Heaven's Door ~ embiggenable • iPhone
Lake Champlain marina / looking at Vermont ~ embiggenable • iPhone
On my way to a charity/fundraiser event on Lake Chamlain I picked up a bottle of Bob Dylan's new just released Tennessee Straight Bourbon. After a couple days of sampling the distilled spirit I can write that Dylan and his distillers got it right.
Dylan didn't just put his name on the product. He was knee deep in its distilling and production - everything from the charring of the barrels to determining the tasting notes* and, I assume the design of the bottles inasmuch as one of Dylan's metal sculptures-a gate-is featured thereon.
There are 2 additional Dylan releases - a straight rye whiskey and a double barrel whiskey. I will be trying them.
*one reviewer's take ... On the nose, this is a classic, no-fuss bourbon, though with more oak-derived notes — think caramel, vanilla and wood char — than you’d expect from a seven-year-old. I also smelled sandalwood, leather and linseed oil. And there’s a creamy cola note that suggests a good bit of rye in the mash bill. (Mr. Dylan and his team say they use just 70 percent corn, leaving a lot of room for other grains to show their influence.) The palate opens with a soft cocoa and buttercream note, then sharpens toward black pepper and cigar tobacco. The finish is slightly bitter, with the sweet spiciness of an Atomic Fireball. My favorite of the bunch.