Review: High West Valley Tan Utah Whiskey
Review: High West Valley Tan Utah Whiskey
Don’t look now, but you can actually get an (aged) whiskey that is really made at High West’s Utah location instead of brought in on a truck from someone else. Is that a good thing? While High West makes some lovely unaged whiskeys, its biggest home-grown barrel-aged product, Valley Tan, is clearly still a work in progress. The spirit is made from a mash of wheat, oat, and malted barley, and is blended from barrels aged from 1 to 6 years.
Heavily malted, granary notes kick things off. The nose is loaded with fresh, grassy cereal and lightly-smoky notes of dried hay, plus a significant amount of barnyard character. On the palate, it’s more of the same, though a touch of sweet breakfast cereal and hints of dried apple cut some of the harsher notes. That said, the finish is a bit pungent and offers some diesel notes — neither of which is entirely in line with what I’m looking for in a “sippin'” whiskey.
87 proof. Reviewed: Batch #3.
C / $59 / highwest.com [BUY IT NOW FROM CASKERS]
High West Valley Tan Utah Whiskey
$59
