Today marks 60 years since I made my grand entrance into this world. I’m not sure whether the world is better or worse for the experience, but I’ve certainly enjoyed quite a bit of the ride. And since my birthday happens to fall on a Tuesday this year, it seems only appropriate that I celebrate with a special edition of Tasting Tuesday.

Originally, I had hoped to spend some time with my best friend, Scott, as part of the celebration. But circumstances intervened, and the trip didn’t happen. Scott, being the good friend he is, sent me some money to buy a nice bottle of bourbon. My stepmother also sent me some birthday money, and I decided to supplement their generosity with a little of my own.

One thing led to another, and before I knew it, I had four new bottles of bourbon sitting on my shelf. And these weren’t exactly bargain-basement purchases.

I did manage to save a little money along the way. Shores Liquor had Calumet Farm 12-Year marked down by $30, and Broudy’s had a Russell’s Reserve Private Barrel Select discounted by $17. Meanwhile, a tasting and tour at St. Augustine Distillery earned me $25 off a bottle of The Saint. The fourth bottle, Florida Colonel, came home at full price.

That’s $72 in discounts, which sounds pretty good until you consider how much I spent to get them. But you only turn 60 once, and between gifts from family, a gift from a friend, and a gift to myself, I decided this was a reasonable way to commemorate the occasion. At least, that’s the story I’m sticking with.

Unlike most of my Tasting Tuesday comparisons, this one wasn’t blind. I knew exactly what I was pouring, and frankly, I didn’t see much reason to pretend otherwise. These four bourbons have very different stories, and those stories are part of what makes them interesting.

I tasted them in ascending order of proof, beginning at 102 and ending at 116.4. Here’s how the birthday celebration unfolded.

Calumet Farm 12-Year Bourbon — 102 Proof

Color: Solid copper.

Nose: Oak leads everything here, but brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and cherry also make an appearance. There’s no mistaking the age of this bourbon, although the sweeter notes keep the oak from completely taking over.

Palate: A burst of toasted nuts and buttery toffee leads the taste parade, quickly joined by dry oak and brown sugar. There’s a lot going on in this glass, and pretty much all of it is good. The interaction between the sweet and savory elements makes this a particularly enjoyable bourbon to explore.

Mouthfeel & Finish: The mouthfeel is thick and viscous, giving the flavors plenty of opportunity to develop. The finish drives home those 12 years of oak maturation, with brown sugar and cherries trailing behind.

Final Impression: This was a very nice start to the tasting. There’s a lot of oak here, as you might expect from a 12-year bourbon, but it isn’t overwhelming and doesn’t get in the way of the other flavors. It’s a mature, substantial bourbon that delivers exactly the kind of complexity I’d hope to find at this age.

Score: 84.41

Russell’s Reserve Private Barrel Select — 110 Proof

Color: Solid copper.

Nose: The folks at Wild Turkey apparently take the word “wild” seriously, because there’s a ton going on here. That’s often the case with their bourbons, and this private barrel selection is no exception. On one hand, it’s sweet, with caramel, vanilla, and cherries. On the other, savory notes keep peeking through, including oak, tobacco, nutmeg, and dusty peanut shells. It’s an intriguing combination that practically demands another sniff.

Palate: Those dusty, toasted nuts jump right to the front, but they’re quickly joined by brown sugar, caramel, toffee, and creamy vanilla. The flavors don’t simply coexist. They seem to take turns demanding attention, creating a wonderfully engaging experience.

Mouthfeel & Finish: This is a seriously rich bourbon, with outstanding viscosity that carries the flavors throughout the mouth. The finish is almost a tasting experience of its own, shifting constantly from sweet to savory to oaky and then back to sweet again. Just when you think you’ve figured it out, another flavor comes along.

Final Impression: This is a fun bourbon to sip because there’s so much to figure out. The flavors ping-pong around, but not in a way that feels disjointed or confusing. Instead, they make the bourbon more interesting with every sip. It’s the sort of whiskey that rewards patience and attention, and I can easily imagine spending an evening discovering new things about it.

Score: 86.58

St. Augustine Distillery The Saint — 115.1 Proof

Before we even get to the bourbon, we need to talk about the bottle. The Saint comes in a beautiful decanter-style bottle that might be the most impressive piece of whiskey packaging in my collection. Fortunately, what’s inside proves worthy of the presentation.

The Saint begins with St. Augustine’s Florida bourbon, which is finished in barrels previously used to produce the distillery’s Old Fashioned mix. Those barrels contribute the fruit, spice, and sweetness associated with the classic cocktail, creating a whiskey unlike most of the bourbons on my shelf.

Color: Light mahogany, and probably the most attractive color of the four bourbons in this tasting.

Nose: This is one of the best things about The Saint. The influence of the Old Fashioned barrels leaps out of the glass, bringing orange, cherry, cinnamon, brown sugar, and a touch of bitters into the picture. Traditional bourbon notes of toffee and oak are still there, but the cocktail-inspired aromas dominate. It’s a delightful nose that makes you eager to discover whether the palate can deliver on the promise.

Palate: The sweetness of the Old Fashioned is immediately evident, joined by some lovely cinnamon, toffee, and oak. This isn’t an incredibly complex bourbon, at least not compared with the Russell’s Reserve, but everything that’s here is delicious. It’s almost like having an Old Fashioned without going through the trouble of mixing a cocktail. The flavors are familiar, well-integrated, and thoroughly enjoyable.

