Distillery: Woodinville Whiskey Company
Proof: 122.24
Age: 4-5 Years
Mashbill: N/A
BACKGROUND: Woodinville Whiskey Company was originally opened by two best friends who had the dream of creating the greatest craft whiskey possible. . They started out by filling 8 gallon barrels from Black Swan Cooperage in Minnesota, but with time and the help of David Pickrell, master distiller for Makers Mark as a teacher, access to the highest quality grains, barrels, and coppers, Woodinville whiskey grew to where it is today, winning awards such as “Craft Whiskey of the year” & “Craft Rye Whiskey of the Year.” At the distillery all whiskeys are made in a 1,320 gallon still & a rectification column with 8 superaromator tray & 2 dephlegmators attached which yields about 7 barrels per day at 110 proof. The barrels are then aged in Quincy, WA due to the high temperature fluctuation and dry climate.
NOSE: From the second I raised the glass to my nose, I knew I was in for a treat. As the whiskey opened up with some swirling of the glass, an assortment sweet flavors like vanilla, sweet corn, hay, burnt oak, and dark fruit started intermingling and coming together, layered with the perfect amount of spiced oak and light ethanol generating a delightful sweet tingle as you take it in. (22/25)
PALATE: The palate followed right on que with the nose. Upon the first sip you can immediately feel the oily dram coat your mouth with flavors of spiced oak, cracked corn, and caramel. As you continue to drink, bold flavors of vanilla bean, sweet hay, and cinnamon that turn to spice in the best way. (33/40)
FINISH: The cinnamon spice continues to heat up as you feel it go down into your chest, warming you up & reminding you of the 122 proof point. As it sits flavors of black cracked pepper, sweet oak, and light mint intertwine into a dark licorice leaving your itching for another sip. (23/25)
VALUE: For $70 this is definitely a good buy. There are too many private select bottles at that price point that fail to live up to the hype, but this is not the case. (7/10)
Overall: 85/100
FINAL THOUGHTS: Southern Spirits lived up to the hype behind their private picks with this one, an absolutely delicious mirage of hot and sweet flavors that tie up together exceptionally. We are very excited to continue to explore their whiskeys & see what the future hold in Woodinville!
Similar & Slightly Better Whiskey: Stagg Jr
Similar & Equal Whiskey: Bookers Granny Batch
Similar & Slightly Worse Whiskey: Larceny Batch Proof B520
Tell us what you think and give us some feedback!
Scoring Legend:
96-100: The perfect dram, juice of the gods
90-95: Near perfect, truly incredible whiskey
85-89: Amazing whiskey, will always try to keep a backup bottle of this
80-84: Very good, some minor flaws here or there
75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink, Will try and keep a bottle on the shelf
70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get this
60-69: Decent, would offer this up to non whiskey drinkers
50-59: Not my cup of tea
Below 50: Give away
