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Title:
Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch 750ml Barrel Strength Bourbon
Description:
Bourbon Culture charted small batch releases that shows how often each recipe has been used over the last 17 releases. It becomes immediately clear that there are four primary ones that Four Roses likes to concentrate on. What’s more telling is that it also might be telling us which recipes have the propensity to mature better than others over a longer period of time. I’m guessing the delicate floral notes in Q and F recipes aren’t well-known for holding up to the barrel influence after more than a decade of maturation. OESK has made the cut on every single batch thus it must age better than most recipes.
With that said, there is one significant change this year, the addition of the OESF recipe. Even more surprisingly is the fact it makes up the largest percentage of barrels this year. Here are the breakdown of recipes and their ages:
31% OBSV (12 Years Old) Barrels
23% OESK (15 Years Old) Barrels
39% OESF (16 Years Old) Barrels
7% OBSV (20 Years Old) Barrels
B = High Rye Mash Bill: 60/35/5 E = Low Rye Mash Bill: 75/20/5
How did the 2024 release differ so much from the other recent releases? One thought I had was just how much the OESF barrels must have influenced the final flavor profile. It’s rare to see OESF picks in the wild (OBSO and OESF are two of the most rare recipes to find) and that means there are a lot of enthusiasts without much experience tasting them. I find that whenever a person has little experience with a certain profile that it can taste off to them. So are people rejecting this year’s release because they don’t have much experience with OESF
Reviewer owns 3 OESF Private Selection picks and find they lean heavily towards honey and mint (ironically, one is a Liquor Barn pick named “Honeybear”). Did Four Roses do the right thing by using such a large percentage in this year’s blend?
Nose: Initial scents are bright and fruity with plenty of herbal notes. If I was given this blind, I may have guessed it’s a rye whiskey. Palate: Honey is the dominant sweet note I’m finding whereas in previous years it’s been brown sugar or caramel. Spice notes include cinnamon, clove and nutmeg. I’m surprised how little oak I find considering the average age of all the recipes used in the blend. Finish: The spice notes are most dominant on the finish with cinnamon, nutmeg and anise taking over. I expected the tannic notes from those 20-year-old barrels to show up at the end, but the oak continues to stay somewhat out of reach. Instead, it’s the rye flavors like mint, menthol and citrus rind that tilt the fading flavors towards a brighter ending than you’d expect.
While this isn’t my favorite Small Batch Limited Edition release, it’s also not the worst. It’s really all about context. If you’re coming into this expecting a repeat of the 2023 release, you’ll be disappointed. I recommend coming into it with an open mind – and an appreciation for high-rye bourbons.
With that said, there is one significant change this year, the addition of the OESF recipe. Even more surprisingly is the fact it makes up the largest percentage of barrels this year. Here are the breakdown of recipes and their ages:
31% OBSV (12 Years Old) Barrels
23% OESK (15 Years Old) Barrels
39% OESF (16 Years Old) Barrels
7% OBSV (20 Years Old) Barrels
B = High Rye Mash Bill: 60/35/5 E = Low Rye Mash Bill: 75/20/5
How did the 2024 release differ so much from the other recent releases? One thought I had was just how much the OESF barrels must have influenced the final flavor profile. It’s rare to see OESF picks in the wild (OBSO and OESF are two of the most rare recipes to find) and that means there are a lot of enthusiasts without much experience tasting them. I find that whenever a person has little experience with a certain profile that it can taste off to them. So are people rejecting this year’s release because they don’t have much experience with OESF
Reviewer owns 3 OESF Private Selection picks and find they lean heavily towards honey and mint (ironically, one is a Liquor Barn pick named “Honeybear”). Did Four Roses do the right thing by using such a large percentage in this year’s blend?
Nose: Initial scents are bright and fruity with plenty of herbal notes. If I was given this blind, I may have guessed it’s a rye whiskey. Palate: Honey is the dominant sweet note I’m finding whereas in previous years it’s been brown sugar or caramel. Spice notes include cinnamon, clove and nutmeg. I’m surprised how little oak I find considering the average age of all the recipes used in the blend. Finish: The spice notes are most dominant on the finish with cinnamon, nutmeg and anise taking over. I expected the tannic notes from those 20-year-old barrels to show up at the end, but the oak continues to stay somewhat out of reach. Instead, it’s the rye flavors like mint, menthol and citrus rind that tilt the fading flavors towards a brighter ending than you’d expect.
While this isn’t my favorite Small Batch Limited Edition release, it’s also not the worst. It’s really all about context. If you’re coming into this expecting a repeat of the 2023 release, you’ll be disappointed. I recommend coming into it with an open mind – and an appreciation for high-rye bourbons.
Brewery or Distillery:
Four Roses Distilleries
Size:
750 mL
Barcode:
860007585326
Alcohol Percent:
54.1
Type of Alcohol:
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Year:
2024
Date Added:
2025-01-10 11:07:03
Percent Remaining:
100
Automatic Estimated Date:
2025-11-19
Date Added:
2025-01-10 11:07:03