Mouthfeel & Finish: The finishing process adds some depth to the mouthfeel, although it isn’t quite as thick as I expected. Serious oak dominates the front end of the finish, momentarily pushing the fruit and sweetness aside. But then the citrus, cherry, and spice return, giving the bourbon a very pleasant conclusion that lingers for a while.

Final Impression: The Saint is a wonderful example of how barrel finishing can create something distinctive without losing the character of the underlying bourbon. It isn’t the most complex whiskey of the evening, but it might be the most immediately enjoyable. The Old Fashioned character is unmistakable, and the result is an exceptionally tasty bourbon that I’d happily pour again.

Score: 86.47

St. Augustine Distillery Florida Colonel — 116.4 Proof

The final bourbon of the evening was another St. Augustine offering, although this one takes a very different approach from The Saint.

Florida Colonel is a collaboration between St. Augustine Distillery and Florida musician JJ Grey. It blends the distillery’s own Florida bourbon with bourbon sourced from Kentucky, creating an expression intended to bring together the characteristics of both states.

During my visit to the distillery, I was told the blend consists of approximately 70 percent Florida bourbon and 30 percent Kentucky bourbon. I was also told the Kentucky component comes from Owensboro, which strongly suggests Green River Distilling Company as the source, although I haven’t been able to confirm that connection independently.

One of the interesting things about St. Augustine bourbon is its distinctive character. I frequently find tobacco and leather notes in its whiskey, flavors that can add complexity but aren’t necessarily my favorites. I was particularly curious to see what the Kentucky component would do to those characteristics.

Color: Rich, solid copper.

Nose: The nose is pleasant but not overwhelming, offering creamy vanilla, brown sugar, caramel, and light oak. There’s also what might be a hint of honey and citrus. Compared with some of the other bourbons in this tasting, it’s relatively restrained, but everything works together nicely.

Palate: Here’s where the influence of the Kentucky bourbon seems to make itself known. The tobacco and leather notes that often define St. Augustine bourbon are muted, allowing the sweeter flavors to take center stage. Brown sugar, caramel, cinnamon, toffee, and sweet cherries create a very enjoyable combination. It’s rich, approachable, and a little more in line with my preferred flavor profile than some of the distillery’s other expressions.

Mouthfeel & Finish: The mouthfeel is nicely viscous, with a creamy quality that carries the flavors across the palate. The finish is tasty, although somewhat less substantial than those of the other bourbons in the flight. Brown sugar, cinnamon, and caramel dominate, leaving behind a pleasant sweetness.

Final Impression: This bourbon immediately earned a place in my current Top 64, which will compete in my Bourbon March Madness tournament. And yet, when compared directly with the other three bottles in this tasting, it might be the least impressive of the group. That’s not a criticism of Florida Colonel so much as a compliment to the company it’s keeping. On its own, this is a very, very good bourbon, and I’d be delighted to celebrate my birthday with a glass.

Score: 84.58

The Birthday Rankings

When the glasses were empty and the scores were tallied, the results were remarkably close at the top.

By the slimmest of margins, Russell’s Reserve emerged as the winner, edging The Saint by just 0.11 points. That’s practically a statistical dead heat in a tasting like this, and I could easily imagine preferring one over the other depending on my mood.

The Russell’s Reserve wins on complexity, with its constantly shifting flavors and outstanding mouthfeel. The Saint counters with a wonderfully distinctive Old Fashioned profile that’s simply delicious from beginning to end. Both are exceptional whiskeys, and I’m delighted to have them in my collection.

Florida Colonel and Calumet Farm 12-Year finished a couple of points behind, but let’s put that into perspective. Both scored above 84, which puts them among the best whiskeys I own. In an ordinary tasting, either one could easily have been the star of the show. They just happened to draw some unusually stiff competition.

Sixty Years and Counting

I’ve spent a fair amount of time over the past few years tasting whiskey, comparing bottles, keeping scores, and trying to figure out exactly what makes a great bourbon. And while I enjoy the process, I occasionally have to remind myself that the numbers aren’t really the point.

The point is enjoying what’s in the glass.

Turning 60 provides an opportunity to think about things like that. Six decades is a long time, and I’ve accumulated my share of memories, accomplishments, disappointments, mistakes, and blessings along the way. Some years have been better than others, and I suspect the same will be true of the years still ahead of me.

But today, I’m not particularly interested in dwelling on any of that. I’m celebrating a milestone, and I’m grateful for the people who helped make it special. Scott couldn’t be here, but his generosity was. My stepmother contributed to the celebration, and I decided I was worth a little birthday indulgence myself.

The result is four remarkable bourbons, each with its own personality, each worthy of a place on my shelf, and each providing another reason to raise a glass.

I don’t know what the next decade will bring. At 60, I’m old enough to know better than to make too many predictions about the future. But I hope it brings more good friends, more time with family, more opportunities to enjoy the things I love, and perhaps a few more great bottles of bourbon along the way.

For now, I’m grateful to have made it this far, and I’m blessed to have four outstanding bourbons with which to toast the occasion.

Happy birthday to me. Cheers!