Review: One Eight Distilling Untitled Apple Brandy No. 1 and Untitled Whiskey No. 9 (Batch 2)
Review: One Eight Distilling Untitled Apple Brandy No. 1 and Untitled Whiskey No. 9 (Batch 2)
The team at Washington, D.C.’s One Eight Distilling has been dipping their toes into things other than whiskey as of late. Recently, they released their first ever apple brandy under its own Untitled line, which was distilled on their old Kothe potstill and aged in ex-bourbon barrels for over three years. In conjunction with the apple brandy release, One Eight also released their second batch of Untitled Whiskey No. 9. It’s an 8-year-old wheated bourbon that spent 22 months aging in a Calvados cask (named Jean), more than a year longer than the first release from 2017 (no review of that one from us, unfortunately). Read on for the reviews!
One Eight Distilling Untitled Apple Brandy No. 1 – The nose is rich and buttery with a slight minerality, coming across almost like a dry white wine. Apple is naturally the theme here, but it’s mostly of the red variety, skins not fruit, dried not stewed. The oak is gentle and a bit dusty. It’s not as sweet on the palate as other apple brandies with that minerality carrying through. As for the fruit, things get more tart and Granny Smith. It’s bright and lush with juicy applesauce, homemade not canned, and a touch of green Jolly Rancher. There’s a generous heat here, as well, that rushes to the back of the throat. A bit of barrel char accents the fruit and vanilla bean, adding some smoke into the generous finish. One Eight’s skill clearly goes beyond just gin and whiskey. 104 proof. A- / $60
One Eight Distilling Untitled Whiskey No. 9 (Batch 2) – All that time in the Calvados cask really shows: Loads of lightly sweet apple juice on the nose with just a bit of banana bread. It’s enticing but hard to tell that there’s a bourbon here at first whiff. A little digging pulls out some baking spice, but it’s still mostly undercooked apple pie. The palate is light and honeyed with more classic wheated bourbon character; some caramel and brown sugar, a bit of vanilla custard, and wet oak. The apple component is there but dehydrated, giving this one a dry edge into the warming finish. 86 proof. B+ / $75
Two-pack of 375ml bottles available only at the distillery for $75.
One Eight Distilling Untitled Apple Brandy No. 1
$60
