Tastes

Nose is unique with cereal grains, lemon pepper, musty cellar, sugar cookie, pumpernickel bread, and grassy rye in the vein of a field of fresh rye stalks. Ethanol next to nil. On the palate, much sweeter than the nose would indicate (thankfully) and there is a LOT going on here but the flavors are so rounded and well integrated that picking out individual notes is a bit of a challenge, but I’ll try; key lime, pancake batter, caramel, nutmeg, vanilla, cola nut, green apple, and a hint of ginger. If that sounds like a bizarre mix, it is. It’s also delicious. Finish is quite long for the proof and is a continuation of the palate with a slow morph into cinnamon, grains of paradise, cookie dough, and pear. Mild chocolate note after everything else fades. Mouthfeel is thick and chewy which is a real compliment. Jesus H, this is outstanding. A perfect blend of sweet, spicy, and herbal notes. I spent $94 on this and regret nothing. New Riff as a distillery is a total sleeper as their standard releases are substantially above average, and their limited releases are truly exceptional. Will seek a replacement when this one is gone.

Apparently MGP started their malted rye in 2013, so there is a possibility that this could be around (or at least contain) 9 yr old whiskey which along with the unusual mashbill, makes me intrigued. Let’s see how it checks in: Aroma has a lot of familiar rye notes of lemon pepper, spearmint, rye spice, and caraway seed, but there’s a few more interesting notes as well starting with a leafy herb (Oregano? Thyme? Sage?), croissant, butter, and a candy note which at first I couldn’t place but then presented itself as red Twizzlers. Ethanol is low for the proof, which is nice. Palate is…kinda wild. Ok, stay with me here; take traditional rye flavors of mint, lemongrass, pepper, and grain, and dunk them in chocolate. More of a clash between the herbal and sweet than say a barely legal 51% rye, but with more intensity of both flavors. Weird but good. Rushes quickly toward the finish without much mid-palate action. Finish takes a more traditional rye path with a lot of white pepper spice, mint, and tannic oak. There is indeed a malt note which lingers underneath and manifests in a way which is less malted milk ball, and more malt liquor/beer. Mouthfeel is grainy, dry, and abrasive, which makes me rethink the notion that this might be comprised of older whiskey. Repeated sips of my tasting pour had me thinking I had sanded my tongue. Normally I don’t write this much about mouthfeel, but this was a serious flaw for me and a real detraction and I can’t help but think that some more softness and body would have worked wonders. Overall a somewhat likable oddity, but that isn’t enough to truly impress. Went from a great nose, to a decent palate, to a lousy finish. At 79.99, there is just better whiskey (and better rye whiskey specifically) readily available. Not a rebuy.

Nose is very Brown-Forman with loads of cherry, brown sugar, vanilla, caramel, and a light hint of generic citrus (at gunpoint I’d say orange) Slight musty rickhouse note which I found intriguing. A hint of ethanol but forgivable at this proof point. Palate offers burnt sugars, ripe red cherry, leather, toffee, oak, tobacco, maple, and banana. Flavors are decadent and punchy. Finish is a slow morph into wood varnish, cinnamon, allspice, barrel char, and pink peppercorn. A tad short as I wanted it to go on because of how good it is. Cherry note persists through the finish which is in no way a bad thing as having it in the aroma, palate, and finish adds cohesiveness to the overall experience. Mouthfeel is very viscous and oily, coating every inch of the tongue. A high point. This is great; delivering all the things I like about some of the best Brown-Forman expressions with no discernible flaws. I paid..uhhh…$149 for this when I found it in the wild due to FOMO because this is a hard find in my area, and I might have a slight twinge of regret. But $30 cheaper (which I believe is MSRP) and that regret would be gone. Hard to call it a “value” but plenty of bang for your buck. Will buy future releases at retail.

On the nose, we’ve got some different stuff going on here; starts with standard rye notes of lemongrass, rye spice, and mint leaf, but as you dig deeper you find caramel, juniper berry, raspberry, and blueberry. A fruity rye? I’m about it. Ethanol is non-existent. Palate is just phenomenal, delivering what was promised in the nose with raspberry jam, boysenberry, vanilla bean, custard, pie crust, and nutmeg. Flavors are warm, rich, and bold. Finish is long and robust reminding you this is a rye in the form of white pepper, cinnamon, and mint. Mouthfeel is luscious and creamy. A unique, non-traditional, and delicious rye offering. The blend of dessert fruit, and herbal notes is executed with perfection, providing a very cohesive experience. While I have always thought the New Riff standard releases were solid, this takes things to a higher level. I paid $76 and regret nothing. Rebuy at that price all day, every day.

Nose offers creme brûlée, brown sugar, molasses, caramel, vanilla, blackberry, ripe plum, Concord grape, date, and cinnamon. Aroma is rich, and ethanol is next to non-existent. A promising start. Palate matches the nose almost precisely so as not to be redundant, see the notes above. A little butterscotch that I didn’t get in the nose. Flavors are vibrant and punchy. Finish turns sharply spicy with pink peppercorn and some slightly astringent oak, but then morphs again into caramel flan, wood varnish, cocoa powder, candy corn, and toffee. Insanely long. Mouthfeel is medium bodied and not much else to say about it other than a thicker mouthfeel would have worked wonders here. All in all, an enjoyable sweet, dark whiskey and vastly better than the BRT-01, but not as much of a hit as say FAE-01. At $76.99, I feel it’s value is fair and thus would consider it a rebuy.

