Welle welle welle, what do we have here? Ah, yes. Welle. r.

Weller is a wheated bourbon, meaning that its mashbill uses wheat instead of rye. Other classic wheaters include Larceny, Makers Mark, and Wheat Thins. Candidly, I’ve never picked up on any categorical difference in taste between wheaters and regular bourbon.

Fun Fact: if you listen closely to the song Wellerman by The Longest Johns, it’s obvious they’re singing about the scarcity of MSRP Weller bourbon. The chorus is listing tasting notes, the “whale” represents inflated secondary market prices, the “ship” represents our wallets, and I don’t think I need to explain what the “tonguing” represents.

In honor of The Longest Johns, what better way to enjoy this bottle than with a meal of pseudo-whale? On the menu we have whole roasted branzino, with a side of broiled sardines, and a type of fish that was literally labeled “bait fish.”

Nose

Nothing crazy going on with the nose. It smells sort of like cough syrup, but very subtly so.

Palate

It’s rich. There’s a definite bite on it, which makes sense given it’s 53.5%. Definitely not a smooth bourbon. Otherwise it tastes pretty classic bourbony.

Finish

Bitter finish, which I’m really not a fan of.

Bottom Line:

For me, it’s a 6/10. The bitter finish really ruins the experience and I don’t otherwise get any particularly unique flavors other than its richness. It’d be a different story if I didn’t mind bitter flavors. Even with that, $50 is a fair price and I can see why it’s a buy for so many people at that price (though not necessarily more).

As for the fish… it wasn’t great. I’ve never gotten the hang of cooking whole fish. The branzino was okay, but I couldn’t get it crispy at all. The sardines were just straight up bad–probably because I didn’t dry them well enough before broiling. The bait fish tasted like mud. 3/10.

***

Note, I bumped this up from my initial rating of 5 to a 6. This review was written before I formalized my rating scale and looking back, I’d say my experience fits closer to my description of a 6 than a 5 – I see its value, it’s just not for me.