Tastes

This is a standard for a reason. Neat, on the rocks, or in any cocktail, the flavor holds true. This is my go to for any rye based cocktail, and I occasionally enjoy it neat in a tasting with other rye whiskey. This has stood the test of time, can be found in nearly any store, and routinely makes everyone's top 10 for Rye. Do yourself a favor and buy it.

Fun to add to a blind tasting of entry level Irish, it's certainly not going to blow you away. Traditional notes, a bit boring. Best to keep for mixing than neat, although it certainly won't cause you to spit it out if you pull right from the bottle.

For a low-end mixer, it's quite good. It's not offensive to drink neat, and you might even find some notes you enjoy. However, best to use it for cocktail mixing. Hard to argue with $20 though, holds up well against standard Tullmore Dew, Jameson, or Powers. I prefer it to Red Bush.

Your milage will vary batch to batch, but when people rave about Smokewagon, this is the bottle they are talking about. If you like high rye mashbills, this is a must try. There's some seriously complex flavors in this. $70 is hard to swallow when you have the likes of Wild Turkey Rare Breed, but it's still a great bottle without any easy replacements at a cheaper price.

Traditional high rye bourbon notes. Nothing too special for this MGP sourced whiskey. But worth buying to compare to the Smokewagon Uncut Unfiltered (highly reccomended). And the bottle has a nice design.

Given the story and marketing for this limited edition rye, it's surprising you can still find it on the shelf. It's good, really good. Like eating a toasted rye raisen loaf slathered in butter that also had some wine spilled on it. I'll be stocking up on this unique flavor profile.

If you like rye, this should be in your collection. It's got traditional rye spice notes, but also sets itself apart with cherry and oak. I'm sure it will make a mean cocktail base, and on the rocks it has a great profile.

Hard to find, but worth the price if you can. Campbelltown whisky is a dying region, but this bottle gives a great representation of what the style can offer that sets itself a bit apart from other single malts. If you want to explore Scottish distilling regions, this is a must. If you're comfortable with Islays, Highlands and Speysides, (maybe a Lowland or the occasional Island) and don't want to branch out, save the cash.

Do you like BBQ and all the flavors that come from it? This is your whisky. It's not my favorite Ardbeg, but it's excellent in its own right and really pulls the BBQ out of the peat. If you want more complexity, Ardbeg Uigeadail is where you want to go next in the lineup. Priced similar to Lagavulin 8, Bowman 12, and Laphroaig 10, it's a great addition for any Islay lover.

A dram of this is a perfect representation of Irish whiskey. It's smooth, subtle, sweet, and comes at a very approachable $40ish. It's a great step up from the low end Bushmills, and sits as a great entry into their age statement core. If you like Irish, this should always have a place in your bar. It's cheap enough to mix in a good cocktail, but holds up very well neat, a middle ground difficult for many whiskeys to find. There's certainly better out there, but not many at the price.