Comments on kystraightbourbon's review of I. W. Harper 15 ye

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Comments on kystraightbourbon's review of I. W. Harper 15 ye

Unread postby forumadmin » Thu Oct 12, 2006 4:47 pm

This is an automatically created topic for discussion about kystraightbourbon's review of I. W. Harper 15 year old;.
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Unread postby bourbonv » Thu Oct 12, 2006 4:47 pm

Have you tried letting this bourbon breath a little before tasting it? I am not sure that you have different findings, but from some of your description, it might help to let the bourbon breath and the unpleasant aromas dissapate.
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Unread postby angelshare » Fri Oct 13, 2006 8:18 pm

Ahh, the futility of arguing flavor. Of films, Gene Siskel (I think) once said (paraphrased), you can't argue someone into believing a film is a) erotic or b) humorous. Either it is or it isn't.

You can't argue someone into thinking they're drinking good bourbon, either. Consequently, don't misunderstand this as an attempt to do that. Just a different impression of the same product.

IWH 15 yo is the best 80 proof bourbon that I have ever had. Yes, it's overpriced. It's very overpriced. IWH 15 and Hancock's Reserve belong on a shelf together marked "Ambivalence." They are not worth the price, and they are watered down, but, damn it, they are GOOD.

I may be mistaken, but I thought that you characterized the mouth of IWH as "oily" on your website. I perceive it is buttery - for me, oily in a positive way. Forgive me if I have that wrong about your other review.

The vanilla and caramel are the signature flavors of IWH 15, but what you perceive as bitter, I think I would characterize as an undercurrent of wood/oak that is distinctive without being overpowering. Very few bourbons survive this much bottling water and remain distinctive, IMHO. I would actually love to taste this at higher proof, but I kind of wonder if I wouldn't wind up watering it down to bring out the vanilla over the oak anyway.

I've never had the 130 month, but I have had the 12 year. Perhaps our common ground is that we both think 15 year aging may have been excessive. I think the 12 year is fabulous. Unfortunately, that's even harder to find in my experience.

Which makes me wonder...if I remember correctly, according to Chuck, OC and IWH are very much the same whiskey mashbill-wise. (Chuck - do I have that right?) I love OC 12 (thanks, Mike for bringing up fond Classic memories with your review)! OC PR is just not quite as good to me - unblinded, anyway. Maybe we both agree that this whiskey peaks in the ballpark of 12 years?

In the end, if I found another bottle of IWH 15 year, I would mutter, curse, pace...and then plop down $40 because it would sucker me in again.

$50? I don't know...
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Breathing and IW Harper 15 vs. OCPR

Unread postby kystraightbourbon » Mon Nov 06, 2006 9:59 am

I've let it breathe for about 15 minutes, maybe that's not long enough. I really don't find it to be too bad on the nose, it's the flavor that kills it for me.

To answer Angelshare,

I just bought Old Charter PR and I found it to be much the same as IW Harper 15 and pretty dissappointing in my initial sampling. I will need to find some of the 12 year and see how that compares. Again, I think it's a matter of aging.

Granted, IWH15 does hold its character, but so does Elijah Craig 18 year old, and truth be told, I like that one much better. In fact, I wish I'd bought that instead of the OCPR.

To me, an oily feel is a negative. Buttery would be good, but again it's the differences in our palates. It's much the same for the bitterness that I taste. Where you find it to be distinctive, I find it to be over-stated. Too much oak and the result of bad aging. Again, that's just my opinion and many disagree with me.

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