E.H. Taylor Straight Rye & Davidoff Golden Band Award Limited Edition

I do like a good Rye from time to time. And since this bottle is from one of my favorite brands, I figured why not start Spring off with a pour of some E. H. Taylor Straight Rye!

Obtained a few years ago, I’ve nursed this bottle at an alarming slow pace. I knew trying to procure a replacement would be almost impossible but…I had some good fortune recently.

Someone failed to pick their lottery winnings at my local store and I happened to be in the right place at the right time! I’ll call this a late birthday gift to myself!

E. H. Taylor Straight Rye

Distilled by Buffalo Trace and made completely different than their Sazerac Rye. This is a simple mashbill of Rye and Malted Barley with no corn.

A gorgeous boutique of Honey and dried fruits on nose. As it fills the palate, flavors of rich Carmel and cinnamon are dominant. Black pepper and baking spices round out the finish.

This is a beautiful bottle that every whiskey lover should have on their shelf. Since this bottle is somewhat of a unicorn, I’m pairing it with a hard to find cigar.

Davidoff Golden Band Awards

Wrapper: Dominican Yamasa

Binder: Dominican

Filler: Dominican

The Golden Band Awards are given to merchants who exudes Davidoff’s highest standard of Excellence. Each merchant is given exclusive access to these cigars for one year.

From the first draw, you get notes of earthiness that soon transform with leather and petrichor. Flavors of cedar and hints of spice are well represented throughout the duration of this smoke. The finish gives us just a hint of sweetness that makes you wish this cigar would last for an eternity.

This may be the best pairing to date for Deck Therapy!

Until next time Kids, Remember:

Life’s Too Short to Drink Bad Booze and Smoke Bad Cigars!

Cheers Y’all!

Give the Fat Man a follow on Instagram if you will: @crazynvirginia

Johnnie & Rocky

I’ve been known to enjoy a glass of good scotch from time to time. My early years, I just couldn’t stomach the peaty or smokiness of this drink. Now that I’m old AF, the old palette has evolved.

From Islay to Campbelltown, even the blended options, I’ll give any of them a Hollar. And speaking of blended scotch, my random banter this month to all my 4 readers (I gained one last month) is none other than Johnnie Walker Blue.

The good thing about this bottle is I didn’t pay full freight for it. One of my boys was given the bottle for some work he had done. I told him the value and he sold it to me for $100. As my girl would say: “Snag!”

Johnnie Walker Blue

The mash bill is undisclosed but uses hand-selected rare scotch whiskies, only 1 out of 10,000 casks make the cut. Which is why this is the most sought after Johnnie Walker on the market. Only 3 years maturation is required but the blended juice must meet the 28 year requirement and some as old as 60 years.

Fresh hay smell and earthy notes with a heavy alcohol presence. Honey with a touch of citrus with a smooth vanilla finish. The perfect sipper for a warm day.

I’m trying to procure another bottle for my shelf!

I’m pairing this with the Rocky Patel Special Edition.

This medium-bodied cigar consists of small-batches of tobaccos. Original released at PCA 2022 in Vegas. We were the first in Virginia to get them in stock. This limited edition has found its way back to our shop recently and is selling well. Available in 3 vitolas (Robusto, Toro & Sixty) I chose the Toro.

Wrapper: Habano

Binder: Nicaraguan

Filler: Nicaraguan

Nutmeg and coffee flavors on the first draw. As the smoke swirls on the mid palate baking spices of sugar and cinnamon. The finish has some hints of petrichor.

This is a well balance pairing that would be a nice addition to your regular rotation of deck therapy.

Until next time Kids, Remember:

Life’s Too Short to Drink Bad Booze and Smoke Bad Cigars!

Cheers Y’all!

Give the Fat Man a follow on Instagram if you will: @crazynvirginia

A Rare Pairing

It’s fun going out into the wild, the crisp morning air to take down large game.

Oh who the hell am I kidding, I’m riding around in the hills from liquor store to liquor store hunting for allocated and unicorn bourbons. However, there’s a good chance I have a roadie in a camo koozie!

These past few months have been good to the Fat Man! Procured 5 in the wild, 2 were sent to me from my boy and 1 given to me. Even the cigar shop got something unusual or rare if you would.

Murph had told me about this bottle. It was years before a TV series, movie or Godless Hipsters made bourbon relevant in the world.

