Tastes

Smooth yet spicy with Christmas spices. Morish. A must have for Rye lovers. 92-94

Has some of that buttery oak found in the Barrel Select but much sharper - has a brightness to it that is not present on the barrel proof - not flabby but challenging to the palate and the spice lingers a long time on the finish. This one I would buy. 87-90

Oh my god. Seriously? This is amazing for a $12 bottle. It's amazing period even if it were more (don't tell Heaven Hill)

It's buttery as heck. There's lots of fruit flavor underneath but I get a lot of the wood. Good. Would drink if offered but not likely to buy a bottle. 83-87

Touch of sweet, touch of spice, all blending and balancing in a dance. Delicious, would buy, and recommended. 89-93

Nose is very vinyl and phenolic. Palate enters sweet but starts to close off to a slightly flattened spice note, but not that complex. Wouldn't buy a bottle. 78-82

Glenmorangie is one of my favorite distilleries. Smooth sweet Malt. Great stuff. When I heard the new private edition was entirely aged in American Rye whiskey barrels I had to have a bottle. Nose is characteristic of Glenmorangie with a hint of a woody spice. Palate enters smooth and sweet like the 10, but on the finish the rye starts coming through. It's scotch, don't mistake me. But it definitely has a woody spicy finish that lingers. Excellent stuff, a must buy for any Glenmorangie fan. 90-92

I am not normally a fan of Woodford. I generally don't like it because the base bottling is one dimensional and sweet. And their masters collections that I have tried ranged from worse-than-cancer to I-guess-I-won't-spit-it-out. Having tried and reviewed (despite nobody asking, natch) the Double Oaked, I decided to use my wife's agreement to let me "use my judgment" to buy more bottles despite being banned until I actually finish a few (btw: my judgment was two bottles, Spios being the other) on this, a store pick from a store in NJ that has an incredibly good track record for store picks (and has no joke over ten different ones in stock). It's excellent. Sweet but nuanced and complex from the wood. The barrel pick is a bit more "rough" (barely though) and this is a good thing. Honestly this is outstanding, up there with anything Brown Forman makes. I'd suggest finding a store pick and giving it a go. And for $49, a great value too. Finish is nice and long. 90-92.

(batch 11) - when deciding what to have this evening I stumbled upon this unopened bottle on my Rye shelf and decided this was the right time. I am a huge fan of the port finished AMND (High West, not had Glenmorangie's yet) and also love the base Rendezvous Rye. As I love the Double Rye I was excited to try this, the DR finished in Vermouth and Syrah. Nose is spice with dark fruit; woody notes. Palate enters raisins, dark fruit; the influence of the Vermouth and Syrah is notable. The finish goes on long enough and has an almost a dessert raisin and fig character. Another winner, highly recommended 92-94.