It's cold outside. Right now, as I'm writing, it's cold. Will it be cold when this gets posted? Who can see that far into the future? Either way, it's in the winter, and this is a spiced apple punch suitable for a cold night and a warm fire. I am begrudgingly learning to appreciate whiskey more and more, but it's not yet my thing. I think drinks that are made with whiskey may be the gateway to actually understanding whiskey, but I could be wrong.
Wow. I didn't think I would say this when I poured a ... vaguely whiskey drink, but this is really light in color. It's not even apple juice color. It's like watered-down apple juice from concentrate. If I look real, real hard, I can see some weepers, but they don't amount to much. The aroma is very whiskey-heavy. What it isn't is apple heavy. I don't pick up any apple. Hmm...
First sip is whiskey-forward, but the spices and apples round it out and linger a lot longer while the warmth moves down the throat like a moonshine might. For as diluted as the whiskey is in this apple punch, I am shocked that there is still so much of the whiskey. That wood and banana are shining through at the beginning, and that makes this a decidedly complex beverage for just a-sippin' on a cold night.
Subsequent sips highlight the sweetness that this has, and that offsets the dryness of the whiskey pretty well. I think someone being told this is "punch" would be confused by what they got. This isn't punch, and it isn't a hard cider. It is more akin to a flavored whiskey, but it has less alcohol than those do. I guess it's somewhere in between, but it has a nice niche.
Bottom Line: Perfect for the right circumstances.
3.75/5