Old Elk
Cigar Cut
Finished Bourbon
55.3%

Almost every whiskey on this list has a theme or category I wanted to highlight, and Old Elk Cigar Cut hits the “finished Whiskey “category head on. Finished whiskies are whiskey that are first matured in new barrels, usually, and then taken out and put back into a secondary or finishing barrel. These barrels more than likely contained wine originally or put in a barrel that has been toasted instead of charred. The flavor changes are easier to spot in finished whiskies rather than non-finished whiskies. The reasons for doing such can be to genuinely create a better product, another reason maybe to hide youthful or unpleasant flavor notes with fruity wine flavors masking around like makeup on a turd.

Let’s move on from that and talk about the cigar cut. Cigar blends are meant to literally be paired cigars. These whiskies are usually finished in not one type of barrel but most of the time in three types. This pour was finished in sherry wine cask (barrels), cognac, and Armagnac cask. If you take a sip and close your eyes and really concentrate on the flavors, you can sense the wide range of flavors blended together to create the cohesive dram. I am not sure if this is an everyday pour but for days when the world has hit back hard, the cigar cut is a perfect companion after lighting up a stogie and washing the troubles away. Cheers