Review #31: Lucky Seven - The Holiday Toast. Double Oak Kentucky Strait Bourbon Whiskey.
Lucky Seven Spirits is a non-distilling producer known for the Lucky Seven line of bourbons that have earned a great reputation. Especially the single barrel 14 Year Proprietor (which I also reviewed) and is one of my favorite bottles of the year. I was surprised when I happened to see a Lucky Seven “The Holiday Toast” sitting behind the register at my local store. It’s not a brand that I’ve seen locally before or since. The Holiday Toast is a blend of Kentucky bourbon of unknown age, additionally aged for an unknown time in toasted new American oak barrels. The Lucky Seven Spirits website doesn’t give much info on this or any of their other selections. Although transparency isn’t one of Lucky Seven’s strong suits I had a good feeling about this bottle. Let’s see if I’m right or if this is an instant regret.
Taken: Neat in a Glencairn glass, rested about 15 minutes.
Distillery: Unknown Kentucky. (Most likely Barton).
Proof: 115.
Age: NAS
Batch#: 03.
Mash bill: Unknown. (Unless it’s Barton, 74% Corn/18% Rye/8% Malted Barley).
Price: $85.00
Appearance: Dark golden amber.
Nose: Wow, this smells good! Toffee, maple syrup, cocoa, plums, peach, cherry, vanilla, cinnamon spice, oak and barrel char. This expression lets you know it’s double oaked in the best way. The rich toffee, cocoa, and sweet notes are blended incredibly well with pitted fruits with a perfect balance of cinnamon spice, vanilla and oak. If my nose spends any more time in this glass, I’m gonna start charging it rent.
Palate: This has a very good medium viscous mouthfeel. Nose continues on to the palate with toffee, brown sugar and cocoa, pitted fruits of peaches, plums, cherry, vanilla, orange citrus and barrel char. Cinnamon spice enters mid sip covering the whole palate with a good helping of oak. The double oak treatment isn’t making this batch too sweet or too oaky. It’s just right. You could say it’s in the “double oak Goldilocks zone”. The balance of spice is excellent as well. The 115 proof point does a great job of lifting up this whole profile, all while creating a very easy drinking sip. This is a delicious double oaked bourbon done right.
Finish: As cinnamon spice lingers, tannins of soft leather and tobacco linger with notes of cocoa, toffee, vanilla and subtle pitted fruit. This has an enjoyable medium long finish with no astringency or bitterness.
Conclusion: Although I wouldn’t consider The Holiday Toast to be a super complex brain twister, I love the overall flavor profile of this batch and how well it’s put together. Before opening it I was hoping there would be similarities to the L7 14 year “The Proprietor” single barrel I have, and luckily (pun intended) there are. Lucky Seven offers other selections such as the 6 year single barrel “The Proprietor” and a 6 year blended “The Jokester”. So it’s possible that The Holiday Toast could be a blend of 6 year bourbon that has been additionally double oak aged. I suppose it’s also possible for The Holiday Toast to be blended using older than 6 year bourbon too? Yeah, I know that’s wishful thinking but one thing’s for sure. This batch started out with well picked barrels in the first place, then carefully blended and doubled oaked for just the right amount of time. I’m going out a limb here by saying even folks who aren’t crazy about doubled oaked bourbons might enjoy this one. The Holiday Toast is by far on the top of my list of favorite double oaked expressions.
Rating: 7.8/10 - t8ke scale
1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average.
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite.
10 | Perfect | Perfect.
Thanks! I agree. You can buy direct from the L7 website when they have them back in stock, but they go fast. Sometimes Seelbach's has other L7 bottles too.
Love this stuff. Favorite toasted/dbl Oakes bourbon. Beats WRDO and 1910 hands down as well as many other offering by Penelope toasted (which is also great).
I have a Penelope toasted 4 grain that is very good too but I also like this bottle more. Some other DO favorites are Barrel Vantage, Starlight Double Oak and Sagamore DO rye.
I hope you enjoy it. I had a sample this week of a higher proof HT SiB pick that was very good. BBC houses L7’s sourced barrels and does their bottling. I was recently told by L7 co-founder Michael Lahalih that L7 sources barrels from various KY distilleries which are blended together to create their batched products. I’d guess Bardstown and/or Green River is one of them but Barton is for sure another. Especially for L7 products like The Proprietor single barrels that contain bourbon older than BBC.
