For me evaluating a bourbon / rye really brakes down into 3 parts:
Colour
Nose
Taste
I would say that they roughly account for 1/3 each of my overall evaluation. Sometimes I’ll pass by my liquor cabinet take out a bottle of Stagg or Pappy and just enjoy the deep colour – I don’t even need a sip – and the bottles last longer that way as well.
Am I a one off?
Thomas