Tamworth Bird of Courage

Innovation can lead to advantageous discoveries in technological advancements, artistic creations, culinary achievements, and many other areas that improve lives; however, not all creative concepts succeed, with many failing and being discarded as poorly conceived ideas lost to history. A bold and forward-thinking creator today is Tamworth Distilling, pushing the boundaries of spirits with novel flavor combinations like beaver gland whiskey, corpse flower brandy, crab-flavored whiskey, venison-flavored bourbon, and this Thanksgiving-themed bourbon called Bird of Courage. Tamworth has abandoned conventional methods of spirit production and aging in their effort to create the Bird of Courage whiskey. Their team began with a five-year-old bottled-in-bond bourbon distilled at Tamworth, featuring a mash bill of 81% corn; 12% rye, and 7% malted barley. They then prepared a traditional Thanksgiving meal, infusing elements of each dish into a portion of the bourbon before combining the 40% infused bourbon with 60% uninfused regular bourbon and bottling it at 46% ABV. After all the effort put into this creation, it's time to open this generous sample from a friend to explore this unique Thanksgiving beverage and determine if the creativity was successful or if it's better suited for cleaning a kitchen sink drain. The aroma initially presents a moderate tartness reminiscent of homemade canned cranberry sauce, transitioning to a savory, earthy note of roasted turkey topped with powdered mushroom gravy, then cornbread stuffing and roasted chestnuts. This is followed by the scent of vomit from young children, consisting of parsnips and boiled cabbage, being cleaned up with lemon-scented disinfectant. It then shifts to Old Spice aftershave and a 20-year-old blazer with stale cigarette smoke ingrained in its fabric, accompanied by a mild ethanol burn. The taste has a thin mouthfeel, beginning with cranberry and gooseberry sauce over undercooked turkey breast, then powdered mushroom gravy on potatoes au gratin and cornbread stuffing. This is followed by sour apples, lemon polish, and curdled baby food, transitioning to shaving cream and old bowling alley shoes, with a low ethanol burn. The finish is short, with a pronounced sourness from lemon-scented hand sanitizer, then used coffee grounds, and a strongly ashy, bitter spice. Overall, it successfully evokes a Thanksgiving experience; however, it's akin to a family reunion with peculiar relatives, resulting in a rather unpleasant, sour, and offensive experience that fortunately concludes quickly. The environment is like a home covered in stale cigarette smoke and air fresheners. I respect Tamworth's creativity, but this particular spirit did not work out well for me, and I will likely refrain from trying their future endeavors.

The story of this spirit from Tamworth reminds me of a peculiar taxidermy shop from my childhood that seemed to have no customers but somehow stayed in business. Tamworth itself is known for unusual whiskey creations, like those with animal glands or pungent flowers. This particular offering, however, presents Thanksgiving-like flavors. Imagine blending all elements of a Thanksgiving meal into a liquid form – that's the essence of this disappointing concoction. It lacks any distinct flavor of turkey, chestnuts, or cranberry sauce; instead, it's a young whiskey with a jumble of infused tastes that create a muddled and inconsistent profile. It makes me wonder, like the taxidermist shop, how they remain afloat. Perhaps their primary operation involves less conventional ventures, but producing peculiar whiskey alone seems unlikely to sustain them. For our tasting, I suggest we opt for a different selection. My intentions were good, but the result wasn't.