Colonel E.H. Taylor, Jr. Straight Rye

Rye and baking spice nose, caramel and rye toast on the palate, tobacco and leather on the finish.

Neat. Opened two years (but 75% filled). Also a bottle from 2012. Not sure if 2012 makes it comparable to modern batches. I remember not being impressed with this bottle but my love for ryes has also increased over time. We’ll see if anything has changed. Oh I like the nose. Dill, spearmint, citrus/orange peel, hard caramel candy, black pepper, and a graham cracker pie crust. Some sweet butter cream is hiding behind all that too. Geez that is a lot of flavors off the nose for a rye... Average mouth feel. Thick of the tongue but watery along the edges. Rye and black pepper on the tongue immediately. Transitions into a combination of the orange peel and hard caramel candy. Lots of dill and black pepper on the finish. Also very sweet on the finish but I didn’t attribute that to a specific flavor. On subsequent sips, that vanilla/butter cream is coming through with some cinnamon with. That is a good flavor. Well geez. It took 5 tastes and two years but I finally see why people chance this rye. It’s really good. It has an interesting rye profile with the dill, citrus, mint, etc. but then comes with the Buffalo Trace over the top sweetness. Pretty sure this is an example where I have changed over time more than the whiskey. (This is why you never give up on a bottle.)

Good but doesn’t compare to Angel’s Envy Rye IMO. Smooth with the typical rye finish