Fireball is a fan-favorite spirit for a reason: it’s affordable, it goes down easy, and it's surprisingly versatile. The spicy-sweet cinnamon flavor can go in a cocktail, add an extra punch to Jell-O shots, and even be used for cooking (don’t knock it ’til you’ve tried it).
But even we can admit that the flavored whisky has a reputation for being a little lowbrow. Many whiskey aficionados turn their noses up at its spicy cinnamon aroma, leaving college students as the drink’s primary demographic.
But, thankfully, the Fireball gods have listened. Their newest limited-edition product takes the flavors we know and love and amps them up a notch. Fireball’s Dragon Reserve ages the spirit for three months in charred American oak premium whiskey barrels. There are only 618 bottles of the product, but unlike the other bougie small batch spirits you can find on the market, it’s actually affordable. If you can get your hands on a bottle of Dragon Reserve, it’ll only set you back $19.99.
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Some may think this all sounds too good to be true. Aged in charred oak barrels, and still a bang for your buck? And still Fireball? We can understand why you’re skeptical. So we decided to try it for ourselves and give you all a brutally honest, unfiltered review. And you can take my word for it, because I don’t consider myself a Fireball lover.
You heard me: I actually don’t like Fireball. I’m not a fan of cinnamon-flavored anything, whether it’s whisky or gum. But I am willing to set my cinnamon-phobia aside to be as impartial of a judge as I can. And to balance out the judging panel I enlisted our senior culinary producer Natalie Lobel to share her thoughts too.
We tried the Dragon Reserve alongside the classic Fireball as our control. From a visual standpoint, the spirits were nearly identical. What starts to distinguish the two are their aromas. Regular Fireball smells like a pack of Big Red, while Dragon Reserve is actually reminiscent of whisky. The cinnamon scent was still there—just way more subtle.
But, how does it stack up flavor-wise? Despite the burn of the cinnamon, classic Fireball is still a relatively easy sip. Dragon Reserve, however, completely surprised us. It somehow was even smoother than the original!
The oak barrels must have impacted the spirit’s cinnamon notes. Rather than the full-frontal blast of spice that you’d find in cinnamon candy, the cinnamon flavor in the Dragon Reserve lingers more delicately on your tongue. We’d compare it to enjoying a cozy mulled cider. The cinnamon flavor is slightly more mild, which makes room for all of the other flavors developed during the aging process.
“There’s a nuttiness to it and you can definitely taste the oak,” Lobel says. “It feels fancy.”
And even though I’m a self-proclaimed Fireball hater, I definitely wouldn’t be mad if I were poured a glass of Dragon Reserve. Whether you want a grown-up version of this iconic spirit or are just curious to try it for yourself, you can head over to Reserve Bar to see if it’s available for delivery in your state.
Gabby Romero is Delish’s editorial assistant, where she writes stories about the latest TikTok trends, develops recipes, and answers any and all of your cooking-related questions. She loves eating spicy food, collecting cookbooks, and adding a mountain of Parmesan to any dish she can.
