A little background
Sweetens Cove Tennessee Straight Bourbon Whiskey was carefully curated and hand-blended by Master Distiller Marianne Eaves, who took 100 different barrels of Tennessee whiskey and crafted it into five distinct batches for bottling. The story of this spirit begins with a golf course. The Sweetens Cove golf course is a 9-hole track settled in the Sequatchie Valley, close to Chattanooga, Tennessee. The golf course was purchased by a group of friends in 2019 (Tom Nolan, Andy Roddick, Rob Collins, Mark Rivers, Peyton Manning, Skip Bronson, and Drew Holcomb) because they considered the course a rare and magical place. Although Sweetens Cove lacks plumbing or a clubhouse, it is considered one of the best sporting experiences in the world. First-time players celebrate the beauty of this course by taking a shot of whiskey on the first tee. Unique traditions, the beauty of the Sequatchie Valley, and the love of Tennessee inspired these friends to create a bourbon that exemplifies the spirit of Sweetens Cove.
Sweetens Cove is a limited and exclusive release consisting of 14,000 total bottles and will initially only available in Tennessee. The mash bill contains 84% corn, 8% rye, and 8% malt. After 13 years, the spirit was bottled at cask strength (102.18 proof), and MSRP was set approximately $200.
(Tasted neat from a Glencairn Glass)
Color
Amber
Nose
The nose is sweet with hints of caramel and vanilla. As the spirit opens in the glass, notes of butterscotch and barrel char begin to appear.
Palate
The first sip has an oily viscosity and settles in the chest. Notes of caramel and vanilla are prominent. The second sip beings with a nice dark fruit note that is followed by aged oak and medicinal cherry. The third sip has a slight mouth-drying effect that is followed by a Pavlovian response. Seasoned leather, dry tobacco, and toasted oak notes are present.
Finish
The finish is long, pleasant, and well balanced. Oak, vanilla, and cherry notes are most prominent. As the finish begins to fade a nice floral note begins to appear.
In closing
Sweetens Cove looks as good as it tastes. The nose is enticing with notes of caramel, butterscotch, and vanilla. This spirit is well balanced with an oily viscosity. The palate is bombarded with notes of cherry, vanilla, seasoned leather, and dry tobacco. The finish is long and pleasant with a dark fruit note that transitions to a bright floral note as the finish begins to fade. This bottle would make a great addition to any bourbon lover’s collection.
Sweetens Cove Tennessee Bourbon Whiskey
102.18 Proof
The Good
- Nose
- Palate
- Finish
The Bad
- Availability
- Affordability
Clare C Childs
6 Jun 2020It’s to bad that the companies big release was handled so poorly, you had to wait to buy on line on May 26, at 10:00am and you had to live in Tennessee, which I do and which I did and was lucky enough to be one of those 500 people to purchase a bottle of Sweetens Cove, or so I thought!! This Friday I received an email saying that mine and others had had their money refunded a we needed to go to one of the liquor stores on the list provided by Sweetens. Today 6/6/2020 I went to the closest liquor store on the list and was informed that they have not received any at all. I have sent several emails to the company and received replies but no guarantees that I will be given a priority over customers who just walk in of the street and ask for it.
Personally I find this a very poor way to launch such an expensive product after all the attention they have sought out.
Matthew Evans
8 Jun 2020Hi Clare. Thanks for taking the time to leave a message on the Sweetens Cove review. This is certainly very disappointing to hear and I’m sure you’re quite upset, as I would be too. Would you mind shooting us an email to whiskeyconsensus@gmail.com and let us know the specifics of the situation. We’ll see if we can get this into the hands of the right people. Cheers!
TJ
11 Jun 2020It’s on the shelf here in Georgia seen it today for 208.00
Chris
11 Jun 2020Very disappointed in the presale. I was able to process payment before sellout. Was getting the bottle for the first cheers to my newborn son coming in a few months. Now I can’t find a bottle anywhere and the company has been less than helpful with making this right.
Ryan
18 Jun 2020The pre-sale was disastrous. Received an email about the local distributor would be in contact with me about getting the delivery set up, then another email saying that my order may be canceled, but I could still go and pick up my bottle from the local distributor. I received a text at 9pm on 6/5 saying that my order was cancelled and I would be refunded. I contacted the local distributor that morning at open and was told that I better get there quick before they sell out of them. I was quite upset that they wouldn’t hold one for me since I had been able to do the presale. So I decided that if they were going to treat me that way, I would keep my money and do business elsewhere. I then recieved a call later that day from a different person at the local distributor and they asked if I had picked up my bottle yet. I said know and told them what happened earlier. She said that they were “technically sold out” but still had two bottles if I wanted to prepay and then pick them up. I told her I already had prepaid and it was cancelled, but I gave her my information anyways and was able to pick up my bottle later. It made me wonder if the initial release was really just 500 bottles since they had 2 extra even though they were technically sold out. Overall, it was really poorly handled. Sweetens Cove did send out an email saying that they would send a token to confirm it was one of the first 500, and that it would go out in 7-10 days, which was on 6/7 so it may be in the mail right now. Hopefully the whiskey can help wash this presale debacle taste out of my mouth. Plan on cracking this open on Father’s Day. From all I’ve heard, it is a really good whiskey.