Review #895 - Four Roses OESV Recipe

This review is one of a ten part series: the Four Roses Ten Recipe Tasting Experience. It's possible to taste each of the ten Four Roses bourbon recipes by tracking down different variations of their Single Barrel Barrel Strength bourbon, but that would be quite time consuming and expensive; finally, in 2023, the distillery produced a kit that allowed fans to try all ten recipes with the same specifications (52% ABV, aged 8 to 10 years).

This OESV bourbon recipe uses the low-rye 'E' mashbill of 75% corn, 20% rye, and 5% malted barley; it pairs that with the 'V' yeast strain, which is supposed to add delicate fruit flavors to the bourbon.

Four Roses OESV Recipe

USA - Bourbon

Price: USD 65 (2024)

Age Statement: ~8 years old

Strength: 52% ABV

Details: OESV recipe, bottled 2023

Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 3 times (all 3 blind) over 4 months from a mini-bottle; tasted in a nosing glass each time, rested 15+ minutes

Nose: Tobacco and bruleed sugar, caramel, linen, bubblegum, leather, earthy notes

Palate: Caramel and brown sugar, quite sweet; starchy stone fruit and cherry, some chocolate, peppery tannins, a hint of tobacco

Finish: Oak, barbecued wood, a bit spicy, with caramel, linen, blackberry, and black pepper as accents

Final Note: Oak-dominant, a bit spicy, but we do get some lighter baking spice flavors. There are subtle dark fruit and light fruit notes; we found this recipe changed quite a bit from tasting to tasting.

Do we agree with the Four Roses description the profile? Four Roses describes OESV as "delicate fruit & caramel." We did get some of that delicate fruit and caramel here, but also a bit of darker fruit. The absence of a dominant rye note allowed the oak to have a strong influence as well.

Our Rating: 7.5 / 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: 7.30

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.