Review by: zSolaris

Christmas Countdown 2020 #18: Double Cask Nation Balcones 4 Year (2015)

(Originally posted December 18, 2020)

Distillery: Balcones

Bottler: Jewish Whisky Company

Region: Texas

Age: 4 Year. Distilled 2015. Bottled July 2020.

ABV: 60.9%

Cask Type: American Oak

Color: 1.7, Burnt Umber.

This is the 18th installment of this years’ Christmas Countdown. You can see the entire 2020 series here or the 2019 edition here.

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Nose: (according to the wife) A lot of caramel and even more ethanol.

Palate: At full strength, this is undrinkable. It burns from the second it touches your tongue until way after it goes down. Highly unpleasant. After adding a large amount of water (a lot of water…almost half as much water as there was whiskey), it does eventually cool down and is quite tasty. It’s like a sugary dessert treat. There’s caramel, a slightly toasted version at least, along with something that reminds me a lot of snicker-doodle cookies and Snickers bars. There’s milk chocolate, nougat, a light dusting of cinnamon, and lots and lots of sugar.

Finish: Without water, it is painfully long with just a constant burn. After water is added, you get milk chocolate along with apples and snicker-doodle cookies. The ethanol doesn’t ever completely go away, but it does eventually get easier to ignore.

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Conclusion: After taking my first few sips, first at full strength and then with a little bit of water added to it, I was nearly ready to pour it down the drain. My tongue felt like it was on fire and it was really unpleasant. Then I just decided to dump a bunch of water into it seeing if it would do anything and lo and behold it did. It went from being harsh and ethanol-y to being a nice, tasty dessert treat. The snicker-doodle cookies and Snickers bars just taste of overeating during the holidays. It’s delicious and sinful. The finish introduces a little bit of fruit which is a nice way to break up the sugar fest. Not bad at all, once you get it under control. Would I buy a bottle? Probably not.

Final Score: 81.

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Scoring Legend:

• 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
• 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
• 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
• 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
• 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
• 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
• 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
• 50-59: Save it for mixing.
• 0-49: Blech.