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75 South is a lower-shelf, blended whiskey. I picked up a 1.75 Liter bottle of this at a Safeway store in Tucson, Arizona while my wife was shopping for wine for Thanksgiving dinner. I’ll be honest, when I checked out of the store, I still wasn’t sure if I was holding a bottle of bourbon or scotch. The label didn’t exactly go out of its way to explain what this brownish liquor was, either. The bottle simply read, Blended Whiskey. At $10.99 for a 1.75 Liter bottle, I figured it was a bargain whatever it was and I can drink either bourbon or scotch so the 75 South was worth sampling. The label, 75 South, sort of hinted to me that it tastes a little bit more like something from Kentucky than say, Scotland. There is a section of Interstate 75 South that runs through Tennessee,Kentucky,Georgia and Florida. Does that geography have something to do with its name? The whiskey looked a little darker in color which also made me think of the richer, darker taste of bourbon. I tend to gravitate more towards heavier whisky in the colder months of the season, so I wouldn’t mind having a bottle of bourbon on hand.
75 South Tasting Notes
This is a cheap, blended whiskey so don’t expect me to be overly descriptive. The nose of 75 South definitely suggests bourbon flavor. It is caramel-like with a hint of oak wood and sherry. The front of it tastes like bourbon; maybe a little thinner and with just a hint of maple. I expected the 75 South to have an awfully short-lived and harsh finish, but that wasn’t the case. To be sure, it has a thinner palate than Jim Beam or Maker’s Mark, but it not entirely unsmooth. For the price, I wouldn’t hesitate to buy 75 South for mixing or sipping on the rocks. I rarely like cheap whiskeys unless it’s scotch for mixing Rob Roys, 75 South is actually a bourbon like whiskey that I can enjoy by itself.
75 South Final Rating: 79
On a scale of 1-100, I’d give 75 South whiskey a 79. Prior to this short write-up, I read another, less favorable review which had 75-South rated at 67 out of 100. I don’t understand such a harsh rating on a blended whisky that is not harsh at all. For only $2.00 more, I’d rather drink Ezra Brooks, but 75 South is not a bad tasting whiskey at all.
For the past few years, I’ve regularly bought and enjoyed 75 South. It’s good stuff. Sure, I’d prefer to drink Jack Daniels or Wild Turkey, but I can’t always afford those treats. Unfortunately, 75 South seems to be available only at Safeway stores but my local Safeway store has been transferred to new ownership, so I can no longer get 75 South. Is there anywhere else to get 75 South?
Gordon,
The one and only time I saw and purchased 75 South was at a Safeway store on a trip to Tucson. Our laws in Colorado don’t allow sale of liquor in our grocery stores, so I have not seen at any of our stores.
Which malevolent deity placed this bottle of pain on the bottom shelf at Safeway? Doesn’t taste as bad as it feels this morning.
I was pleasantly surprised to find “75 South Kentucky” at my local Vons supermarket (in San Diego, CA) for the Vons-club-member price of about $14 (including all taxes) — that’s after a steep discount of about -$10. It’s very reminscent of Jack Daniels or bourbons, and at that price, much better than the comparable bottom-shelf Canadian whiskeys which I usually get at the same price. (But bourbon is my second choice, and I really wish I could find a good Scotch in this price range).