Showing results for: ""

Your search returned 10 results.

Displaying 1 through 10

91 points

Cedar Ridge The QuintEssential (Batch 001), 46%

Spice forms the foundation, from start to finish. Allspice, cloves, and cinnamon Red Hots are interwoven with caramel-coated shortbread, dark chocolate, and walnuts on the nose. Zingy and lively on the palate, with cinnamon, allspice, cloves, sandalwood, nuts, and semi-sweet chocolate. With water the flavors deepen, adding burnt sugar, vanilla bean, orange oil, and roasted nuts. The spices fade with a slow burn, mingling with sturdy oak and coffee bean. (3,000 bottles)

Reviewed by: (Fall 2020)

88 points

Cedar Ridge Slipknot No. 9 Reserve, 49.5%

Same components as the No. 9 Iowa whiskey, but selected from casks aged at least 4 years and bottled at a higher proof. A vibrant nose shows signs of lemon oil, cake batter, and sunflower seeds. There’s toasted oak, wintergreen gum, and vanilla on the palate with better balance achieved when water is added. The finish isn’t quite as lively as the rest of the experience, with sweet oak and persistent hot spices.

Reviewed by: (Summer 2021)

87 points

Cedar Ridge Iowa Bourbon, 40%

This light-hued bourbon is bright and airy, with tropical fruit aromas of papaya and lychee, vanilla, and sweet lemon curd. While not especially bourbon-like it’s interesting and super-likeable for its Bit-O-Honey candy and pleasingly nutty notes. Last reviewed in 2011.

Reviewed by: (Winter 2017)

87 points

Cedar Ridge Slipknot No. 9 Iowa, 45%

This whiskey blends 60% straight bourbon with 40% straight rye. The nose is zesty with citrus notes of lemon, lime, and a touch of grapefruit, with additional fruit qualities like strawberries and cream, watermelon candy, and cherry juice. The palate mingles citrus and spice with orange marmalade, cinnamon, white pepper, and fresh ginger. The finish is nutty and warm with persistent peppery spice and toasted oak. Its nuance shines brighter without water.

Reviewed by: (Summer 2021)

85 points

Cedar Ridge Malted Rye, 43%

Sharp, even a bit of a sour edge, and some stemmy grass. Sweet and chewy grain in the mouth, with a nice touch of oily rye bitterness, some hot oak that quirks the tongue a bit, then a finish that melts into creaminess.

Reviewed by: (Winter 2015)

84 points

Cedar Ridge Iowa Bourbon, 50%

Sweet fresh corn and fruit—apple skins, white grapes, dried apricot—tangle with spicy cinnamon and circus peanuts. Quite smooth indeed, especially at 50%. Light toasted corn, like corn flakes cereal, with the spice and fruit leading to a subtly layered finish (oak, fruit, a bit of milk chocolate). A late-morning bourbon, easy and friendly.

Reviewed by: (Winter 2015)

84 points

Cedar Ridge Single Malt, 40%

Hot tropical fruit, warm band-aids, and a mix of Dum-Dum lollipops in the nose. More sweet and creamy on the palate, with a hint of the band-aids, and dry grip of oak at the end. A fairly quick drink, but a clean and layered one.

Reviewed by: (Winter 2015)

84 points

Cedar Ridge Wheat Whiskey, 40%

Distilled from 100% white winter wheat; pale straw. Salty dough and sweet, light canned fruit. Like grain whisky on the tongue: light, sweet, delicate, more fruit cocktail, and a hint of milk chocolate. A smooth and pleasant finish. Simple but delightful.

Reviewed by: (Winter 2015)

83 points

Cedar Ridge Single Malt Whiskey (Barrel No. 2), 40%

Barrel 2 was aged in 15-gallon bourbon refills, then finished in a Cedar Ridge rum barrel; interesting to see an American distiller walk away from “straight whiskey” with used (small!) cooperage. Aromas of sawdust, toffee, melon and just-ripe apricot, dry cocoa, and warm cereal fight a bit with alcohol heat. Rum and fruit float over malt and vanilla in the mouth, and the wood rounds and dries. Oak and faint allspice in the finish. Needs some more taming; great start.

Reviewed by: (Fall 2013)

82 points

Cedar Ridge Bourbon, 40%

Thin corn sweetness, nice splash of mint and cinnamon. The whiskey's warm, but not hot, and it's exceptionally smooth. There's a slice of rye spice, and oaky vanilla, and the finish is clean and sweet. But it's almost too smooth, and not gutsy enough; if Stagg is bourbon turned up to eleven, this is at about six and a half. Cedar Ridge has a great start here; now show me more.

Reviewed by: (Winter 2011)