2026 Stitzel Reserve 31yr 163.2°

 

Nose:  Medicinal rick-house.  The nose takes me back to Prohibition (even though this is something distilled in 1992) Era. A touch of oakiness in the backdrop with herbal, red fruit, pine characteristics with a sweetness hiding in the background.  Reminiscence of seeing the leaves fall off the oak tree on a relaxing autumn day where the soft ethereal lights breaks through the leaves while a singular brownish orange amber as the hue of this spirit slowly glides its way in the air.  The fragrance is so alluring that a glancing whiff demands a head-turn to acknowledge what did I just smell.  They say the palate seems to go on and on; this nose offers some of the same sentiments. Making you ponder… and for a moment forget the world… even if only for a moment. 

 

Palate:  Front in spice that coats your whole mouth offering a slightly numbing mouthfeel.  There is immense mature oak similar to that of King of Kentucky 18yr year or Old Rip Van Winkle 25yr.  The type the seemingly demands your attention – saying, “Child, focus and experience this.  Keep yourself here.” There are lays of oak, usually, that can be very static in nature, but the oak on this seems to be more dynamic, morphing into a particular type of dance.  I’m familiar with dances of heat profiles – things such as rhymic heat, cascading heat, pulsing heat… not so much for oak – this is rather unique.  Another sips bring out more of the mid-palate that is sweeter and sharper – leaving my left jaw with a pulsing sharpness. More berries and red fruits show up as I sip and sip… but each sip seems to add layers and layers to the profile; reminding me of how a master blacksmith re-hammer metal to create more layers and sharpness.  The finish offers a Kentucky hug that seems to reside not at the chest, but in the back of the throat and plants itself there without leaving.   

 

Verdict:  In the previous post for Blade and Bow 30yr, it was written the following, “Imagine if you are a precocious distiller and was given the keys to the Distillery – you are 25 years old.  You create your first batch of bourbon – it takes twenty years for your first batch to be done.  After taking everything you learned in those twenty years, you make your second batch of bourbon – the quality has improved.  Then after another twenty years, that second batch is entirely done.  After forty years of commitment, you are a TRUE master distiller; at this point, 65 years old.  Then you make your third batch… it is likely one may not live to enjoy the final product of all the labor, all that dedication, all the commitment, all the love.  When tasting this spirit, I am truly getting the honor to taste the legacy of a true master distiller… something priceless… a dedicated soul that never had the opportunity to revel in their perfection.”  This seems to align in that class… yet beyond that, I look forward to curating a flight to open up the depths of this bourbon – which upon first experience, have only touched the outer spectrum of this expression.