10th Mountain Rye Whiskey

Batch 80, bottled 6//2024, 86 proof, distiller was Jeremy. Tasting neat. Color is golden wet straw with weak coating legs in the glass. Nose is fruity bubblegum and vanilla, with just a hint of dried sweetgrass in the far back. Not much there. On the palate, sweet and thin, vanilla oak, and some grassy rye that grows with an ethanol bloom over time. Thin mouthfeel, no oak backbone to lean on. The finish starts with that rye and ethanol and turns more spicy, but honesly not as much as I would expect from a mashbill that is 65% rye. Mint tingle and sweet sour finish is pretty (very!) short, watery, and thin. Thin seems to be the descriptor of choice on this one. Quite limited range of flavors from nose to finish. I can see someone who doesn't like rye liking this more for its tame character. Not for me. BIG swing and a miss by the Distiller Expert on her/his evaluation. I think I read about the cask strength version and had it in mind when I bought this. I'm certain that higher ABV would help, but.... this 86 proof isn't the bottle you're looking for.

The reviews lefting thinking this was smoother than I experienced. Acceptable. Stong. Less than smooth. Low end experience.

At 86 proof, I found this to be nice easy drinking, but lacking the Rye spice punch I like in a rye. I get a nice sweetness with vanilla and a slight banana note on the finish

Stopped at the 10th Mountain tasting room at Vail Village after a day of skiing in March 2024. Liked the rye and bought a bottle in Frisco. Great stuff; initial impression confirmed and never regretted buying bottle. Not cheap though. Think it was maybe $60? (Summit County markup?)

One of the best ryes. More floral and savory than sweet. Extremely smooth.

Fajnie, przyprawowo pachnie, ale koszmarnie alkoholowy kak na 43%