Balcones Texas Rye Cask Strength

63.9% ABV. Aroma explodes out of the glass with brown sugar, molasses, hay, oats, barnyard funk, rye crisp, baker’s chocolate, wet dirt, nutmeg, and sage. Bold and complex. Ethanol shockingly low…are we sure this nearly 128 proof? Palate continues the brown sugar/molasses/chocolate from the nose along with orange peel, almond, tobacco, and wood tannins. Warm hug builds over time. There’s a decent amount of unwelcome astringency to the profile. Finish is long and intense with caramel flan, spearmint, cinnamon sugar, black pepper, rye spice, leather, and mesquite wood. Mouthfeel is medium bodied and oily, but also a little on the grainy side. An interesting whiskey with much to like but also quite rough around the edges. Nowhere near what one would expect from a rye and while that’s not a crime, it’s not necessarily a win for me either. At $60 there’s no issue with value; I just wish it was a slightly softer, more cohesive overall experience. Falls short of rebuy at 3.75.

Overwhelming coffee and malt, maybe some bitter chocolate and raisin or prune on the back end. Hot finish. Single barrel select #19966 at 63.4% picked up on sale for $29.99 and glad I didnt spend a penny more. This tastes exactly like a coffee stout was turned into a spirit. It is a very unique rye, you must really love the coffee and chocolate profile to enjoy this bottle, not really my cup of tea. I almost exclusively drink my pours neat, but this one needed a cube to tame it down and make it palateable, and surprisingly so. This would probably make a good cocktail, I will be looking for some chocolate or coffee old fashioned recipes to finish off the rest of this bottle.

Blind tasting Nose: wood, pine, cherry, chocolate, acetone Taste: spice, cinnamon, raisin, strong front and slightly odd back end. Not bad per se but curious. Almost like a mild cantaloupe or strawberry. Hints of dill Wood: Rating: Notes: Distillery? Glendronach,

Aroma: Butterscotch, Caramel, Maple, Chocolate, Coffee, Peanut Flavor: Tobacco, Coffee, Chocolate, Stout, Subtle Dried Fruit