Nose is pretty wild and disjointed; cotton candy, berry, bubblegum, apricot, and spoiled honey. Ethanol is mild, but noticeable. Palate also features some bizarre notes of coriander, cardamom, old leather, and apricot rind. Everything here is either herbal or bitter and the net result is a very unbalanced dram. Finish is long and features peppermint, bitter astringent wood, and white pepper. No relief here as this carries the assault from the palate forward. Mouthfeel brings tongue peeling harshness. There is no other way to say it; this is awful. Paid $68 for this and that price is probably the only thing that prevents this from being a drain pour. No scratch that, I’m drain pouring it.

Nose opens with Concord grape, black cherry, caramel, vanilla, butterscotch, blackberry, leather, tobacco, varnish, sweet corn, coconut, and old oak furniture. A hint of ethanol at first but it dissipates quickly leaving only goodness behind; one minute it’s fruit forward, the next it’s more candy. A complex and inviting nose for sure. Hmmm. Palate offers only a portion of the glory promised in the aroma. Grape and blackberry kick us off, followed by toffee, toasted marshmallow, coconut, barrel char, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Flavors are very punchy. Finish comes in like a freight train, wiping out the palate completely and bringing hot ethanol, bitter oak, spicy pink peppercorn, and turpentine. It’s long, but you kind of wish it were shorter as the ethanol burn is the longest note present. Mouthfeel is light bodied and a little grainy; could benefit from more heft and smoothness. This started off amazing (nose), turned into decent (palate), and ended sub-standard (finish). A low point in the Wood Finished series for me so far as most have been good to excellent. This one is only fair and just has a few too many flaws. I wanted to like it more than I did. Not a rebuy at retail of $70.

Nose is nicely pungent with dark chocolate, pot still funk, barley grain, varnish, molasses, dried plum, and dare I say it…coffee? (Yes I know a Coffey still and coffee are two very different things, yet I swear it’s there) Ethanol presence is minimal. Inviting. Palate matches the nose very well, so contains pretty much all the notes above along with malted milk ball, caramel chew candy, and butterscotch. Dessert city. Finish falls a little short because it basically just an extension of the palate. Some wood notes, vanilla, and marzipan but I found myself wishing for some spice to offset the sweetness that never came. Mouthfeel is very creamy and while initially a plus, became a bit cloying after repeated sips. The “darkest” Irish Whiskey I have ever had and it is full of sweet, rich flavors. At $99, I’m not sure how I feel about it. Don’t get me wrong; this is a fine, fine whiskey, but maybe just not what I am looking for in an Irish? Which means it’s probably me but since it’s my review, this scores a 3.75 and falls short of rebuy status. Your mileage may vary.

Aroma is rather mild, but filled with lots of sweet wood. Pine tar balanced with caramel flan; pencil shavings mixed with vanilla pudding. A little Bing cherry if you dig for it, but not much else going on. I honestly didn’t think it was possible for any whiskey to have this little ethanol, but yet here we are. But I must be honest and not let the price or rarity cloud matters; the nose is decent but not spectacular. Palate is soft and delicate as can be with caramel, vanilla, orange, pipe tobacco, and a hint of cinnamon with the subtlest, sweetest, mildest oak riding underneath the whole time. This is a bit hard to describe why this is delicious but I’ll try; it’s not that any one thing wows you or that this presents anything remotely resembling unique, it’s how well things are integrated and how the flavors are balanced that provide the wow factor. Finish morphs into black pepper, barrel char, leather, and a fantastic plum/black cherry note that comes out of nowhere, along with the flavors from the palate continuing to last throughout. Amazingly long for 90 proof. Mouthfeel is light, airy, and very dry, but fits nonetheless. Needless to say I enjoyed this very much. Low proof? Yeah. Do I wish it was higher? Sure. Does the low proof make it a bad whiskey? Not even close. I paid $199 for this in the wild which I know is a little high, but I wasn’t going to pass it up and I have no regrets. As a value, it offers a high quality for a high price therefore very hard to rate because as good as it is, now that I’ve had it I’m not certain about rebuying it at the same price. So I will leave you with this: if you have never had it and you find a bottle and have the means, I’d recommend grabbing it for the experience. A staple in my cabinet? Probably falls short of that. 4.5 rating.

Nose is interesting and punchy with toasted rye crackers, caraway seed, gingerbread, bakers chocolate, fennel, white grape, and cinnamon. There is a musty root vegetable note in there as well. Ethanol sneaks in repeatedly which slightly hampers the experience. Palate is quite bready (so much so it’s almost flour-like), with Lemonheads candy, spearmint, paste(?), raw potato, and a slight floral note (jasmine?) The cohesiveness promised in the nose becomes an odd tasting, unbalanced mess. Medium length finish offers grape must, cocoa powder, pepper, and dirt. There is a wood note that comes in with some serious astringency, presenting itself like tree bark. Finishes dry and clean and the mouthfeel is effervescent, but also excessively grainy to the point that the overall effect is that of drinking heavy grain sandpaper. Just awful stuff here. I’ve never had a “Polish rye” before, but if this is indicative of the style, they can keep it. Just an odd flavor profile and the more I sipped it, the more the undesirable notes built up and the more the scratchy mouthfeel seemed to scrape away my taste buds. I paid $80 for this and honestly it’s close to a drain pour. One of my lowest ratings ever.