Dad's Hat Pennsylvania Rye Whiskey Finished in Port Wine Barrels

Tart/herbal notes, strong burn

N: Earthy and herbal rye grain, dill, mint, white tea, roasted turkey(?). Notable red wine notes (obviously from the finishing) that add red fruit and apple. Maybe a dash of charcoal cooked coconut, and ethanol - decent blast to the nose. It is undeniably a young rye nose. P: Caramel, dried herbs, rye bread, sweet red fruit, good round butterscotch notes when you hold it on the tongue a bit, mint, white tea, fresh cracked rainbow pepper. Gets very herbal if you draw air across it - like you went to your spice rack and dumped all the dried herbs right on your tongue. Okay, not that bad, but pretty intense. F: More dried herbs, dill, red wine, boozy cooked caramel, dash of oak, dash of black pepper. As young rye goes, this is surprisingly drinkable, Have to think that port finish softens some serious edges in the unfinished rye. It's a solid dram and I've enjoyed it even though I tend to prefer the more Christmas-y flavored ryes (love me some bonded Old Overholt). This is more of the green rye grain type of rye - not as green as some I've tried, somewhere in the middle really. But I think it gets to the middle because of the port finish, not because of the underlying juice. Anyway, this is young, it drinks pretty young, and I'm hard pressed to recommend it to all but the most rye-loving drinkers out there. I also can't figure what justifies the price - maybe I over-payed, but this feels like a $20-25 bottle, not $40. ____________ Please come join an unofficial Distiller community on Discord: https://discord.gg/VSmCvzAQfH. We chat spirits (and other things) in real time while being a great resource to each other for recommendations, finding deals, and generally enjoying the journey together. (If the link is expired, please post a comment and I will provide a new one.)

Smooth with great flavor

For the price, this isn’t bad. Just no AECS or Thomas S Moore Port finish. So be prepared for that. It has very subtle hints of the rye and port flavors that shine in the AECS that I love, but very subdued.

Port didn't mesh well with Bourbon.

N: Cedar, milk chocolate with a hint of mint. Like a thin mint on a cedar plank. P: Viscous and sweet. Chocolate continues with a mix of spice. Mid palate the sweetness hits a curb and goes bitter and astringent. F: Bitter and charred oak. Continues with a semi-sweet chocolate with that spearmint hitting again.