Top Picks Of 2021

The Whiskey Reviewer does not hold an annual awards panel. Yet we are also focused on all things whiskey, have a team of contributors, and because of those three points we have an unusual way of doing what are our de facto awards. Instead of handing out medals or drawing up a conglomerated list, every member of the team gets the option of naming their choice in three categories.

• Best New Whiskey
• Best Whiskey To Pass My Lips (the absolute best, new or not)
• Biggest Disappointment

Richard Thomas, Owner-Editor

Best New Whiskey, George Dickel Bottled in Bond 2021: Nicole Austin has gone from strength to strength since taking the helm at Cascade Hollow, doing wonders for George Dickel along the way. The Bottled in Bond series, now three years old, is her brightest achievement. Austin didn’t distill the liquid or order it stashed away for more than a decade of maturation; her tenure at the distillery is not nearly so long. What she has done is exercise a degree of skill as blender that has completely changed my mind about what middle-aged Dickel Tennessee Whiskey can be. This past year, she put together what I name as the Best New Whiskey of 2021, beating out (narrowly) Parker’s Heritage Heavy Char Wheat Whiskey.

Best To Pass My Lips, Michter’s 25 Year Old Bourbon (2017): Four years ago, I was fortunate enough to be gifted a bottle of Micther’s 25 Year Old. This cask strength release is bold, but sublime. It is fully enjoyable as-is at over 116 proof, no water needed; and for a 25 year old-plus bourbon, it has avoided the over-oaking that so often accompanies ultra-aged American whiskey.

Every Thanksgiving, I trot out one of my best bottles from storage and put it on the shelf, to be enjoyed freely by myself and whoever comes around. For late November 2021, that was Michter’s 25 Year Old circa 2017, bottle #358 of 360. It’s as good as I remember, the best thing I sipped on last year by a mile, and I still have 2/3s of it for anyone who wants to stop in.

Biggest Disappointment, Kamiki Cedar Cask Japanese Whisky: Japanese Whisky continues to be the hottest ticket category in World Whisky, which has inspired a trickle of new entries into the marketplace. I suspect most of these were created with an eye on export, and some of them take advantage of Japan’s loose whisky laws (until 2021, the country didn’t have any whisky law) to hawk products that aren’t even whisky.

Mercifully, Kamiki is not one of those. However, it is a hybrid of Japanese-sourced malts and foreign grain whisky. The blend was married and given a finish in Japanese cedar casks, and interesting twist on paper, but one that didn’t deliver much upon drinking. It’s not that Kamiki is a bad whisky, Instead, it’s just underwhelming considering the billing around it, nevermind the price tag.

Kurt Maitland, Deputy Editor

Best New Whisky, Highland Park’s Cask Strength Release No. 2: A pleasant surprise, as I’ve found Highland Park‘s lineup to be confusing of late, with all of the yearly one-off releases. This whisky was nice, simple, and to the point, making it a great inclusion on one’s shelf.

Best to Pass My Lips, Springbank 11 Year Old Single Cask, Sauternes Barrel: This is complicated due to an epic trip I took in England/Scotland in November that I will detail in a separate article. Since I’m trying not to double-dip, I’ll leave those whiskies out of this discussion.

So that leaves me with a whisky that I loved so much I bottle killed it at not one but two NYC bars: the Springbank 11-year-old Single Cask (Sauternes Barrel).

Randall H. Borkus, Senior Contributor

Best New Whiskey, Paul John Mithuna Indian Single Malt (2021): India’s Paul John stepped up again with a stellar single malt in 2021, Mithuna. John Distilleries uses six row barley sourced from across the lands of Rajasthan and Haryana to the foothills of Himalayas. Because of the high fiber and protein content, the six row barley offers a distinct and bold depth of character to the whiskey. The more proteins and tannins in the barley the more of fatty acids that add to a whiskey’s character.

It’s the second whisky in Paul John’s Zodiac series, Mithuna being the Indian equivalent of Gemini and the first, Kanya, which is Indian equivalent of Virgo. The whisky carries no age statement; however, the distillery states it is at least five years old. It is matured in virgin American oak and finished in ex-bourbon casks before bottling at 58% ABV (116 proof) and non-chill filtered.

The whiskey is a mild oak color oily liquid rolling in my glass. The nose is full of fresh grainy malt with tropical fruit overtones dancing within my senses. The front and mid palate are warm and malty, filled with fresh cut tropical fruits reminding me of pineapple and passion fruit and mature oak. The mouth feel is oily and viscus with hints of citrus peels and exotic candy. The finish is long and complex with multi-levels of fruit sugars, notes of vanilla and subtle honey oak wood essence. The afterglow in glass is an oak bomb which is impressive for a five year old whiskey. This is an enjoyable bold complex whiskey.

Best To Pass My Lips, Jack Ryan “The Centenary” Cask Strength 15-Year Old Single Malt: The Jack Ryan Whiskey Company presents small releases of premium malt, aged and finished in their own stock of select barrels, ranging classic ex-bourbon casks to innovative rum and Madeira casks, and include collaborations with small, quality spirit producers.

Jack Ryan “The Centenary” is a limited-edition Cask Strength 15-Year Old Single Malt at 56.5% ABV, released to celebrate the centenary of the 1915 birth of Jack Ryan. The 500 bottles were hand signed and numbered by Eunan Ryan, and my bottle is number 424/500.

