March Bourbon Madness: Best-of-the-Shelf Challenge—First Round Matchups 29-32

Posted on March 22, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Opening Pour

The Final Four of Round One

The last pours of the first round are in the books.

By this point, fatigue is real. Subtle differences matter more. Texture separates contenders. And a couple of heavy hitters had to survive gritty matchups to advance.

Here’s how the final four blinds of Round 1 played out.

🥃 Matchup 29 — Blind

CC vs. B

Blind Tasting Notes

CC

Color: Light mahogany
Nose: Lighter than expected — caramel, vanilla, oak
Palate: Warm caramel and oak lead; baking spice and tart cherries follow
Mouthfeel: Decent
Finish: Tart cherry, oak and caramel

Score: 83.65

B

Color: Deep copper
Nose: Rich creamy caramel, chocolate and nutmeg
Palate: Milk chocolate leads caramel and baking spice
Mouthfeel: Creamy and substantial
Finish: Solid, with spice and caramel rounding it out

Score: 84.20

Reveal & Result

CC: Old Forester 1910 (#6)
B: High West Chardonnay Cask (#59)

✅ Winner: High West Chardonnay Cask
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

This one surprised me. 1910 is usually reliable, but it showed up a little restrained here. The High West brought richness and texture that carried the edge.

What decided it:
Mouthfeel and chocolate-driven depth.

🥃 Matchup 30 — Blind

EEE vs. I

Blind Tasting Notes

EEE

Color: Deepest copper
Nose: Butterscotch, caramel, nutmeg, light oak
Palate: A butterscotch bomb — caramel and nutmeg in reserve
Mouthfeel: Mildly creamy
Finish: Toffee and nutmeg linger

Score: 87.34

I

Color: Light copper
Nose: Buttery toffee, nutmeg, vanilla, mild oak
Palate: Caramel and baking spice with a touch of peanut
Mouthfeel: Mid-level
Finish: Spice and caramel dominate

Score: 79.96

Reveal & Result

EEE: Jack Daniel’s Distillery Series Oloroso Cask (#27)
I: Cooper’s Craft 100-Proof (#38)

✅ Winner: Jack Daniel’s Oloroso Cask
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

This wasn’t particularly close. The Oloroso finish delivered concentrated dessert richness and control. It felt composed and confident.

What decided it:
Layered sweetness and balance.

🥃 Matchup 31 — Blind

BBB vs. F

Blind Tasting Notes

BBB

Color: Mid-copper
Nose: Proof and oak lead; brown sugar trails
Palate: Sweet brown sugar with strong cinnamon and light caramel
Mouthfeel: Silky
Finish: Shorter than hoped; brown sugar and cherry

Score: 83.44

F

Color: Solid mahogany
Nose: Brown sugar, nutmeg, crème brûlée
Palate: Rich buttery layers of caramel, chocolate and nutmeg
Mouthfeel: Full and rich
Finish: Long, layered, and persistent

Score: 85.50

Reveal & Result

BBB: Four Roses OESO Barrel Strength (#11)
F: Woodford Reserve Double Oaked (#54)

✅ Winner: Woodford Reserve Double Oaked
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

OESO came in strong, but Double Oaked did what it does — richness, texture, dessert weight. It simply lingered longer and felt more complete.

What decided it:
Depth and finish length.

🥃 Matchup 32 — Blind

L vs. FF

Blind Tasting Notes

L

Color: Light copper
Nose: Ethanol and dustiness, but brown sugar and caramel hiding
Palate: Heavy spice with brown sugar and toffee
Mouthfeel: Solid and rich
Finish: Caramel and baking spice

Score: 80.62

FF

Color: Mid-copper
Nose: Mixed berries, light oak, vanilla
Palate: Cinnamon up front, berries, caramel and vanilla
Mouthfeel: Silky
Finish: Tart fruit, cinnamon and oak

Score: 79.10

Reveal & Result

L: Green River Single Barrel (#22)
FF: Chattanooga Experimental Single Barrel (#43)

✅ Winner: Green River Single Barrel
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

Not the cleanest matchup of the round. Both had rough edges. In the end, L’s structure and sweetness outweighed FF’s fruit-forward profile.

