750mL bottle - $36.99
- Purchased at Chattanooga Wine & Spirits
Background
I believe I first heard of High West Distillery a couple years back when I found a Ballast Point beer that was aged in some off their barrels. That Victory at Sea Imperial Stout expression was aged in Bourbon barrels from this brand that I was completely unfamiliar with…but the beer was very good. I saw the bottles on the shelf soon afterward and was curious, but kept putting off buying one…until now, that is.
In 2006, High West opened in Park City, Utah, the first legal distillery in the state since 1870. After 10 years of hard work, Whiskey Advocate named them the Distillery of the Year in 2016. The American Prairie Bourbon was named after their friends in the American Prairie Reserve, a group that is working to create the largest wildlife reserve in the lower 48 states…over 5,000 square miles. The Bourbon is crafted by blending straight bourbons of at least 2 years of age in a exact (but secret) proportion.
It is not chill-filtered or carbon-treated and it weighs in at 92 proof (or 46% ABV). They use a mix of Bourbons ranging from 2 to 13 years old, including one with a fairly high rye mash bill (75% corn, 21% rye, 4% malted barley) and one with a higher barley bill (84% corn, 8% malted barley, 8% rye). There are apparently other whiskies in the mix, as well, but they aren’t allowed to saw what the mash bills of those are.
If you would like to learn more about the details of their whiskey or the American Prairie Reserve, visit their website.
Notes
The bottle is a tall, narrow glass with a fairly unique shape, especially as you get to the neck and aperture. The lip of the glass is rounded and meets the rounded cork in an interesting combination. The label has a nice painting of a pronghorn antelope on it and everything is rendered in such a way as to evoke “Old West” as much as possible when you think of “High West.”
The whiskey was rather light in color for containing some 13-year-old Bourbon. It was a light amber color barely darker than a lot of Scotch whiskies I’ve tasted over the years. Still, the aroma of vanilla and oak was strong and easily detected as the first thing that hit my nose, after which a slight floral note came into play.
Taking a sip, I got honey and floral notes up front, with corn sweetness and a vanilla finish coming in after that. The 46% alcohol keeps the vapors and burn at a manageable level. Any experienced taster will know it’s in the Bourbon family right away, but there is an interesting interplay between smooth silkiness versus just a tiny bit of rough-and-tumble edginess.
I already had this with a cigar or two the day I bought it, so today I elected to bring out an aged selection…a Herrera Esteli by Drew Estate that I picked up from a friend who moved out of town. I don’t know the exact age, but the cellophane was yellowing badly, so I think it must have been 3 or more years anyway. The Herrera Estelí was medium-to-full in body when they came out and the age on this one hadn’t diminished that much. It was a good pairing, but the cigar sort of overpower the whiskey.
I also paired it up with a fairly well-aged My Father flagship blend. The My Father is a little mellower blend and ended up pairing extraordinarily well with the High West. In my judgement, this whiskey will pair better with a more medium-bodied cigar…something that won’t overwhelm it.
