Willett 17yo Shoppers Vineyard
Added on Monday, Nov 1, 2010 at 10:32 PM
  Bottler: Kentucky Bourbon Distillers, Inc.
  Age: 17 yrs Type: American
  Vintage: 1993 Subtype: Bourbon
  ABV: 68.80 % Region: Kentucky
  Price: $90 Availability: Specialty Stores
Distilled 4/6/1993        White Oak       Warehouse E       Rick South 6       Barrel 54       132 Bottles
Exclusively for Shoppers Vineyard in New Jersey.  SV Willett bottling #1.
Member Ratings and Notes
Adam
 

Overall this is very similar to Willett 16yo Barrel 31, and if you compare the above data between the two it's pretty clear why.

 

Nose is deep caramel-toffee, with roasted chestnuts. Really inviting and great.

 

Palate is bittersweet toffee, quite nutty, with cinnamon-oak spices. Rather dry. And as with many bourbons over about 65%, I like this with ice. Yep.  I do. It makes the texture creamy and buttery, and the taste even gets a little buttery too. Definitely gets much more Bit-O-Honey'd.

 

Like its sister barrel, I find my enjoyment of this varying, more so than most whiskeys will vary from tasting to tasting. But I always enjoy it.  Finish can be a little bumpy, but it's very tasty.

Chris
 
N: Smells like a wheater, more floral than spicy, then some syrup, Baklava.
P: A rich bourbon with a lot of floral spice and candy notes, but relatively dry which is unexpected based on the nose.
F: A little chocolate and nuts.
Sku
 

The nose on this just screams aged bourbon with dry, oaky notes.  The palate starts off sweet with toffee and even some marzipan, then woody old Bourbon flavors come into play and a bit of acidity.  The finish is a bit flat and carries some bitterness with it.  

Going by memory alone, I think I like this one just a tad less than the similar K&L bottling that Adam referenced in his notes, but they are in the same range. 

Copyright © 2006-2024, LA Whiskey Society®. All rights reserved.