What decided it:
Better balance despite early ethanol notes.

🔀 Second-Round Matchups Created

High West Chardonnay Cask (#59)
vs.
Jack Daniel’s Oloroso Cask (#27)

Woodford Reserve Double Oaked (#54)
vs.
Green River Single Barrel (#22)

🏁 Closing the First Round

Round 1 is complete.

A few themes emerged:

  • Texture consistently separated winners.

  • Dessert-forward profiles performed extremely well.

  • High proof alone did not guarantee advancement.

  • Some familiar names are already gone.

Now the real fun begins.

Round 2 is where reputations get tested. I’ll see you on Tuesday for the start of Round Two.

Copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.

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The Teachers Who Built Me

Posted on March 22, 2026 by Douglas Blaine
Daily writing prompt
Who was your most influential teacher? Why?
View all responses

When I first saw the question — Who was your most influential teacher? Why? — my instinct was to name one person and move on. But the truth is, I can’t honestly answer it that way.

Different teachers arrived at different points in my life, and each one left something behind that still matters now. Some taught in classrooms. One taught me long before I ever sat at a desk. Together, they shaped far more than report cards or grades. In many ways, they helped shape the person who eventually became a teacher himself.

The first, of course, was my mother.

She taught me to read and write before school ever did. She taught me how to sing, how to love the Lord, how to care about people, and how to touch lives with kindness. Even at the end of her life, she was still teaching — showing what dignity and grace look like when life becomes difficult. Honestly, no one ever taught me more than she did.

In fifth grade, there was Sherry Robinson.

She was tall, classy, beautiful, smart — the kind of teacher who walked into a room and immediately had your attention. But what mattered most was that she made me feel smart too. When I wrote a Christmas play, she didn’t just compliment it — she made sure it was performed for the whole school. That kind of encouragement stays with a kid. It tells you that maybe something you create has value. She also taught a lesson on healthy eating so convincingly that I nearly became a vegetarian, which may be one of the more underrated accomplishments of her teaching career.

In eleventh grade came Barbara McGonagill, my gifted teacher.

I loved her class, which made it all the more foolish that I cheated on her vocabulary quizzes. Every gifted class before us had passed down the stolen answers like some secret tradition, and I was the one who got caught. What I remember most is not the punishment but the feeling that I had disappointed someone who trusted us. She treated us like people, not just students, and I think she may have been the first teacher who quietly influenced how I would one day teach my own students.

Then there was Staff Sgt. Bohannon during Air Force Basic Training, along with Sgt. Davidson.

They introduced discipline in ways no classroom ever could. Somehow, they also made me their “house mouse” — essentially the person responsible for keeping their office in order, a little like Radar O’Reilly in uniform. That role gave me responsibility, structure, and a sense that I could be trusted with something important. Oddly enough, basic training may have been the most positive part of my Air Force experience, largely because of the way they led.

Years later, when I returned to college after flaming out the first time, Dr. James Cobb at Florida Community College at Jacksonville reminded me why learning could still matter.

His class was Movies as Art, and to this day it remains my favorite college course. He didn’t just teach film; he opened it up in a way that made you see cinema differently. Jacksonville eventually regarded him as something of a legend. To me, he always was.

And when I finally became a teacher myself, two women at Darnell-Cookman helped me survive becoming one.

Linda Fralick taught me the craft of teaching during my first two years — how to build lessons, how to think through the day, how to make a classroom work. When she retired, Lisa Clancy stepped in and taught me something just as important: how to endure the job when it gets hard. Between them, they helped carry me through those early years when experience hadn’t caught up to responsibility yet.

Looking back, maybe the most influential teacher in life is rarely just one person.

Sometimes it takes several — each arriving at exactly the right time, each adding one piece until eventually you realize how much of who you are still carries their fingerprints.

Copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.

