Finger Lakes Distilling, McKenzie Bourbon, New York, 750ml

Appearance: Deep red/bronze color in the bottle, lovely wheat gold in the glass. Nice edgeline on swirling with legs forming very slowly on swirling, with very long legs and droplets forming.First Impression: Char, tobacco, leather, apricots, nutmeg , vanilla, some spiciness, and some traces of dark fruit. Develops a lighter citrus character on warming. This is a great, complex, multilayered but somehow delicate whiskey. Taste: Toffee, (not caramel), corn, apricot again, vanilla, cinnamon family spices much like the bouquet. A slightly sweet start, medium slightly fatty/oily mouth feel, Lovely medium length finish with a fair amount of oak, char, leather, dark fruits, apple butter and vanilla. Drinks: Great in almost any drink calling for bourbon that we tried- Manhattans were singular in subtle complexity. We also tried it in some cocktails calling for Islay single malt scotch and it worked wonderfully as a variation on a theme. blast. I recommend experimenting with different glasses, some of which are reviewed in our barware reviews section. We particularly liked the cane tulip glass for this whiskey. Bottle:The clear glass shows the whiskey to good effect. Coupled wth the old-style shape and antique look neckband it is easy to spot. The graphics and collar band are also well done, in a minimal sort of way. The ergonomics of the bottle make it easy to grasp and pour (especially the neck), but also give the impression of solidity and heft. Overall the design harkens to a antique whiskey bottle in overall influence and appearance. Final Thoughts: Complex, interesting, and well done , especailly for a young whiskey. Half the price of the competition and more subtle and complex.