Barrell Craft Spirits Gray Label Seagrass (2022 Release)

Bottle #2,149. Mine is actually 133.34 proof, so per their website, this is the fall 2022 release. I’ve had my eye on this. Pulled the trigger on the last one at Total Wine. The nose: rich, with vanilla, crème brûlée, apricot, rye, fresh cut grass, pecans, lemon, flowers, mint, cantaloupe, salt air, oak, pear and char. On the palate very floral, some rye spice, apricot, oak, vanilla, caramel, mint and other herbs, cinnamon, charcoal and cherry. Spicy, lingering finish, peppery and fruity and slightly sweet. Distinct apricot. Holy shit this is good; rich, complex, etc. etc. and shockingly drinkable for 133.34 proof. I started this at 4.75, which means it challenged Willett rye for my sole 5.0…because I’ll always have a “best” so far. Well, it’s now my 5.0.

Incredibly complex, sweet floral nose flowers by intense evolving flavor. Each of the three finishes seems to take a turn popping to your senses and it finishes with a spiciness that will last forever it seems

Drank this last night, so will have to revisit with glass in hand & update tasting notes. Nose/ pallet/ finish all enjoyable Nothing that detracts Mouth filling A superior pour that does not break the bank at $200/ bottle

This is a different animal. I am mind blown about the comparisons about this not being worth the markup over original Seagrass. These are entirely different whiskeys. Like SFTB compared to Blanton’s SiB. They’re apricots and oranges. The fruit is evident and it’s the apricot that shines on this particular expression BUT - and I can’t stress this enough - everything is secondary to the barrel age on this, almost unheard of, 16 year old RYE whiskey. It’s almost as enjoyable to smell it as it is to taste it but once you do - the barrel char and age - totally hidden on the nose - burst to the forefront. The char-grilled fruit finish still lingers as you read this. I’m confident this will be in my top 5 most memorable whiskies of 2022. This is extremely complex whiskey. This is a whiskey you say “damn that’s good” each time. At $225 a bottle, buy on sight. This is a steal if you’re ready to truly stretch your palate.

Nose fresh spicey citrus Very nice sweet spicy and tangy apricot very tasty but not worth the mark up over normal seagrass