Bought – Morrisons, 22nd October 2014
Ratings:
89/100 – Whisky Bible 2014
79.31 – Whiskybase (average from 95 member votes)
Having not tried Bulleit before, Morrisons’s tempting offer of £22 suckered me in. As low as that might seem, the same bottle is selling in Holland for €21.60 (£17), so it’s hardly the bargain of the year. Nevertheless it’s a new bourbon to my growing American collection.
There was a 40% version of the ‘Frontier Whiskey’ but this is the stronger 45%. Not that ‘stronger’ always means better. The Whiskybase members have the 40% version scoring 80.63/100 and my 45% bottle languishing behind with less than 79.5/100. But hardly much of a difference to notice. Comments include “great nose, and ok mouth and a poor finish” and “pleasant enough dram – quite a short, stocky after taste leaving the tongue with a pleasant coating”.
The Whisky Bible 2014 has less to say about this whiskey than the 2013 edition, then in 2015 the whiskey has vanished, suggesting it’s been discontinued. I’ll be surprised if it has! Jim Murray summaries his review in the Bible with “a very easy going bourbon which makes the most of any rye in the recipe. Dangerously drinkable.”
Here are the Scotch Test Dummies with their YouTube review (Dec 2015) where they rather enjoy the Bulleit ‘Frontier Whisky’ (86/100):
Whisky Den 