03/25/2023
Well, it’s the review many have been waiting for on my thoughts on BETA
Barrel King/Old Road Craft Spirits
BETA - 1st-anniversary release
122 proof
61%
Bottle 9
Batch 42
Aroma: I had this last night, and I discussed with Jarrod and friends how this may be one of the best aromas in terms of complexity and layers I have ever smelled. Apple pie that has been baked outside in the natural elements, white oak smoke, and some birch smoke, it’s slight, but it’s there. My parents own cabins with abundant birch trees and pine, and yes, it’s a different smell from each wood.
A deeper dive in, there is a lot of red fruit blanked by rich oak and vanilla. It was getting some darker fruits like cherry, a little blackberry, and some cranberry, maybe. It reminds me of a Fall limited release you would get. If you let this sit just long enough and air, it does become this hybrid to 2 very highly sought-after whiskies. BETA has notes of abundant cherry and some cow pie that you would get from Sassy Patty. BETA is an aroma so few will experience, and all of us, a part of this, are so lucky and grateful we have the chance to be trying some of the best whisky in America right now.
Taste: It is a punch of flavors; Apple pie again, followed by substantial red fruits, sweetness, some honeydew Mellon, and strawberry and raspberry gummies. Some smoke and earthy notes come in with some portobello mushroom caps and chicken of the woods. Fricken wild! It is very subtle, but that earthy quality and funk is what I fricken love. The finish is medium to long but coats the whole back of the throat with maple syrup and Little Debbie’s. BETA is like the Zeppathon of whiskies. You start with the Blues; then it’s foreign, then it just turns into its own thing. It’s a journey that I am glad to be a part of. The flavors and the complexity of BETA are some of the best I have had, if not ever had.
Thank you, Jarrod Record, Rachael Record, and the fantastic team at Barrel King, for all you do for the members and family.
Prost!