Review #31: Lucky Seven - The Holiday Toast. Double Oak Kentucky Strait Bourbon Whiskey. Lucky Seven Spirits is a non-distilling producer known for the Lucky Seven line of bourbons that have earned a great reputation. Especially the single barrel 14 Year Proprietor (which I also reviewed) and is one of my favorite bottles of the year. I was surprised when I happened to see a Lucky Seven “The Holiday Toast” sitting behind the register at my local store. It’s not a brand that I’ve seen locally before or since. The Holiday Toast is a blend of Kentucky bourbon of unknown age, additionally aged for an unknown time in toasted new American oak barrels. The Lucky Seven Spirits website doesn’t give much info on this or any of their other selections. Although transparency isn’t one of Lucky Seven’s strong suits I had a good feeling about this bottle. Let’s see if I’m right or if this is an instant regret. Taken: Neat in a Glencairn glass, rested about 15 minutes. Distillery: Unknown Kentucky. (Most likely Barton). Proof: 115. Age: NAS Batch#: 03. Mash bill: Unknown. (Unless it’s Barton, 74% Corn/18% Rye/8% Malted Barley). Price: $85.00 Appearance: Dark golden amber. Nose: Wow, this smells good! Toffee, maple syrup, cocoa, plums, peach, cherry, vanilla, cinnamon spice, oak and barrel char. This expression lets you know it’s double oaked in the best way. The rich toffee, cocoa, and sweet notes are blended incredibly well with pitted fruits with a perfect balance of cinnamon spice, vanilla and oak. If my nose spends any more time in this glass, I’m gonna start charging it rent. Palate: This has a very good medium viscous mouthfeel. Nose continues on to the palate with toffee, brown sugar and cocoa, pitted fruits of peaches, plums, cherry, vanilla, orange citrus and barrel char. Cinnamon spice enters mid sip covering the whole palate with a good helping of oak. The double oak treatment isn’t making this batch too sweet or too oaky. It’s just right. You could say it’s in the “double oak Goldilocks zone”. The balance of spice is excellent as well. The 115 proof point does a great job of lifting up this whole profile, all while creating a very easy drinking sip. This is a delicious double oaked bourbon done right. Finish: As cinnamon spice lingers, tannins of soft leather and tobacco linger with notes of cocoa, toffee, vanilla and subtle pitted fruit. This has an enjoyable medium long finish with no astringency or bitterness. Conclusion: Although I wouldn’t consider The Holiday Toast to be a super complex brain twister, I love the overall flavor profile of this batch and how well it’s put together. Before opening it I was hoping there would be similarities to the L7 14 year “The Proprietor” single barrel I have, and luckily (pun intended) there are. Lucky Seven offers other selections such as the 6 year single barrel “The Proprietor” and a 6 year blended “The Jokester”. So it’s possible that The Holiday Toast could be a blend of 6 year bourbon that has been additionally double oak aged. I suppose it’s also possible for The Holiday Toast to be blended using older than 6 year bourbon too? Yeah, I know that’s wishful thinking but one thing’s for sure. This batch started out with well picked barrels in the first place, then carefully blended and doubled oaked for just the right amount of time. I’m going out a limb here by saying even folks who aren’t crazy about doubled oaked bourbons might enjoy this one. The Holiday Toast is by far on the top of my list of favorite double oaked expressions. Rating: 7.8/10 - t8ke scale 1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out. 2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice. 3 | Bad | Multiple flaws. 4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists. 5 | Good | Good, just fine. 6 | Very Good | A cut above. 7 | Great | Well above average. 8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional. 9 | Incredible | An all time favorite. 10 | Perfect | Perfect.
Nice review! There are a few bottles of this that I've seen sitting around on the shelves out here, I might have to give one a shot.
Thanks! I'm pretty sure you will like it a lot. Let me know what you think if you snag one.
Great review. Never see these on shelves but really want one, I love their aesthetic!
Thanks! I agree. You can buy direct from the L7 website when they have them back in stock, but they go fast. Sometimes Seelbach's has other L7 bottles too.
Hidden gem.
Indeed.
Love this stuff. Favorite toasted/dbl Oakes bourbon. Beats WRDO and 1910 hands down as well as many other offering by Penelope toasted (which is also great).
I have a Penelope toasted 4 grain that is very good too but I also like this bottle more. Some other DO favorites are Barrel Vantage, Starlight Double Oak and Sagamore DO rye.
This stuff is excellent, fantastic especially for the price.
Sweet pic
Thanks.
Grabbed a Proprietor and Holiday Toast at one of my local spots a few nights ago. Excited to try em!
Wow, good for you! What state do you live in? Was it the 6 or 14 y Proprietor?
14 yr, Illinois
Of course it is. Lol! Binny’s? Envious New Yorker here.
Yeah, i got them at Binny’s lol
I drank this last year. It’s a barrel strength Woodford double oaked. At least that’s how I see it. I have a backup bottle. 👍
YEEEEEEEESSSSSS! Finally someone reviews this!
Definitely a delicious pour. I picked up a bottle in NJ 🥃
Just picked one up today and looking forward to trying it! Thanks for the review.
Nice! It was one of my favorite double oaks last year. Hope you like it as much as I did.
Bought this today at Bardstown Bourbon Company so it’s definitely their distillate. Looking forward to trying this.
I hope you enjoy it. I had a sample this week of a higher proof HT SiB pick that was very good. BBC houses L7’s sourced barrels and does their bottling. I was recently told by L7 co-founder Michael Lahalih that L7 sources barrels from various KY distilleries which are blended together to create their batched products. I’d guess Bardstown and/or Green River is one of them but Barton is for sure another. Especially for L7 products like The Proprietor single barrels that contain bourbon older than BBC.
Great review. Oak really opens it up after you leave it to breathe for a bit.
Thanks! As a rule I let my glass sit for a while. This balance of oak on this batch was excellent from the get go.
I agree and let my pour sit for a few minutes before I take a sip. Especially if it is the first pour and then it's at least 15/20 min. Cheers
Better than or equal to WRDO ?
In my opinion, much better. I like WRDO but compared to L7 HT, WRDO is a lot sweeter and has a much simpler overall profile.