Still Austin Straight Bourbon - Single Barrel 20220831-5

Whiskey Slickers single barrel 20220831-5

MSRP: $79.99

Mash: 70% white corn, 25% Elbon rye, 5% malted barley

Proof: 116.12

Age: 5 years

Nose: pound cake and soft oak tannins open the nose, followed by rose water, lemon curd, leather and nougat. It's overall sweet with a lot of nice earthy undertones that are never overwhelming

Palate: the nose follows through to the palate beautifully, the first thing I notice is the pound cake vibe again with loads of vanilla, almost like a barrel aged vanilla thing going on, the leather dominates the mid palate before revealing more of those sweet notes again, a brown sugar and cream with an almost plum fruitiness

Finish: medium finish of sweet cream, oak, and a hint of leather

Rating: Hoard it (Out of Hoard, Buy, Try, Pass)

Thoughts: ah man, I love this. It's not overly complex, but it's not simple either. It's just a straight up no nonsense really good sipper. The plum becomes much more pronounced as I drink it, and I love it. I'm honestly not a huge fan of Texas whiskey, it just hasn't quite hit right for me. But this is thankfully a huge step in the right direction. This is both my favorite Still Austin to date, and my favorite TX to date. I'm a big fan of the Whiskey Slickers picking barrels from places I don't own bottles from, because we're clearly on the same wave length.

What's the Deal?: Still Austin is a whiskey distillery out of Texas that is doing things differently from most other Texan whiskies. One of the things that they don't hide, but don't advertise, is that they are treating their aging whiskey like French Cognac. What I mean by that, is that they are following the French technique of Elevage but in the bourbon and rye world. If you're not familiar, this technique is that of slowly adding water or spirit back into the barrel as it ages to prevent it from oxidizing. In this case, they add small amounts of water as the whiskey ages to prevent it from becoming overly tannic or sour like some other Texas distilleries experience happening to their barrels. This is also why Still Austin trends to be a lower barrel strength than its Texan relatives. This single barrel bourbon from Still Austin is a perfect example of how balance can be achieved in Texas. Everything they are doing there has led to a perfectly approachable, sweet, and crushable pour that I have personally not experienced on any other TX whiskey. I hope they keep doing everything they are currently doing.

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