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Quick Thought – Sunday, March 22, 2026: Mercy at the Tax Table (Fifth Sunday in Lent)

Posted on March 22, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Read

Matthew 9:9-13

Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Matthew 9:13

Reflect

Sometimes when you read a passage in the Gospels, you get a perfect picture of exactly who Jesus was. Today is an excellent example of that.

Tax collectors were hated among the Jewish people because they tended to be more than a little greedy and corrupt. Plus, they were typically Jews who were collecting taxes on behalf of the Roman oppressors, and they were making a huge profit doing it.

Jesus probably encountered such people often, and on two occasions, he made a point of ministering the Gospel specifically to those tax collectors. We find one in the story of Zaccheus (who climbed a tree to see Jesus), and the other in the calling of Matthew as one of Jesus’ closest disciples.

This calling probably would have confounded not only the holier-than-thou Pharisees but possibly some within Jesus’ inner circle. That’s why I loved the interpretation found in “The Bible” miniseries, where the producers combined a story in Luke 18, where Jesus contrasts the false piety of the Pharisee against the utter humility and remorse of the tax collector.

We don’t know if this is how Jesus actually called Matthew, but it has such a ring of truth to it, and it looks like what I would expect from the Lord, who always showed love and mercy. Even so, He also used the calling of Matthew as a teaching opportunity, not just about the Pharisees, but to them. He sends them on a scriptural hunt for the meaning of Hosea 6:6. (“For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”) And He sends a message to the others listening, including his disciples, that God’s quality is always to show mercy to sinners.

What about us? How do we treat the “sinners” in the world? Do we look down on people who do things we don’t agree with? Or do we show the love and mercy of God to them? It’s pretty clear what Jesus would have done, and we’re supposed to be His hands and feet to those around us. Today, pray about how the Lord would have you reach out to people who need Him most.

Reflection copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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March Bourbon Madness: Best-of-the-Shelf Challenge—First Round Matchups 25-28

Posted on March 21, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Opening Pour

We’re closing in on the end of the first round. At this stage, good bottles are no longer enough. Balance, texture, and finish are determining who survives. This group delivered a couple of comfortable wins and one matchup where proof and structure made the difference.

Let’s get into it.

🥃 Matchup 25 — Blind

SS vs. JJ

Blind Tasting Notes

SS

  • Color: Deep copper

  • Nose: Rich and buttery; brown sugar, cherries, nutmeg

  • Palate: Cherry Sweet-Tarts up front; toffee, cinnamon, oak follow

  • Mouthfeel: Creamy

  • Finish: Wonderful; tart cherries and toffee lead

  • Score: 87.89

JJ

  • Color: Rich copper

  • Nose: Light chocolate, rich caramel, hint of sweet cherries

  • Palate: Cherries forward; caramel, chocolate, cinnamon follow

  • Mouthfeel: Borderline creamy

  • Finish: Soft; cherries turn tart, caramel fades

  • Score: 83.55

Reveal & Result

  • SS: Old Forester 1910 117 Series Extra Extra Old (#3)

  • JJ: Yellowstone Toasted Barrel (#62)

✅ Winner: Old Forester 1910 117 Series Extra Extra Old (#3)
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

SS brought depth and a structured sweetness that held from nose through finish. JJ was pleasant, but it lacked the same intensity and staying power.

What decided it:

Greater richness and a more decisive finish.

🥃 Matchup 26 — Blind

H vs. M

Blind Tasting Notes

H

  • Color: Deep copper

  • Nose: Butterscotch, baking spice, vanilla, oak; hints of mint and apricot

  • Palate: Rye-leaning spice; caramel lingers

  • Mouthfeel: Warm and luscious

  • Finish: Nice but not spectacular; spice and fruit linger

  • Score: 81.48

M

  • Color: Light copper

  • Nose: Light peanuts, vanilla, caramel, touch of oak

  • Palate: Hot but creamy; peanut butter, brown sugar, caramel, oak

  • Mouthfeel: Rich creaminess

  • Finish: Caramel and baking spice linger

  • Score: 82.03

Reveal & Result

  • H: Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye (#30)

  • M: Old Grand-dad 114 (#35)

✅ Winner: Old Grand-dad 114 (#35)
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

This one came down to texture and flavor adhesion. H showed some complexity, but M’s creamier mouthfeel carried the flavors longer and more confidently.

