Distillery: Sourced
Proof:100
Age: 5 Years
Mashbill: 95% wheat 5% malted barley
BACKGROUND: Old Elk is a distillery that was launched in 2013 in Fort Collins, CO. They were founded by serial entrepreneur Kurt Richardson. When Old Elk was first launched, Curt knew he would source his whiskey. When he went to MGP however, he had a unique ask of then master distiller Greg Metze. Curt did not want a distillate from an existing mashbill, rather he wanted Greg to form a new one. In 2016 Metze left MGP after 15 years and joined the Old Elk team full time. He ages the whiskey through a slow-proofing process where he reduces the whiskey from barrel proof to bottle proof by adding water over 2/2.5 weeks. Old Elk’s portfolio consisted of straight bourbon, wheated bourbon, rye whiskey, and wheat whiskey.
NOSE: The nose opens with fresh notes of light caramel sawdust, and vanilla with a slight kick of ethanol. As your nose adjusts to the palate, a fruity flavor comparable to green apple starts to show. (21/25)
PALATE: Old Elk Straight Wheat is very light and smooth. The oily dram immediately coats your mouth with a buttery vanilla sensation mixed with a light sweet caramel that go together perfectly. The fruity notes start to show again like in the nose, but this time much less prevalent, a light undertone of pecans mixed with woody, grainy, notes. (31/40)
FINISH: The finish on this is quite unique compared to the nose and palate. The sweets start to fall off and a spiced oak coats your mouth leaving a wonderful sensation of tingling around your tongue. Along with the spice there are cool notes of light toffee, caramel, and vanilla. (22/25)
VALUE: For $65 this is a great buy. Most wheat whiskeys tend to be a little sweet for my liking, but this one has a very unique buttery flavor that makes it stand out a bit from the pack. (7/10)
Overall: 81/100
FINAL THOUGHTS: Old Elk Straight Wheat whiskey is a delicious expression of whiskey that is unique, and simple, but very tasty. If you like smooth buttery whiskeys this is the perfect dram for you.
Similar & Slightly Better Whiskey: 1792 Sweet Wheat
Similar & Equal Whiskey: Weller SR
Similar & Slightly Worse Whiskey: Redemption Wheated Bourbon
Tell us what you think and give us some feedback
Scoring Legend:
96-100: The perfect dram, juice of the gods
90-95: Near perfect, truly incredible whiskey
85-89: Amazing whiskey, will always try to keep a backup bottle of this
80-84: Very good, some minor flaws here or there
75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink, Will try and keep a bottle on the shelf
70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get this
60-69: Decent, would offer this up to non whiskey drinkers
50-59: Not my cup of tea
Below 50: Give away
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