Flavored Whiskey

As with other spirits categories, whiskey can be flavored with herbs, spices, fruit flavors, or just about anything else, typically just before it is bottled. One of the biggest trends in whiskey in the last decade has been the growth of cinnamon-flavored whiskey, particularly Fireball. Honey-flavored whiskeys have also surged in popularity in recent years. These flavored styles offer an easier, sweeter, and friendlier entry point into the sometimes daunting world of whiskey and are usually geared toward novice drinkers, though a few more elevated offerings are on the market. Note that flavored whiskeys are distinct from whiskeys that are aged or finished in a unique barrel (such as a used Port wine barrel or a maple wood barrel), even though it may impart a specific and unique flavor. These types of whiskeys are categorized (and are widely considered) as full members of their parent category (bourbon, rye, Scotch, etc.).

Top Flavored Whiskey Posts:

George Dickel Tabasco Barrel Finish
Sons of Liberty Pumpkin Spice Flavored Whiskey (2016) and Gala Apple Flavored Whiskey
Ol’ Major Bacon Flavored Bourbon
Old Forester Mint Julep
Fireball Cinnamon Whisky
Wild Turkey American Honey Sting

Review: New Holland Hatter Royale Hopquila

By Christopher Null | July 31, 2011 |

Tequila for rabbits? No. New Holland, based not in Holland the country but rather Holland the city in Michigan, takes a double-distilled mash of 100% malted barley, then steeps Centennial hops in it. It’s not aged, but it comes out a Chardonnay-yellow from the hops Hopquila, then, is not a funky tequila but rather a…

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Review: Ole Smoky Distillery Apple Pie Moonshine

By Christopher Null | May 4, 2011 |

You say apple pie, I say apple pie moonshine. Yes folks, it’s two great tastes that taste great together, with Tennessee’s Ole Smoky Distillery moonshine — 80% corn and 20% mystery — making up the backbone of a classic yet indescribable spirit. The nose and body scream cinnamon and apples, in that order. This is…

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Review: Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey

By Christopher Null | April 9, 2011 |

Gotta say, Jack Daniel’s knows how to launch a product. The sample bottle of its new honey-and-whiskey liqueur came in a refrigerated box, for no particular reason — it certainly doesn’t need to be kept chilled at all times — except that it is intended to be served cold. Well, it’s been in my fridge…

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Review: Jeremiah Weed Country Peach Sweet Tea Vodka and Sweet Tea Bourbon

By Christopher Null | October 16, 2010 |

We’ve discussed at length the obliviatory powers of Jeremiah Weed Sweet Tea Vodka, and now the company is back with a couple of extensions to the line. Get ready to rock, tea-sip style. Both are 70 proof. The first is unsurprising: Jeremiah Weed Country Peach Sweet Tea Vodka. I’ve never much understood the connection, but…

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Review: Revel Stoke Spiced Whisky

By Christopher Null | September 8, 2010 |

You got your spiced rum… well now you got your spiced whiskey, too!. From Phillips Distilling in Minnesota comes Revel Stoke, a Canadian Whisky with “spice and other natural flavors” added. Relaunched after years of absence from the shelves (it was originally released in 2000 and was often written as “Revelstoke”), the cult classic (as…

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Review: Compass Box Orangerie

By Christopher Null | October 25, 2009 |

The folks at Compass Box make some unusual whiskys to begin with, but Orangerie is something unlike any other Scotch you’re likely to have tried: Take a Highland single malt whisky (from Fife) and add hand-zested Navalino orange peel, Indonesian cassia (cinnamon), and Sri Lankan cloves to it. Bottle the infusion and you have Orangerie,…

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Review: Irish Mist Liqueur

By Christopher Null | October 13, 2009 |

By my count the sixth whiskey+honey combo liqueur we’ve discussed on this website, Irish Mist is as old as the hills… but updated and rebranded for the ’10s. The new bottle isn’t going to wow anyone with its uniqueness (hey, flared base!), but what’s inside may do the trick for you. Of all the honey-flavored…

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Review: Evan Williams Honey Reserve Liqueur

By Christopher Null | September 10, 2009 |

Watch out American Honey, there’s another bourbon-inspired honey liqueur on the market, and it’s gonna be breathing down your neck but quick. Evan Williams has turned in its own rendition on the honey-flavored liqueur, this one with the promise of “extra-aged bourbon” in the mix. It can’t be much — the color of this liqueur…

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Review: Red Stag by Jim Beam Black Cherry Bourbon

By Christopher Null | March 15, 2009 |

I don’t know what deer have to do with cherries, but you try coming up with a name for you black cherry-infused whiskey, OK? Red Stag — which is Jim Beam bourbon “infused with natural flavors” (predominantly black cherry, one would assume) — is as good a name as any for what Beam has come…

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Review: Wild Turkey American Honey Liqueur

By Christopher Null | August 2, 2008 |

Honey- and whiskey-based liqueuers are nothing new. Drambuie, of course, is the classic by which others are measured. There’s also another honey+Scotch spirit called Lochan Ora, and one from Macallan called Amber (which is actually flavored with maple syrup instead of honey). American Honey is the first American version of this spirit that I’ve seen:…

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