What decided it:

Stronger mouthfeel and better flavor persistence.

🥃 Matchup 27 — Blind

K vs. A

Blind Tasting Notes

K

  • Color: Deep amber

  • Nose: Slightly muted; ethanol, mild vanilla, citrus, warm baking spice

  • Palate: Spicy start; buttery caramel, vanilla, citrus

  • Mouthfeel: Creamy

  • Finish: Caramel and baking spice linger

  • Score: 82.46

A

  • Color: Mid-copper

  • Nose: Peanuts, caramel, ethanol, mild baking spice

  • Palate: Dusty peanuts forward; vanilla, caramel, cinnamon trail

  • Mouthfeel: Decent

  • Finish: Caramel and cinnamon close

  • Score: 79.53

Reveal & Result

  • K: Seelbach’s Beekeeper (#14)

  • A: Wild Turkey Rare Breed (#51)

✅ Winner: Seelbach’s Beekeeper (#14)
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

K wasn’t explosive, but it was balanced and cohesive. A brought familiar peanut-forward notes but didn’t quite match the structure or integration of K.

What decided it:

Better balance and cleaner finish execution.

🥃 Matchup 28 — Blind

EE vs. T

Blind Tasting Notes

EE

  • Color: Rich copper

  • Nose: Milk chocolate, caramel, light oak

  • Palate: Spice first; chocolate caramels and light oak follow

  • Mouthfeel: Silky

  • Finish: Oak and chocolate dominate

  • Score: 80.40

T

  • Color: Mid-copper

  • Nose: Ethanol with buttery toffee, caramel, nutmeg

  • Palate: Heat and spice early; caramel, vanilla emerge

  • Mouthfeel: Silky

  • Finish: Longer than expected; spice, caramel, vanilla

  • Score: 79.75

Reveal & Result

  • EE: 13th Colony Bourbon Barrel Strength (#19)

  • T: Maker’s Mark Heart Release ’24 (#46)

✅ Winner: 13th Colony Bourbon Barrel Strength (#19)
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

This was tighter than the scores suggest. EE delivered clearer chocolate definition and slightly better structure through the finish. T showed promise, but the early ethanol softened its impact.

What decided it:

Cleaner flavor clarity and slightly stronger finish presence.

🔀 Second-Round Matchups Created

  • Old Forester 1910 117 Series Extra Extra Old (#3)
    vs.
    Old Grand-dad 114 (#35)

  • Seelbach’s Beekeeper (#14)
    vs.
    13th Colony Bourbon Barrel Strength (#19)

Closing Reflections

Old Forester continues to flex serious bracket strength. High proof still matters—but only when structure and texture support it. Peanut-forward classics remain competitive, but dessert-driven complexity continues to separate the field.

One group remains in Round 1. Then the real fights begin. I’ll see you here tomorrow for the last group in the first round.

Copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.

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More Room for What Matters

Posted on March 21, 2026 by Douglas Blaine
Daily writing prompt
What do you wish you could do more every day?
View all responses

I wish I had more unhurried time for the people and things that matter most.

Life has a way of dividing itself into responsibilities. Work, errands, obligations and unexpected interruptions all claim their share, and before long the day feels fully spoken for.

If I could add more of something, it would be simple time: sitting with Daryl without either of us thinking about what comes next, seeing Lizzi more often without every visit feeling squeezed into a calendar, and having more moments with Sully while he’s still young enough that every visit reveals something new.

I’d also want more quiet time for the things that steady me — reading without watching the clock, writing when the words come naturally instead of trying to fit them into whatever time remains, and letting thoughts develop instead of setting them aside because something else demands attention.

Some of the best parts of life happen in slower spaces: a conversation that lasts longer than expected, music in the background, dogs nearby, a book open, a page half-written, nobody in a hurry.

The truth is, most days are filled with what has to be done. I just wish there were more room left for what I never regret doing.

Copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.

