Very drinkable and more influenced by the red wine than the French oak cask maturation. 85/100
Starward Left-Field (40%, OB, 2021)
Jim Beam Single Barrel (47.5%, OB, 2020)
Intriguing on the nose but rather too spiced on the palate for my liking, thankfully not overtly sweet. 82/100
Hudson Baby Bourbon (46%, OB, 2020)
Great! Powewrful, polished wood and spices with a lovely sweet backdrop. 87/100
American Eagle 4 Years Old (40%, OB, 2020)
Full bodied and full flavoured, very enjoyable for a 4 year old Bourbon and not overly sweet or corny. 80/100
Filey Bay STR Finish (46%, OB, 2021)
Definitely my favourite of the tasting, I recoiled slightly at the STR – or shaved, toasted, recharred barrel currently in use far too much with new distilleries for my liking, however this is a red herring here as it is the barrels former (red wine) occupants that really has an impact on the final product. 83/100
Filey Bay Moscatel Finish (46%, OB, 2021)
Another tasty expression, moved more into stone fruits thanks to the Moscatel finish, plus plenty of honey and syrup sweetness too, whilst retaining core distillate flavours too. 82/100
Filey Bay Flagship (46%, OB, 2021)
A nice introduction to the Filey Bay house style, plenty of fruity spirit and a hint of youth in the woody notes present, thankfully not too over-cask-engineered which seems all the rage with most new distilleries. A promising start! 82/100
Bulleit Rye (45%, OB, 2020)
A spiced and sweet Rye whiskey with plenty of nice fruity flavours going on, I kept finding cola, cherry cola and cherry lips sweeties in this one. 83/100
Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon (45%, OB, 2020)
Perhaps a little too woody for me with a hint of dry pencil shavings, otherwise a good balance of sweet and spice. 82/100
1792 Small Batch Bourbon (46.9%, OB, 2020)
Some depth and well-balanced, reveals a little more complexity and not as sweet as some Bourbons. 84/100
