Day 11 of DB's Bourbon Trail 2023 Advent Calendar - Smoke Wagon Uncut The Younger

Cheers and welcome to our 4th Annual Advent Calendar! Throughout the next month, we will be going on a high-end bourbon journey together and reviewing 25 bourbons from award winning distilleries across America. Starting on December 1st and ending on December 25th - we will get to experience everything from small batches to single barrels that are jam packed with flavor. Please join us in toasting to another incredible year and getting to virtually share some of our favorite bottles from this past year with you!

**This review has been completed by using a Glencairn glass and neat if you want to compare the same tasting notes as DB’s Bourbon Trail. BUT - the best thing about it being YOUR bourbon is that you get to enjoy it that way YOU want to and prefer! As long as it brings us together and you are enjoying it - pour it over ice, add water, or add it to a cocktail! It’s all about what makes you happy and what you enjoy - don’t let others influence you differently!**

Enough of me rambling, let’s dive into what brought us here!

Day 11 of DB’s Bourbon Trail 2023 Advent Calendar

Smoke Wagon Uncut The Younger - Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Proof:

• 114.4 Proof (57.21%)

Distillery:

• Nevada H&C Distillery Co. (Las Vegas, NV)

Message on the bottle:

"We Took The Same Philosophy Used

To Create A Superior, Affordable

Easy Sipping Bourbon...

Then Didn't Add Any Water.

Uncut, Non Chill Filtered, Fruit

Forward With Lots Of Candy Flavors,

Cinnamon Spice And Plenty Of Heat."

Price Point:

**At DB’s Bourbon Trail we utilize an app called BoozApp (not sponsored - we wish!) to ensure we are getting at least a fair price on our bourbon before purchasing. Nothing is worse than getting taken advantage of by a flipper playing the supply/demand game**

• Average MSRP:

  • $46.99

• Fair Price:

  • $63.64

• Shelf Price:

  • $51.69

• DB’s Bourbon Trail Instant Buy Price:

  • <$45.99

Review:

If you all have been following for a while, you know by now I can never get my hands on enough Smoke Wagon. When they came out with Uncut The Younger, I was incredibly intrigued.

I think it should be noted how hard Aaron is working over there and want to add this from their website:

The journey to create Uncut the Younger began around October 2020. I tried a Straight Bourbon blend before proofing it down and I was really impressed with the flavor profile. It was fruit forward with tons of delicate candy flavors and big cinnamon spice on the finish. My original thought was to create a younger version of Uncut Unfiltered, and release it as a Rare and Limited batch. In December 2020, when the first Rare and Limiteds’ were announced, I quickly realized that a R&L would never retail for less than regular Uncut, so the idea was put on a back burner.

 A few months later the company that makes our clear stock bottles for Straight, informed me they were coming out with an amber version. I was interested and I knew exactly what to use those for. I let them know I wanted as many as they could get me. Releasing a Rare & Limited younger Uncut was one thing, but being able to offer an affordable cask strength bourbon that could be one of our core expressions AND a high proof lover’s daily sipper, really got me excited. I truly believe having superior and affordable bourbons is essential.  Also I wanted Straight to have a cask strength sibling the way Small Batch has Uncut Unfiltered, it all just made sense.

 A year and a half later - Uncut the Younger, our second expression in the entry level category is finally here! Consisting mainly of 4 year 36% rye bourbon from several floors and warehouse locations. Uncut the Younger is blended to be fruit forward, with tons of candy flavor notes and finishing with some bold cinnamon spice with gentle heat. It’s non chill filtered so it’s buttery and creamy, drinking more delicately than one would think based on its proof.

 Hope you love drinking it as much as I loved creating it! Cheers, Aaron!

Now that we understand the mentality and how this new bottle came about - lets dive in!

Nose:

• The nose of this pour is the definition of sweet and spice to me. The spice is owned by a massive cinnamon spice that you are meant with as soon as you pick up the glass. As the nose begins to open up, this is where the sweetness of the nose rolls in with a rich molasses syrup aroma.

Palate:

• The palate starts right on que from the nose. The molasses is here and brought its friends named honey and caramel with it. The sweetness of this pour is no match for the baking spice and cinnamon explosion that will take over in the palate and run to the finish line.

Finish:

• The finish definitely lingers as expected from how the palate was finishing. It's not as long as the Uncut Unfiltered but it gives it a run for its money! Medium to long in length with cinnamon owning the show that allows a honey sweetness to tag along until the end.

Final Thoughts:

Budget, meet proof. Proof, meet budget! There are not many sub $50 full proof bourbons out there and when you can find one that packs a punch of flavor - it's a Win, Win.

One thing I can always count on is that Smoke Wagon will deliver on its pours. Is it the best pour I have ever had? No, but I'm not expecting that with a $40 bottle. More importantly, it's delicious for an easier cask strength bottle to find at a very budget friendly price. Pick your bourbon hunting battles, I'm picking Smoke Wagon!

Cheers y’all!

Interesting in what else we might have cooking? Learn more here!

Let's Connect!

• Have you ever had this pour?

• Thoughts on the review?

• Leave a comment below and share your experience - we would love to hear from you!