Knob Creek Single Barrel Select Rye

Last rye of November

warm and spicy but drinks very smooth for a 100 proof. pairs great with eggnog for the holiday season. lots of spices and deep notes.

Nose: spicy nose. Not a lot of depth. Maybe some twizzlers in there. Palate: lots of rye immediately. Honestly very viscous/oily which is shocking. More of that licorice on that palate as well. Finish: medium and spicy. Overall: “Knobbing On Heavens Door” Private pick, 6 years old. Honestly not terrible but it lacks depth. I wouldn’t pay $50 for a knob creek rye store pick again though most likely.

Rating: 15/23 This bottle is an Uptown Spirits pick. It has had the better part of a year of air now, so let's see how it is. N: Initially, not much, then that classic Jim Beam peanut smell comes through. It's rich, savory, oily, and a bit smoky, but also restrained. It's uncomplex and not full though. There's a bit of mineral to suggest that this is a rye, but from the nose alone I would have guessed it was a bourbon. It's a very one-note nose that would be fine enough for a lower end whiskey, but really isn't adequate here. P: Viscous, fairly rich. The peanut flavor, mineral, and waft of smoke comes through, though it is less pronounced. A bit more meatiness than peanut, actually. It's a clean flavor, but there really isn't much happening. Initially, I really still couldn't tell you whether this is a barely legal rye or a high rye bourbon like Belle Meade. I might have been able to guess that it was Jim Beam though considering the lack of fullness and peanut flavor. I don't taste the ethanol though, which is fairly impressive considering the proof. There's substantial heat, but I wouldn't call it particularly harsh (at least for the proof). Eventually I get hints of green apple from the rye and some cinnamon coming out of the heat. There's also a little bit of a caramel flavor, but it's slightly artificial. F: Not a whole lot happening here either. A hint more rye lingers. I'm pretty disappointed, actually. There isn't much actively wrong here, but there isn't much to recommend this whiskey either. It's high(ish) proof, but also quite bland. Russell's Reserve Rye 6 isn't as rich, savory and smoky as this Knob Creek Single Barrel Select Rye, but it has more balance and complexity. The high proof really does help the Knob Creek. Another obvious comparison I keep coming back to is the Knob Creek 9 Year Single Barrel Reserve bourbon (bottled at 60% ABV). That is a fuller and more complex offering, which I feel like is saying something because Knob Creek is normally fairly uncomplex. I wouldn't say that the gap in quality is monumental between the two, but it's decisive, so I'd guess that if I did the full side-by-side comparison with some other whiskey in the range, I'd find it to be about 2 points. Comparing this with more ryes (Sazerac, Jim Beam Pre-Prohibition, Templeton 4), the richness and proof in this really stand out. Still, this is certainly the least complex and it doesn't stand out with a degree of excellent maturity either (though it certainly doesn't taste immature). I really want to recommend this, but it just isn't a good value. At $20 to $35, I'd consider this, but I'd only consider it at $30 or more because of its proof. When it comes to rating this, the proof and the rich flavor that comes with it is pretty much all that this has actively going for it. That said, is's certainly not bad. I was considering going as low as a 13 at one point, then I was thinking of a 16 at another. After some side by side comparisons, I've swung back and forth a couple of times. I'm torn between a 15 and a 16 right now, but considering that I've considered below a 15 and never above a 16, I think that 15 makes the most sense. I go back and forth on whether I like this or Old Forester Rye better, but I generally think that Russell's Reserve 6 is better than either of them.

Good palate, but finish too short for my taste