Country: USA - Tennessee
Distillery: Grain & Barrel Spirits
Type: Straight Tennessee Whiskey
Mashbill: (80% Corn - 10% Rye - 10% Malted Barley)
Age: 2 yr
Cask: American White Oak
ABV: 45%
Proof: 90
Price: $49.99
Nose: Vanilla, caramel, toasted oak, a bit savory, pine cones, herbal honey
Palate: Honeycomb, oak spices, bitter, spearmint
Finish: White peppers, grapefruit zest, ginger, long finish
Celebrity whiskies started to be introduced more often in the last years. Some of them were good but some of them were just not palatable. I received two Elvis Presley branded bottles to review and finally could taste them thoroughly, and then did my research. So here is Elvis Whiskey! Elvis Whiskey is created as a collaboration of Grain & Barrel Spirits and Elvis Presley Enterprises. You might remember another brand I reviewed the last year from Grain & Barrel, which was Chicken Cock.
I have never been a huge Elvis fan, but clearly know and respect what he did and the legacy he left. So, it actually makes me happy to see his name and face on a whiskey bottle. It also makes very much sense that the whiskey is from Tennessee, where he began his career and called home. In this review, we will focus on the Straight Tennessee Whiskey, which is named 'Tiger Man' which is a homage to one of the nicknames of the legend. The bottle has a label on the cap with a print 'TCB', referring to Elvis' famous phrase 'Taking Care of Business".
Please also check the other Elvis whiskey, Elvis Rye Whiskey “The King”.
The mash bill has a high corn ratio of 80%, the rest is equally corn and malted barley. Often, we are automated to remember Dickel's when it is a sourced Tennessee whiskey. However, on this occasion, the whiskey was sourced from Tennessee Distilling Company who also is making another celebrity whiskey, The Heaven's Door.
Taking Care Of Business
Elvis Whiskey Tasting Notes
The nose starts with caramel and vanilla. Toasted oak appears and there is always savory bedding. Pinecone and herbal honey also come forward in time.
The palate has mostly honeycomb with oak spices. Fresh spearmint feeling with a very bitter end leads to the finish. The finish has white peppers, grapefruit zest, ginger. Very strong spicy notes with a long finish.
Verdict
I will call Elvis Whiskey a better one of the celebrity whiskies. Unfortunately, not all of them are living up to the hype. It is a very easy sip by the way. I can easily see this whiskey to be consumed slowly with a big piece of ice. The youth was a major factor that the bitterness and spiciness took over while tasting it. Improvement of the age might result in a wild whiskey!