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Quick Thought – Saturday, March 21, 2026: The Test None of Us Can Pass

Posted on March 21, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Read

Psalm 130

If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,
    O Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness,
    that you may be feared.
Psalm 130:3-4

Reflect

Wanted: The Perfect Teacher
Teaches amazing lessons every day and gives away candy for correct answers. Gives no homework. Allows cell phones to be used in class. Never yells at students – in fact, never gets mad, even when students act out. Tutors for free in spare time. Gives only A+ grades. Loved by students and parents equally. Works for free.

Can you imagine anyone measuring up to that description? Honestly, I would think that the above ad would have been written by a student, and likely one who was struggling in school. But even if they thought they were getting the perfect teacher, even with those qualities, the teacher they got still wouldn’t be perfect, because there would be no real incentive to learn.

Not even the “perfect teacher” would truly be perfect. No one ever has been, except for Jesus, who never sinned even once. That’s certainly not the case with each of us. We all live with the curse of sin, inherited from our oldest ancestors, Adam and Eve. We’re born as little sinners, and we grow up as sinners. If God kept a written account of our wrongdoings, can you think of anyone who would have a clean record?

But the beautiful thing is that God is willing to forgive us and give us a fresh start. It would be like being in a class where you took a test and got many answers wrong. God, as your teacher, gives you the chance to admit your mistakes and ask forgiveness. Instead of holding every wrong answer against you, He wipes away the failing grade and gives you a clean page to begin again.

That doesn’t mean the wrong answers suddenly become right. It means His mercy is greater than your failure. The God who knows every mistake you’ve made is also the God who wants you to succeed and is willing to forgive what you could never erase on your own.

Every one of us fails when measured against God’s holiness, but He offers free forgiveness so that our record does not have to define us. All it takes is humility and a simple request. When we admit that we’re wrong and ask Him to forgive us, He wipes the slate clean and lets us begin again.

And that forgiveness should never make us casual about sin — it should make us stand in awe of His mercy.

As you go through your week, don’t forget to take God up on His promise to forgive. Keep your slate clean and ask God each day to forgive what only He can erase.

Reflection copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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The Only Tattoo I Ever Needed

Posted on March 20, 2026 by Douglas Blaine
Daily writing prompt
What tattoo do you want and where would you put it?
View all responses

Loaded question, because it assumes I want a tattoo — and honestly, I don’t. At least not in the usual sense. I have one tattoo, and I expect that will always be my only one.

Lizzi, on the other hand, has several, and each one tells a story. Her first was yellow roses with the scripture reference Psalm 98:6, honoring the memory of my mother. She had wanted me to get one for a long time, and for a long time I resisted.

Then one day I realized something. When I moved from the Atlanta area to Jacksonville, even though she always said she understood, there was likely a part of her that still felt like I had moved farther away than just mileage. A part of her may have felt left behind, even if she never said it that way.

So I agreed to a matching tattoo — with one condition: I got to choose it.

I found an outline of Cinderella dancing with the prince, stripped away some of the outer detail, and added the words: I will dance with Cinderella.

That song mattered to both of us. It captured something tender between a father and daughter that words don’t always express very well.

She picked the artist, and the next time I visited, we went to the tattoo shop together. About thirty minutes later, we walked out with matching tattoos.

Mine sits high on my upper arm where almost nobody sees it unless I’m wearing very short sleeves — or no sleeves at all. But that almost makes it better. It isn’t there for public display. It’s there because she knows it’s there, and I know she has the same one.

For someone who never wanted a tattoo, that one turned out to be worth it.

And no — don’t count on a second one.

Copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.

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Quick Thought – Friday, March 20, 2026: The Ark of Hope

Posted on March 20, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Read

Genesis 7

Then the Lord said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you are righteous before me in this generation.”
Genesis 7:1

Reflect

Silly Symphony Noah's ArkToday’s scripture is one of the most debated passages in the entire Bible. Did the flood happen, or didn’t it? Is the story of Noah, the animals and the destruction of the world true or false?

(If it is true, it certainly must have been different than the way we learned about it when we were kids, right?)

