Review #583 - Stranahan's Single Barrel Cask Strength - Barrel 15-2146
Stranahan's, a single malt whisky brand based in Denver, Colorado, was established more than 20 years ago now, making it one of the older distilleries in the US focusing primarily on single malt. They produce a range of products, including a few core range releases (an 'original,' a sherry cask release, and a solera-style 'Blue Peak') and numerous limited or special releases. In addition to these batch-style products, they also offer a limited number of single barrels.
This single barrel uses an older-style label with limited information; based on the barrel number of 15-2146, we can surmise that this single malt was distilled in 2015, but there's no age statement present. There is a miniscule bottling code on the bottom face, suggesting a bottling year of 2021 - this is likely 5 to 6 year old whisky, then. It's bottled at a cask strength of 54.91% ABV (109.82 proof).
Stranahan's Single Barrel Cask Strength - Barrel 15-2146
USA - Single Malt
Price: USD 60 (2024)
Age Statement: NAS
Strength: 54.91% ABV
Details: Distilled 2015, bottled 2021; barrel 15-2146
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 4 times over 7 months; bottles at 100% (blind tasting), 90% (blind tasting), 80% (blind tasting), and 70% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a nosing glass each time, rested 15+ minutes
Nose: Quite a strong fruit profile up front - orange, nectarine, and red fruits of cranberry and strawberry. There's a chocolatey malt backbone to this as well, bringing cocoa... then baking spices like cinnamon, brown sugar, and anise. Oak grows stronger, and time brings accents of yellow apple and soft floral notes.
Palate: Tons of malted barley notes and baking flavors: cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, as well as brown sugar, chalky milk chocolate, and hints of caramel. The fruits are more subdued, but we still get hints of apple and cherry; it's relatively sweet overall, borderline syrupy at times. Wood spice grows stronger at the end, and it has a medium-thick mouthfeel.
Finish: Strong oak notes (tannins, baking spice) battle with malty grain for dominance. Cardamom and cinnamon, unsweet baking chocolate, wood spice and leather... it still leans a little sweet overall, but there's decent balance now. Quite warm, and it's a medium-long finish with great oily texture.
Final Note: Richly flavored, a bit punchy with the strength - this is a solid American single malt, showcasing classic Stranahan's style. The nose had more of those fruit notes, but once we got into the palate and finish, it was all about baking spices, malt, and oak; despite that strong oak influence, though, this never tasted particularly 'old.' This whisky is a good example of how malted barley spirit is affected by new charred oak maturation - tons of chocolatey notes with the baking spice.
Value is good on these single barrel versions of Stranahan's. The normal price around $60 is definitely fair for the level of flavor you get, but these can also be found on a discount quite regularly; for instance, we were able to purchase this bottle for $30, which makes it amazing value.
Our Average Rating: 6.8 / 10
In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.
Value Rating: 7.36
About Us: We're a husband and wife review team living in the Midwest United States. Generally, our reviews and tasting notes will be a compilation of both of our experiences with a whisky over several tasting sessions.
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