Tastes

Tasting neat. Nose: Licorice, mint, a little alcohol. Taste: Cane sugar, light body, light licorice, menthol, clove, juniper, green and pink peppercorn and general rye herbs..with some sweet oak, leather, touch of smoke, and tartness in the finish. This will always be in my cabinet. It's priced like a daily and tastes like your birthday. If you like Bulleit Rye, but want a little more of the age and oak, without losing the bright spice, then this is your jam.

Tasted Neat. Aroma of honey, oak, light spice, red apple, and a touch of leather, must, and alcohol. Taste is similar. Starting with honey, butterscotch and barrel. Middle spice is dominated with red hot cinnamon, but not harshly. Oak tannins and saccharine linger through the medium long finish. Overall, pretty smooth after resting and gets better after opening Vs the 12 year, the oak, smoke, and barrel are definitely subdued, yet this still remains a solid bourbon. Not the sleeper value that it once was, but drinkable for newbies and the snobs. A must try for everyone and a solid choice for a daily sipper or for parties, though there are a lot of solid choices in this price range

Unique. Fairly smooth, refined, light bodied and 'pretty', but not floral. Oak, white sugar, vanilla, citrus, pepper, and a touch of smoke and just a little scotch 'twang'. Clean tasting overall and a dry finish where I got a hint of chocolate/carob just when it quit. More interesting and flavorful than the typical 86 proofer. Recommended to drink neat, water or ice would just wash it out. Delicious, but my only complaint is with the value.

Very much a savory bourbon when neat. Alcohol heat, tartness, hot cinnamon, some tree nuttiness, then lots of char and wood and a longish dry finish dominated by tannins and a brief encounter with dark/baking chocolate. Adding a little water took down the tartness, that was dominating, bringing out more complex notes of rye spice, nuttiness, and chocolate. Also, it brings out a little sweetness that makes it a bit more balanced and very similar to its sister, Rowan's Creek..but trading sweetness and cherries for oak and tartness. Collection worthy, especially if you like it on the rocks.

My new favorite rye. Tasting neat: Starts off light brown sugar sweet with bark and red hot cinnamon being prominent and the good rye baking spices and a little char playing supporting roles. Very few of the 'greener' rye flavors. The sugar and heat give way to a medium long finish of wood tannins, sweetness, and spices. Overall: Bright, sweet, smooth (for the proof), with a quick spicy punch that mellows out with complexity

Neat: Sweet, vanilla, ethanol. Seems basic at first, but after a few sips the dessert spices and oak start to come out when your tongue numbs and the finish builds up in your mouth a bit. An ice cube or a few drops of water transforms the beast in to a beauty..Toasty wood, some hidden char..still sweet, but less cloying. then it's rye time...cardamom, allspice, a little rye grass, and the slightest orange and mint in the middle..fading to leave sweet oak in the still longish finish. I'm tasting RB on ice back to back with Basil Hayden neat and it's pretty darn similar. BH fans might want to consider this for a few bucks more, especially if they like it on the rocks This will always have a space in my bar.

Great sleeper bourbon. Tasting neat. Rich, caramel sweet, cherries to the point of medicinal, balanced by some heat, spice and wood. Medium sweet finish. Similar to Woodford Reserve (same distillery), but a bit more towards the dessert side.. Sweeter, less wood/char/smoke, and more kick. Adding a cube of ice cut the heat and brought the medicinal cherry down to a heavy fruit level and allowed some more delicate spices and sugars to show up. Still dessert like, but much more balanced. I would definitely recommend some water/ice. Sippable, but probably not in my top 10 on it's own, but I can't think of many that would make a better mixer, especially for the price. This would make a mean old fashioned or manhattan.

86 proof version. Probably wouldn't win many blind tastings, but definitely punches above its weight class. There's no apologizing for this in your cabinet. Easy drinker..Honeysuckle, apple nose. Slightly sweet, Beam-like nuttiness, cinnamon on the tongue..very slight bubblegum. In the same flavor family as Beam High Rye (Basil Hayden, OGD). I doubt many would notice if you filled an empty Basil bottle with this 3.5 for taste, 5 for value. Somewhat hard to find due to its cult status. Crazy that a 13 dollar bottle is behind glass and limited to 1/person.

Sleeper bourbon. Definitely surpassed my expectations for the money and marketing fail of a name. Slightly sweet at first, then comes some tartness, wood, char, and red hots. Decently long finish. A little hot, but flavorful. Reminds me a bit of a younger, brasher, Rowan's Creek

I love this distillery. All their products are unique and challenge my palette. This is no exception Batch 1, 42.5% ABV: Nose is light caramel/honey, mild hay, and cocoa. Taste starts with the cocoa powder, hazelnut, honey, then getting more tannic on the back of the tongue with tea, wood, tobacco, cocoa, and light sweetness. Medium dry finish. Delicately complex and earns a spot on the shelf for the unique combination of flavors. Definitely worth picking up if you're looking for something different