Keeper’s Heart Irish + Bourbon Cask Strength, bottled by the O'Shaughnessy Distilling Company at 118 proof, blends Irish pot still, Irish grain and bourbon whiskey.
Peppery spice returns on the finish astride some toffee and barley sugar. Between the two higher octane Keeper’s Heart expressions, the Irish + American takes the prize.
The brisk, warming palate shows robust baked apple and butterscotch. Adding water softens the heat, and coaxes forward a white floral note plus a ginger-spiked finish.
At the end of the day, I think the reality with this Irish + Bourbon Cask Strength expression is that the proof just becomes a bit too expressive for this blend, limiting the ability of the components to come together in a more subtle synthesis.
