Taste: Old Fitzgerald 12 Year Old

Now and again I'll throw in a curve ball here with a bourbon/whiskey review and here's another. What I know about Old Fitzgerald and Heaven Hill distillery you could write on the back of a stamp but I have heard praises of this aged bourbon from friends.

When the opportunity presented itself to try out a couple of drams, I couldn't resist. Whisky however you spell it is all about discovery, new experiences and challenging your senses. So lets see if the old man delivers.

Colour: brown sugar

Aroma: a blast of fresh mint, smothered in cream soda of all things; these are the first two hits. The corn transmits in the form of fresh corn on the cob with vanilla and butterscotch. Not a massive or hugely deep nose this however moving on.

Taste: crush black pepper quickly gives way to more corn and caramel. It's not a sweet dram by any means but sitting here just now it reminds me of deep fried banana fritter with lashings of golden syrup. By definition it should be hugely sweet, instead its rather smooth (I really dislike using that in whisky notes), and going back to the nose after this flashback; that's the aroma matching up entirely.

Overall, an interesting experience. I've tasted better bourbons and this one lacks that true roughness that I find defines many you'll see in stores across the UK.