Many people point to practical questions — the size of the ark, the number of animals, the supplies required — and on the surface those questions seem overwhelming. And honestly, they’d have a point but for one thing – faith.

Is the story of the Ark hard to swallow? For people who doubt the existence of God, absolutely. But for people like me who trust completely that He’s not only there, but that He is “large and in charge,” no, it’s not hard to believe.

Think about it – if you believe that God created everything, then how hard is the Flood going to be for Him? And if He designed every animal carefully, don’t you think He can figure out how to fit them on a boat? Of course, if you deny the very existence of God, then you’re not going to place any credence in the story of the Flood anyway.

For me, and for people like me, the story of the Flood is the story of hope. For believers, it stands as a powerful reminder that God is there, and that He cares. It shows that even in the worst of times, He has a plan for our future and that He wants a relationship with us. Even when judgment, loss, and uncertainty fill the world, God still preserves hope. And it shows that He gives us special reminders that He’s always there – like the beauty of the rainbow after a storm.

The hardest part of the story of the Flood – and with any other story in the Bible – is, “What are you going to do with this?” It comes down to you and to me. Will we believe the Word that God has given us and allow it to lead us to even deeper faith, or will we choose to doubt, deny and turn away?

Today, pray that the Lord will use His Word to build and strengthen you. And pray that He might use you to help lead others into that same kind of faith.

Reflection copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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March Bourbon Madness: Best-of-the-Shelf Challenge—First Round Matchups 21-24

Posted on March 19, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Opening Pour

We’re officially past the halfway mark of the Round of 64. By now, trends are forming. Richness is winning. Thin mouthfeel is not surviving. And high proof—when balanced—continues to separate contenders from mid-pack bottles. This group delivered a couple of dominant performances and one particularly tight battle.

Let’s get into it.

🥃 Matchup 21 — Blind

DDD vs. XX

Blind Tasting Notes

DDD

  • Color: Solid copper
  • Nose: Buttery toffee, nutmeg, light oak
  • Palate: Toffee and oak flood the mouth; cherries, brown sugar, nutmeg create balance
  • Mouthfeel: Viscous
  • Finish: Cherries and spice dominate
  • Score: 90.16

XX

  • Color: Light copper
  • Nose: Slight sour funk up front; caramel-vanilla sweetness underneath
  • Palate: Dusty peanuts, sweet caramel, nutmeg
  • Mouthfeel: Silky
  • Finish: Caramel and spice linger longer than expected
  • Score: 77.90

Reveal & Result

  • DDD: Jack Daniel’s Distillery Series Toasted Pecan Finished (#7)
  • XX: Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond (#58)

✅ Winner: Jack Daniel’s Distillery Series Toasted Pecan Finished (#7)
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

DDD was layered and expressive from the first sip. The finish, especially, left no doubt. XX improved as it went, but never reached the same depth or richness.

What decided it:

Superior richness and a more commanding finish.

🥃 Matchup 22 — Blind

PP vs. AAA

Blind Tasting Notes

PP

  • Color: Mid-copper
  • Nose: Savory oak, vanilla, cinnamon baked apples
  • Palate: Peaches, rich caramel, nutmeg; rye appeal
  • Mouthfeel: Creamy
  • Finish: Sweet and decadent; caramel leads
  • Score: 84.74

AAA

  • Color: Solid copper
  • Nose: Brown sugar, caramel, oak
  • Palate: Balanced brown sugar, caramel, chocolate, baking spice
  • Mouthfeel: Decent, though slightly underwhelming for the profile
  • Finish: Milk chocolate and baking spice linger nicely
  • Score: 86.91

Reveal & Result

  • PP: New England Barrel Company Single Barrel (#26)
  • AAA: Old Forester 1897 (#39)

✅ Winner: Old Forester 1897 (#39)
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

This one was closer than the margin might suggest. PP was enjoyable and textured, but AAA delivered better balance and more complete flavor integration from nose to finish.

What decided it:

More cohesive sweetness and stronger finish structure.