I would grab multiple bottles and had a nice stash. And then it happened…it became allocated, one per day.

When your regular sipping whiskey becomes popular and unable to find, you become frustrated and even drown your sorrow with a glass of this brown juice to ease the suffering.

As much as it hurts my soul to do a Deck Therapy Bottle Crack, it’s my duty to do so to provide you with some helpful information while savoring this brown water goodness.

Eagle Rare

Now most will argue that Buffalo Trace is a better product that Eagle Rare and I admit Trace is good but not as good as ER. For the price point, I’d rather have a 10 year aged bourbon compared to a 4 year aged. That being said, it’s time for some Bottle Crackin’ Szn!

As I swirl, the aromatics are very inviting; hints of coca, brown sugar, cinnamon permeate the glass.

The mouth feel is soft on the first sip, shows notes of toasted oak with a touch of honey. The mid-palate has a large presence of oak which is from the 10 year aging process. The finish shows a bit of spice with a hint of white pepper.

This is a must for your shelf and happy hunting for this elusive bottle.

Keeping with the Rare theme, I chose a limited release cigar to pair with my adult beverage:

Arturo Fuente Rare Pink Signature.

The Rare Pink Series was created to raise awareness for breast cancer. A portion of each box sale is donated to the American Cancer Society – Making Strides Against Breast Cancer.

Great draw fresh hay and earthiness with notes of cocoa and a hint of sweetness. Creamy & smooth on the mid palate with a touch of spice. Available in 6 sizes, I chose the Signature for today.

The full lineup of sizes:

Short Story: 4 X 42/49

Queen of Hearts: 4.125 X 60

Work of Art: 4.875 X 46/60

Happy Ending: 5.5 X 53

Signature: 6 X 53

Sophisticated Hooker: Figurado

This maybe one of my new favorite pairings for deck therapy and if given the opportunity, you must stock your shelf and humidor with these Rare picks.

Until next time Kids, Remember:

Life’s Too Short to Drink Bad Booze and Smoke Bad Cigars!

Cheers Y’all!

Give the Fat Man a follow on Instagram if you will: @crazynvirginia

I Love Bottled-in-Bond!

I don’t know for sure, which was my first Bottled-in-Bond Bourbons. I’m leaning toward either E. H. Taylor Small Batch or the 10yr McKenna.

At any rate, I truly love this style of brown water! After reading at rating of these bottles, one stood out and doesn’t break the bank; Evan Williams BiB.

So for todays Deck Therapy tasting, I give you the following:

Pi Synesthesia

Manufacturer: Crowned Heads & Ozgener Family Cigars

Wrapper: Connecticut from Ecuador

Binder: Ecuador

Filler: Nicaraguan

Size: Toro

A mild to medium bodied smoke with creamy vanilla notes. Some leather essence on the mid palette. The perfect cigar for a newcomer.

As mild as this cigar is, paired it with one of my favorite Bottled-in-Bond:

Evan Williams

At 100 Proof, this is a perfect balance of flavor and heat. A ton of sweet Carmel notes with just the right amount of heat on the finish.

This pairing is as close to perfect as it gets. The weekend is here Kids so let’s have some fun!

Cheers Y’all!

Still Crackin’!

My deck is gonna assume I’m cheating on her. I’ll only have 2 quality days to truly enjoy her company.

3 days of driving this week and 2 in the cigar shop has me busier than normal. However my first day allows me some bottle crackin’ Szn!

New Riff Single Barrel, aged at least 4 years and a mash bill of 65% Corn, 35% Rye and 5% Malted Rye. Bottled at 108.4 Proof.

Sweet to the tasted with baking spices and a soft burn on the back palette. This is definitely a perfect bourbon to serve neat.

I’m pairing this brown water goodness with a limited edition release:

My Father Le Bijou 1922 100 Anos

Binder: Nicaraguan

Filler: Nicaraguan

Wrapper: Nicaraguan Oscuro

Size: Lonsdale

With the smaller gauge, you really get some great flavors from the wrapper. Earthy, Oily and coffee notes. Mild to medium flavors with little to no spice. Overall Awesome Smoke!

I’ve always been a big fan of My Father Cigars and even bigger fan of the New Riff Distillery products.

Until next time Kids! Another milestone for me next week and I’ll tell you about it later.

Cheers Y’all! Let’s Get After It!