The whiskey color is a bright gold. The nose is loaded with fresh fruit and solid oak tannins. The mouth feel is smooth and oily. The front to mid palate is delightfully warm and full of fresh kiwi, pineapple, citrus, Marmalade fruit preserve with a touch of honey enveloped in oak. The finish is complex and long reminding me of a slightly burnt honey biscuit covered in a malty candy citrus Marmalade preserve shrouded in oak chips.

I have grown to have new respect and appreciation for Irish whiskey over the past five years. However, this limited edition expression, similar to what Blue Spot and High N’ Wicked – The Wild Rover has brought to the Irish whiskey tasting table, has vaulted 15-year old Jack Ryan Irish whiskey to the top of my list for 2021!

Biggest Disappointment, Blue Run 4 Year Old High Rye Kentucky Straight Bourbon: Given all the hype and the initial success of Blue Run’s inaugural 13-year-old bourbon released in 2020 and this year’s 2021 Golden Rye Whiskey, both of which surprised me with their bold complex flavor profiles and cool bottle designs, they fell flat on their face here.

This 4 year old high rye (30% rye) bourbon is below average at best. Only 100 barrels were chosen for this bottling, each toasted to a #4 alligator char and aged in Frankfort and Bardstown, Kentucky and bottled at 111 proof. But it drinks like what it is: a baby Bourbon that needs a couple more years of sleep in a barrel. It left me feeling “Blah!” At $90 a bottle I could’ve done much better with a couple bottles off the lower shelf.

Emma Briones, Senior Contributor

Best New Whisky, Derwent Botrytis Single Malt: Bring a Scot to Tasmania and what does he do? Whisky. And what Robbie Gilligan does in his little Tasmanian distillery should be available for everyone globally. Among their whiskies, the Botrytis Single Malt really caught my attention. This single malt uses Australian Botrytis wine casks and it is finished in ex-bourbon casks. For such a young whisky, it has plenty of flavors, with spicy notes of gingerbread and macadamia nuts. As with everything that comes from small craft distilleries, it might be hard to find a bottle now but get Derwent on your “need to try list”, I’m sure keeping an eye (and a good taste) on them.

Best Whiskey To Pass My Lips, Widow Jane Lucky Thirteen: I tend to be more the Scotch-single-malt-go-to-type. So, you usually wouldn’t find me saying that the best to pass my lips is a bourbon. But oh, my! What a bourbon it is!

I’ve been lucky enough to try 3 different editions of Widow Jane Lucky Thirteen. This small-batch bourbon surprised me in each of the editions, to the point that the worst of the three editions I’ve tasted, is still one of my 2021 highlights. As with any small-batch whiskey, each Widow Jane Lucky Thirteen edition changes in flavors, but I wouldn’t mind trying a new one each day.

Biggest Disappointment, J&B Botanico: Ok, this might not be a whisky, but I’ve seen plenty of better ways to do a flavored whisky. Between 2020 and 2021 there’s been an interesting number of new whisky experiments by big brands globally (from flavored whiskies to 20% abv whisky-based spirit drinks). These experiments, targeting new and younger drinkers, tend to sell a mixing experience more than the drink itself. Some brands are smart enough to have something that might please whisky drinkers looking for a new experience while also pleasing new drinkers (for example, Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Apple works pretty well on that field). And I’m always interested in what can these drinks bring to the table. J&B Botánico fails considerably with its mix of whisky and clementines, oregano, and thyme.

Douglas Fraser, Contributor

Best New Whiskey, A. Smith Bowman 10 Year Cask Strength Bourbon: I was so excited to try this first cask strength batch from A. Smith Bowman, and easily chose it to be my Best New Whiskey. You can read my review for the tasting notes (see link above), but briefly, the dram does not drink like it is 70% ABV, but rather more like 55-60% ABV. Far from being overwhelming, it is sweetly sophisticated. It was so good, I had to follow up on my sample and hunt for a bottle for my personal collection.

Best Whiskey to Pass My Lips, The Sassenach Blended Scotch Whisky: Completely warm and welcoming, this is a complex blend that exceeds expectations and leaves you wanting more.

Biggest Disappointment, 1792 Sweet Wheat Bourbon: This year saw my first time trying 1792 Sweet Wheat. Although, the 12 year and Single Barrel are two bourbons I absolutely enjoy, the Sweet Wheat just lacks complexity and depth. It lives up to its name by being sweet and mellow, but too mellow, and just falls short for me.

Andrew Graham, Contributor

Best New Whiskey, Black Button Distilling Single Barrel Reserve: When Black Button says this is Port-finished, they mean it. The whiskey is aged for just two years in new American oak before making the transition to port casks sourced from Ports of NY Winery in Ithaca, NY, where it rests for another three years, finally being bottled strong as hell at 118.8 proof.

The resulting spirit has all of the Port intensity that you’d expect based on the description, and behind it lies a spectacular amount of flavor nuance: orange peel, cinnamon, raisin, and dark chocolate.

Years back, I had a dram of the third iteration of Bowmore’s Devil’s Cask, which at the time struck me as something a psychopathic would do. “Hey, let’s jam an unnecessary amount of Sherry flavor into this young, peaty Scotch and bottle it as hot as possible.” It’s intimidating and phenomenal. This Black Button expression reminds me of that — not in its flavor profile, but in its motive.

Best Whiskey To Pass My Lips, Michter’s 25 Year Old Bourbon (2020):  Yes, I drank the 2020 release of Michter’s revered 25-year expression in 2021, so I suppose I can’t say that living through a dystopian pandemic hasn’t been without its bright spot.