🥃 Matchup 23 — Blind

II vs. GG

Blind Tasting Notes

II

  • Color: Rich copper
  • Nose: Milk chocolate, caramel, hint of cherry and banana
  • Palate: Savory spice opens; dark chocolate and tart cherry emerge
  • Mouthfeel: Borderline creamy
  • Finish: Long-lasting; cocoa softens back to milk chocolate
  • Score: 85.39

GG

  • Color: Deep amber
  • Nose: Dusty peanuts, caramel, vanilla, light oak
  • Palate: Caramel and oak forward; vanilla and spice trail
  • Mouthfeel: Silky
  • Finish: Caramel and oak dominate
  • Score: 77.58

Reveal & Result

  • II: Old Forester 1920 (#10)
  • GG: Old Emmer Cask Strength (#55)

✅ Winner: Old Forester 1920 (#10)
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

II offered complexity and evolution in the glass. GG was steady and classic, but lacked the dynamic development that separates advancing bottles in this bracket.

What decided it:

Greater complexity and a longer, more expressive finish.

🥃 Matchup 24 — Blind

Z vs. UU

Blind Tasting Notes

Z

  • Color: Rich copper
  • Nose: Creamy caramel, milk chocolate, nutmeg, light oak
  • Palate: Chocolate intensifies; caramel and spice follow
  • Mouthfeel: Luscious
  • Finish: Dessert flavors linger impressively
  • Score: 90.49

UU

  • Color: Deep amber
  • Nose: Cherries, caramel, oak
  • Palate: Cherries, nutmeg, buttery caramel
  • Mouthfeel: Luscious
  • Finish: Warm toffee, cherries, spice carry nicely
  • Score: 86.47

Reveal & Result

  • Z: 1792 Full Proof (#23)
  • UU: Smooth Ambler Old Scout (#42)

✅ Winner: 1792 Full Proof (#23)
➡️ Advances to Round 2

Post-Matchup Thoughts

This was the strongest pairing of the group. Both bottles delivered richness and mouthfeel. Z simply had more intensity and length when it mattered.

What decided it:

Higher intensity and a more commanding dessert-style finish.

🔀 Second-Round Matchups Created

  • Jack Daniel’s Distillery Series Toasted Pecan Finished (#7)
    vs.
    Old Forester 1897 (#39)
  • Old Forester 1920 (#10)
    vs.
    1792 Full Proof (#23)

Closing Reflections

Rich, dessert-forward bourbons continue to dominate this bracket. The Old Forester lineup is stacking wins. Jack Daniel’s special releases are proving dangerous. And 1792 Full Proof looks like a bottle built for tournament play.

Round 2 is about to get serious. I’ll see you on Saturday for matchups 25-28 of the first round.

Note: This challenge recap is taking the place of the regularly scheduled Bourbon Cheapskate column. That will return on Thursday, April 9.

Copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.

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Two Words I’d Be Glad to Wear

Posted on March 19, 2026 by Douglas Blaine
Daily writing prompt
What is one word that describes you?
View all responses

One word that describes me? Maybe two: loyal and reliable.

I actually asked my daughter, Lizzi, this question, because sometimes the people closest to you answer more honestly than you answer for yourself. She immediately said the same word I had already been thinking: loyal.

I was glad she chose that, because loyalty matters deeply to me. In a world where people can drift in and out of each other’s lives so easily, I’ve always believed that if someone matters to you, they should know you’ll still be there.

But if I’m honest, there’s another word that belongs beside it: reliable.

Lizzi said if I tell someone I’m going to do something, they can count on me. If I say I’ll be somewhere, I’ll show up. I might be a little late—time and I have had a long-running disagreement—but I’ll be there.

That actually made me smile, because it felt true in the most human way possible. Reliability doesn’t require perfection; it requires follow-through.

Loyalty and reliability often travel together. One means I don’t easily walk away from people, responsibilities, or commitments. The other means I try to carry what I said I would carry.

I haven’t always gotten everything right, but I do hope that the people who know me best would say this: if Doug cares, he stays—and if he says he’ll come, he comes.

That feels like a good way to be known.

Copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.

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