack No. is batched with 19 barrels. What was your Rack No. for this review? Mine was Rack No. W4006.09.
So what you're saying is you'd buy a New Riff product before this? The struggle seemed real. Keep telling it like it is rather than what you think we would like to hear.
Some of the New Riff single barrels we've tried have been good for $50-ish! Just confusing...
What reviewers and people in general aren't considering about the C15/16s is that there's nothing on the shelves that old or complex. This has no competition. Pappy 15 is $1500 or more on secondary. Is Pappy 15 $1350 better than C15/16? No lol ppl pay $150 for Blanton's for Christ sake.
The trouble with Cal 16 is that the batches are horribly uneven. We have tried good samples of various batches, but we purchased a thin, disappointing batch. For $150, consistency should be a critical concern. As for complexity, the batch we purchased can’t hold a candle to some much cheaper whiskeys. And Dickel is a popular punching bag, but their 15 year 100-ish proof product is nothing short of great for $55-65.
@@TheBourbonVan I live in Ohio and the only Dickel 15 we get is the 90 proof and its even super limited and $70. So in my area there's just nothing on the shelf that comes close. If you want extra aged Bourbon then you're gonna pay super high secondary prices, wait for days in line or win a state lottery bottle.
That's fair. The sub-100 proof Dickel isn't the best. If you're interested in experiencing well-aged bourbon, you're right. It's tough out there. We're just frustrated by the quality of the batch we purchased for the price.
@@TheBourbonVan Oh I get that you guys were dissatisfied with it and that sucks but I've seen people spend $300 on Weller 12 and it ruins their week after they open it lol so for a 16 year bourbon, even at $150 isn't that huge of a mistake I feel. I think you guys are right about it probably getting better as the air gets to it.
This video reeks of negativity bias. You know you paid $150, so you are looking for that value in the whiskey.
IMO, Calumet 16 is the best whiskey I have tasted. Maybe that is because I want it to be since it is the only bottle I have spent about $100 for, or maybe it is that good.
Regardless, the best way to determine if it is worth it or not, do a blind flight.
Cal16 is the best bourbon I have ever tasted, however, I don't know if I could name it in a blind, that is because of my mind, I know what I spent on it, and it is very good. I haven't blinded it, so have no way of knowing how I truly see it.
To the point of your video, I bought Smokewagon Uncut /Unfiltered for around $80, it is simply an ok bourbon, I will not buy it again, and will probably look to trade what is left of the bottle. I would rather drink WT101 or EW BiB any day of the week.
I always heard the 15 was a cherry bomb, which kept me away from it as I don’t love a ton of cherry in my bourbon.
My wife got me the Cal 16 for my birthday for 135, excited to try it as the only high age whiskey I have had was the Remus V.
We just grabbed Remus VI and Phil is obsessed with it.
@@TheBourbonVan Another one I am having a hard time justifying. They lowered the age of the whiskey down to a bunch of 8yr and upped the price by 20! I know it’ll be good, but Yeesh that is a hard one to swallow.
Bad, bad luck...or just the story of your life?😉
Very well done.
Cheap bottles 😀.
Heretics! Infidels!! Witches!!! No bucking the whiskey orthodoxy!! 🫣 This is why we love you…you calls it likes you sees it!! 😙 Now, I’m gonna go pour myself a splash of this super-good bourbon (made even more delicious as it was gifted to me; so a $0.00 bottle)!! 😜
Haha, you know how it is! To each his or her own. We don't judge what other people like. We can only offer our best thoughts as we check things out. Cheers, Paul! Enjoy your affordable bottle!