

Review #26: Stagg Batch 26c
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*Rested 20 minutes
#Stats
Distillery: Buffalo Trace Distillery
Mashbill & Age: Undisclosed, estimated to be around 8-9 Years
Proof: 124.6 proof (62.3%)
Cost: 85$
#Tasting Notes-
Nose: Pungent as hell. Cherry, Strawberry, Vanilla caramel, Toffee, Light Oak notes. You can smell this from the end of the table if left for a couple minutes.
Palate: Nice and viscous. Coats your mouth nicely. I get some serious cola notes in the first sip but its a dark fruity cola like grape or cherry cola. Sweet but not close to overwhelming. The mid palate has a vanilla that washes the cola note away and leaves a dark fruity flavor. After a couple sips i notice it has this fruity clove note with that begins to transition into a spicy oak flavor that has some heat on it. There is a little bit of a smoky char in there that comes and goes towards the end palate that I find pleasant. A black pepper spice and ethanol heat go into the end palate but dissipate fast when the finish comes in. Sometimes it will give you a Kentucky hug though.
Finish: A medium-long cola oak finish with hints of fruit and leather depending on how you let it sit on your tongue. It lasts longer than expected and tastes like something that makes you want to go back to sip again. I dont get an aftertaste but if it did I would claim its a little earthy. An oak type of earthy.
Conclusion: An excellent bottle. I think this is the most balanced stagg to me. I say this because im used to staggs having a heavy lean into some profile like oak, fruit, or chocolate. This one I would say is a banger for being well layered, consistent, and viscous. The cola flavor is in your face and the heat is tamed enough to let it shine while the short oak and spice notes seems to balance it out the sweetness nicely. I believe if this was older with bolder flavors and a higher proof it would be one of my favorite bottles. I still have a bottle of 25D and I would say this one is more preferable/approachable.
Score: 8.2
Would I Buy Again?: Yes, easily for the price I paid.
T8ke Scale
-1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
(NEBC 9 Yr (1.5)),
-2 | Poor | I wouldn't consume by choice.
-3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
-4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
-5 | Good | Good, just fine.
-6 | Very Good | A cut above.
(JD SBBP Rye (6.2)),
(Weller Full Proof (6.8)),
-7 | Great | Well above average.
(NEBC 7.5 Yr (7)),
(Old Forester 1920 (7.1)),
(Blantons Gold (7.2)),
(Jack Daniels SBBP Rye (7.4)),
(FR OESO (7.5)),
(Jack Daniels SBBF (7.5)),
( FR OBSF (7.8)),
(Bookers StoryTeller Batch (7.8)),
-8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
(JD SBBP Rye (8)),
(Stagg Jr 25D (8.3)),
(Jack Daniels 12 Year B4 (8.4)),
(Found North GoldFinch (8.5)),
(Rare Character Batch 2 (8.6)),
(Old Louisville 8yr (8.6)),
(Dark Arts Tokaji 7.5yr (8.7)),
(Found North Snow Day (8.7)),
(Colonel E.H. Taylor SBBP (8.8)),
(Little Book The Infinite 2 (8.9))
-9 | Incredible | An all time favorite.
(Found North B12 (9)),
(Found North Batch 009 (9.1)),
(Found North T8KE Eleventh Hour (9.2)),
(Found North Batch 008 (9.3)),
(Knobb Creek 21yr (9)),
(JM Cigar Blend Batch 414(9.5)),
-10 | Perfect | Perfect.