George Dickel Tabasco Barrel Finish Review | Whiskey Raiders
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73
Bourbon

George Dickel Tabasco Barrel Finish

  • Distiller:

    Dickel

  • Bottler:

    Dickel

  • ABV:

    35%

  • Age:

    NAS

  • Price:
    $$$$$
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Aggregated Reviews
  • Raided Score: 80
  • Publication: Whiskey Raiders
  • Excerpt: It's certainly not terrible, but could use work. In the meantime, polish off your bottle in a whiskey Bloody Mary, and you'll be just fine.
  • Read Full Review
  • Raided Score: 66
  • Publication: Distiller
  • Excerpt: What the whiskey brings to the party is caramel and vanilla sweetness which when combined with the Tabasco flavor is very off-putting. The brand suggests to consume as a shot. If you must, make sure you have a cold beer to wash it all down.
  • Read Full Review
  • Raided Score: 75
  • Publication: WhiskyCast
  • Excerpt: In this case, the spices overwhelm all of the whiskey, especially since it’s bottled at only 35% ABV. However, I’m not sure I’d want to try it at a higher proof.
  • Read Full Review
  • Raided Score: 81
  • Publication: The Whiskey Wash
  • Excerpt: I liked it best as as the distillers recommend, as a simple cocktail with celery salt on the rim and a pickle back. The celery salt offset the saccharine notes of the body and complemented the hot finish. It's also great in a Bloody Mary, with celery sticks, pickles and whatever else you like to throw in.
  • Read Full Review
  • Raided Score: 50
  • Publication: whiskyfun
  • Excerpt: I’m not even sure I’ll ever manage to get my glass clean, better just toss it in a very remote (because of the smell) dumpster. I suppose this was another late-night idea straight from a dinner at the Rotary-Club.
  • Read Full Review
  • Raided Score: 86
  • Publication: Drinkhacker
  • Excerpt: I’m still not sure if this is a crazy stunt or not, but let’s give credit to Dickel for aging this whiskey in real Tabasco barrels instead of just dumping chemical flavorings into the mix.
  • Read Full Review

Raided Score is a conversion from an external site's score, to our in house uniform scoring system. Please see the FAQ for more.

House Review
  • Intro:

    Distilled by Dickel in Cascade Hollow, Tennessee this bottling represents possibly the strangest fusion of American Whiskey and American Cuisine in a whiskey that's finished in Tobasco hot sauce barrels.

  • Nose:

    Sweet at first before young bourbon notes, pepper, caramel and vinegar sprout up. It's not offensive, but it's not familiar, either.

  • Taste:

    Thin on the palate, with some interesting notes, but the first surprise is the integration of the hot sauce and whiskey. Certainly not overbearing (a surprise, for sure) the pepper takes a back seat. Unfortunately, instead of revealing a marvelous, complex whiskey, the young Dickel notes come on strong: young grainy texture, some malty cardboard, honey, toffee and bold pepper and chiles.

  • Finish:

    Short finish, a bit more pepper forward here than anywhere else and a relief to help cover up the base spirit.

  • Overall:

    Initially I thought the pepper would be too strong, but overall, I think it could be stronger. Or at least until better base whiskey goes into the experiment. That said, it's not surprising that Dickel didn't put their best, aged, stock into such a wacky idea, but the lack of quality is apparent for sure. It's certainly not terrible, but could use work. In the meantime, polish off your bottle in a whiskey Bloody Mary, and you'll be just fine.

  • Score:

    4

  • By Lane Southard
  • Our in house critic rates spirits on a scale of 0-10 (10 best) and is aggregated the same as external sources
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