Old Soul is out with another cool bottle! The origin of the title 'tintype' comes from the style of photography observed on the front label. The Mississippi distillery honors the art of the photograph taken as a positive on a thin tin plate usually coated with a dark lacquer to make the subtleties pop.
This sourced MGP is bursting with flavor, rich color, a fantastic history, and a decent price point. I was able to find this at Kappy's in MA. Time to get into a deep dive of the whiskey I fell in love with at first sip!
Company on Label: Cathead Distillery (Distilled in Indiana)
Whiskey Type: Bourbon
Mash Bill Percentages: 75% Corn, 21% Rye, 4% Malted Barley
Proof: 122.3°
Age: 7 years
Further identification: Series #1 from 2022 features Capt. Luke Mayer, a blues legend, captured on the tintype image by Timothy Duffy
Nose: Decadent, bright fruit immediately leap into the nose. The sweet aromas are pervasive and they stick in the nose immediately with a creamy molasses consistency. The air above this glass becomes thick, decadent and rich. Butterscotch and caramel are the dominant notes that leap out at me upon diving back in. Dusty oak, black pepper and orange sherbert intermingle with some heft. Tart plum, raspberry jam and toffee dance around a warm campfire. John Mellencamp is dancing in a field of flowers. This smells so damn good. It's fruity, floral, and distinctly high quality bourbon. This is one of those exceptional examples of the heights that MGP distillate can achieve. Let's dive into a sip and see how things evolve.
Returning from a sip yields lovely toasted marshmallow notes. There's bright linen characteristics that make me want to sneeze. Exceptionally soft black pepper perfectly blends with vanilla sweetness to produce an approachable level of complexity that few whiskeys achieve with this kind of ease. Mmm. Late in the glass the creamy tones are all there are to find - vanilla frosting, tiramisu and marshmallow through and through. Squawks of butterscotch and molasses ring out from time to time. Deep inhales continue to be delectable blends of honeysuckle and confectioners sugar. The empty glass smells of toasted almonds, brick oven pizza crust, and soft leather that inspires a level of elegance that might not befit the individual parts described here.
Palate: Right away I get a solid punch of sweet frosted orange cookies. The sip shimmers and shakes with a beautiful sweet & spicy blend of effervescence. Chocolate, molasses and a creamy tiramisu texture coats the mouth. Another sip shows off raspberry trifle, cinnamon and a spritz of lemon peel zest. The linger is distinctly fruit forward and it carries on in an endless undulating wave. Diving even deeper on a larger sip and swish shows this does have some spice to it, but every time I find it... it seems like this soft plum and icing flavor wraps itself around what I was experiencing. The sharper flavors just try to peek their heads out before the sweetness envelops the intruding spice in a total eclipse. In a way I'd say the sweet creaminess acts as a delicious form of a palate coolant system and it totally works to the sips advantage here. As the glass begins to get lower I find myself savoring it longer each sip. The spicier tones of the beginning of the glass are beginning to fade away leaving only the sweetest orange cake and slightly boozy peach flambé for me to pick through. The mouth feel being on the thicker end of the viscosity spectrum results in a deep coating of demerara syrup, angostura bitters and concentrated cherry juice. My last sip is a real treat with an orange peel dominating an old fashioned flavor profile I can't live without. Yum.
Rating: 5/5
This is exceptional whiskey from exceptional folks. I've turned heads on two of my friends at this point who have tried this and they both asked 'where can I get this?' immediately. You will not want to miss this release if it's available in your market! Cheers friends!