Corn is an interesting style of whiskey as it doesn't have to be matured before it's sold - distil it, bottle it, sell it.
The US Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau dictates that Bourbon has to use a minimum of 51% corn in its mashbill and must be matured in new American oak barrels, Corn Whiskey has to use a minimum of 81% corn and is the only style of whiskey that can be matured in used or uncharred oak casks. If you do mature whiskey for more than 2 years you can call it 'Straight', this particular dram has more than 80% corn and has been matured for 9 years so it's a Straight Corn Whiskey. The barrel type has not been revealed.
This particular Corn dram has been bottled by TBWC from casks distilled and matured at Heaven Hill Distillery in Kentucky.
This particular Corn dram has been bottled by TBWC from casks distilled and matured at Heaven Hill Distillery in Kentucky.
I've only ever tried English Corn Whiskey before from @ForganDistiller, you can read about it here, so this makes for an interesting comparison. Forgan's whiskey is typically matured for around six months Heaven Hill's has been for 9 years - lets see what difference that makes.
Nose: Subtle floral notes, buttery popcorn, cream soda.
Palate: Spicy, creamy, sweet and smooth mouthfeel.
Finish: A fruity burst, lingering mellow, buttery..
My thoughts:
Appearance: Pale gold in the glass, swirls leave thin lines in the glass which bead up and fall as slow thin legs.
Nose: The ABV makes it presence known straight away, orchard fruit and some heather initially, then the popcorn notes start coming through. A little ginger spice after a little while in the glass.
Palate: Thick buttery arrival, like licking your buttered corn on the cob fresh off the BBQ! Parma violets and vanilla notes followed by a lovely spicy ginger note as the liquid flows over the tongue. Some tropical fruit notes - banana and pineapple appear after a few sips. Some people have suggested toffee popcorn notes with this dram, I'm not getting that - it's more like fresh sweet popcorn covered in melted butter.
Finish: Spicy, buttery finish lingers for a while.
Overall: An unusual dram and quite different from the younger Forgan Corn Whiskey I've tried before - this one was a lot smoother but with a little more spice. There's no sour grapefruit note that I'd detected on the younger corn drams - the time spend in the casks has mellowed the whiskey a little. So in answer to the title question - I'm not there yet but this is somewhere on the day there!
TBWC were kind enough to send me a sample of the Heaven Hill as part of their invite only Dram Good Club.
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