Tastes

An amber/deep gold color. Aromas of vanilla, honey, heather, ginger, lemon custard, almond cookie, poached pear, baked apple and whispers of more tropical banana and pineapple notes. On the palate, it is buttery and unctuous with building flavors of pear and apple fruits, clove spice, and pepper. It has a pleasant weight and heft, but never burns hot. The finish returns to the barrels with ripe banana, caramel, and more vanilla. This is a poached pear on a lemon and ginger shortbread cookie with a Jack Daniel's caramel drizzle in a glass. As others have pointed out, this is definitely a whiskey that benefits from oxidation and exposure. I remember when I first opened it being deeply disappointed in the simple aromatics of cereal, vanilla, cream, and orange zest indicative of a youngish spirit in used bourbon or Tennessee whiskey barrels. However, it has developed quite a bit of nuance over a number of months. It actually performs quite well if you pour a glass in the morning before work, put a coaster over it, and enjoy it after dinner in the evening. I feel the underlying distillate is very pretty, but it just hasn't evolved much of a personality yet. It seems both comically Scotch and comically American, but also very refined at the same time. Perhaps that is the point, a lampoon of both cultures where the only one in on the joke is the distiller. It would rank fairly low in the Benriach, Glendronach, Glenglassaugh lineups for me personally, especially since there is no discount for lack of age or expensive barrel treatments.

This burnt amber/copper colored whiskey has been a mainstay in my bar for years. Coming in at $30 a handle and 100 proof, it rarely leaves the best buy listing. Fresh corn, maple syrup, birch syrup, brown sugar, white sugar, some bruised apple, light caramel, nougat, baked apple, and buttery peanut brittle aromas. Sugary and tannic on the palate with maple and cinnamon flavors that grow drier and more woody on the finish accompanied by a touch of black pepper, nutmeg, pecan, and bitter wood. Elite in this price range, but pretty uninspiring at twice the price point. Good value where it's priced

I've been using Rittenhouse as my bar rye for several months. One of the aspects that I enjoy about Rittenhouse, is that it differs in mashbill from the MGP rye bottlings that dominate this price range such as Dickel, Bulleit, Smooth Ambler, Templeton, etc. It sports a low rye mashbill of 51% rye, 37% corn, and 12% malted barley. Chestnut color. The corn is immediately apparent on the nose with notes of caramel, brown sugar, white sugar, lilting towards saltwater taffy and confectionary sugar as it sits. There's an abundance of rye spice, particularly cinnamon -- which dominates start to finish. Unique from many ryes in this price point are aromas of dried fruits like raisins and figs, funky rotting apples or custard apples (cherimoya). Fresh mint and menthol also play a much bigger role as one goes down the bottle. There's also plenty of nut -- particularly peanut. However, the nose is more muted than one would hope given the ABV. The palate is sugary and unctuous with an abundance of dried fruits, raisins, cherry cola, and cinnamon. On the finish the cinnamon takes over, but fresh mint, burnt sugar, and menthol play supporting roles. Not the most complex whiskey, but very solid in this price point. I really enjoy its distinct character. Definitely a rye for bourbon drinkers, but priced friendly enough for all drinkers.

Amontillado color. Loads of cereal grain, sweet vanilla cream and grape jelly all infused with a vein of black pepper, peat, and smoke. The smoke verges on smoked meat occasionally, but it never really goes overboard. Very sweet and grapey on the initial palate. Opens to an abundance of honey, biscuits, cookies, grape jam and black pepper on an increasingly dry finish. Slow to open, but enjoyable all the same. Definitely remember more wow factor from the Benriach Smoky 10. Will check back.

A youthful copper color. There's toffee and caramel aromas right up front, but then it dips deep down into some frontier pharmacist's latest elixir. An aggressive and vibrant nose of orange peel, orange bitters, mint, eucalyptus, peppermint, mustard green, and wintergreen cough syrup. On the palate, there's a brief respite from the herbal onslaught with some honey, vanilla, and graham cracker notes before giving way to an almost perfumy citrus oil and cinnamon Red Hots. The finish is dominated by spearmint, fresh mint leaves, and more eucalyptus slowly giving way to more cinnamon and black pepper spice. I'm surprised by the popularity of this whiskey given how herbaceous and minty it is versus equally accessible sweeter ryes. Truly tastes like something you might find in a drug store in the Old West.

Opens with an abundance of rye spice, lots of cinnamon, clove, and licorice. There's the tell-tale vanilla and banana notes I get on just about every JD product -- but I felt they were less chemical or candied than in most JD products. There were also aromas of dark bread, graham cracker, barrel char, dried figs, brown sugar, and pipe tobacco. On the palate the rye spice dominates up front with loads of cinnamon, but it rounds out with plenty of brown sugar, peanut, caramel, and pecan. It's surprisingly creamy and unctuous given their filtration process. The finish brings the cinnamon and clove spice back again before fading to more licorice, anise seed, and black pepper. Overall, it's a very enjoyable rye for bourbon drinkers. There's no funky medicinal, vegetal, or citrus notes that many rye drinkers treasure. It's a very polished product that's all sweet and spice and everything nice.