Review #: 233
Description: Four Roses Private Select 11 Year OBSQ Selected by Brent Elliot
Spirit: Bourbon
Background: Here we have a Four Roses Private Select bottling. This is 4Rs barrel proof, single barrel line. This one was purchased at the distillery in 2019. Selected by the Master Distiller, Brent Elliot, it was aged in warehouse KW with barrel number 41-1L for 11 years and 2 months. The OBSQ recipe related to the 35% higher rye mashbill and the floral yeast. Let’s see how it tastes!
Distillery – Four Roses
Bottler – Four Roses
Brand – Four Roses
Selection – Brent Elliot
ABV – 55.7%
Age – 11 Years 2 Months
Nose – Apple pie with too much cinnamon, cherry cordial, fresh flowers, nice toasted oak
Taste – Sweet stone fruits, mild caramel corn, light vanilla, some brown sugar and toffee
Finish – Rye makes it self well aware with nice spice, toasted caraway seeds, raspberries, licorice, tobacco leaf, slight dark cocoa, light peppery heat coats the mouth and sticks around all the way until the next sip
Score: 7
Would I buy a bottle? Yes
Thoughts: This had everything you look for from Four Roses. My only complaint is the palate is a bit one dimensional and I was struggling to pull out flavors, but the finish more than made up for it with tons of complexity going on. I worry sometimes these “selected by the Master Distiller” are just ways to build hype for barrels that didn’t make it in the single barrel program, but this one does not disappoint at all.