Knob Creek Cask Strength Straight Rye (Batch 2)

Excellent - really quite exceptional.

This has been sitting in the back of my cabinet for some time (years!) without review. Now. Tasted neat. Big tannic oak bare knuckle brawny, spicy five alarm fire, and an ethanol punch. That's the summation. But it has a caramel butterscotch nose and mouth taste under all that cask strenth rye spice essence. It's sweet (even floral vanilla) under all the char oak. It has a long tingling mouthfeel finish. It's a challange, and I say that as someone who loves spicy ryes. I've been drinking this with ice to temper it (before putting it away for a while), and that (ice or cold water) is my recommendation.

Proofy

Drakes for barrel proof night. Least favorite of the 5. Bandaid taste, not great

Nose - butterscotch, anise, clove, brown sugar, rye bread, vanilla, orange zest, spiced apple, black pepper, leather, musky deodorant, floral notes, polished oak, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - rich caramel, apple, clove, anise, herbal notes, leather, peanut butter, tobacco, tannic oak, floral notes, cherry, chocolate, cinnamon, moderate to high alcohol bite, finishing medium length with clove, butterscotch, and tannic oak flavors. I’ve had a number of Knob Creek bourbons, but never a rye. And this is a big one at 127 proof. The nose is rather tightly wound, but some nice perfumed aromas emerge, including dense butterscotch, bready rye spices, and a note similar to Old Spice deodorant. The palate is hot and rich. It’s obviously a low-rye rye, but there’s still a good amount of clove and anise along with dark fruits, leather, and tannic oak. The mouthfeel is medium and the finish is better than average. This is good rye. It’s strong and packs some rich flavors. Still, it verges on being youthful and sour. Not unpleasantly so, but enough to keep this from rating higher. It’s not my favorite rye profile as it’s slightly sweeter than I like, but I’d happily drink this one again. Many thanks to @pkingmartin for the generous sample!