Old Overholt 10 Year Cask Strength Rye (2023 Release)

A quite enjoyable nose featuring caramel flan, toasted oak, white pepper, rye crisp cracker, cherry, hazelnut, earthy cellar, and Tupelo honey. Ethanol very low given the proof. Complex palate offers creme brûlée, brown sugar, allspice, a just-shy-of-bitter oak, black pepper, white grape, hay, and vanilla. Flavors are rich and bold. Spice slightly overshadows the other notes. Finish brings citrus rind, white pepper, tobacco, clove, chili pepper, cola and nutmeg. Some spearmint after everything else fades. Finish is on the shorter side of medium, but just a minor flaw. Mouthfeel is slick and oily without any graininess which really serves this well by keeping the sharper notes in check. As a rye it’s good, but as a whiskey it borders on excellent. More like a high rye bourbon than a traditional rye but that in no way detracts from the quality. At the $109 I paid, I have zero regrets and this verges on rebuy status.

Peanut funk on nose. Cinnamon coated pretzels and caramel. Big blast of heat with spice and milk chocolate.

Very good. Starts with a great caramel nose which moves to the palate, then the big cinnamon spice hits. Good finish with rye spice but nothing bitter or over oaky.

OLD OVERHOLT 10YR CASK STRENGTH (121) APPEARANCE: Great looking throwback of a bottle with classic labeling and a chunky, engraved wooden topped cork. Pours into the glencairn a lovely shade somewhere between 1.7/1.8 (Burnt Umber/Old Oak). NOSE: Bold & Upfront is Dusty Old Barn (Weathered Oak, Hay Bales, Old Oil and Tires). Lurking in the background is Tart Fruit, Pipe Tobacco, and Cinnamon. The whole thing is then liberally dusted with a coating of finely ground Black Pepper. As it sits a while, a faint note of soft Pink Bubblegum develops. NEAT: Thick &b Clingy, this is one you'll taste for a while. Cooked apples, Cinnamon, Fall Baking Spice, and Heavy (almost too heavy) Oak Tannins. There is a Long Tart Apple/Cherry Finish with Oak, Black Pepper, and Tart Fruit coating and lingering on the Palate. There is a BIG KYHug to remind you of its 121 proof. SPLASH: On the Nose, it brings that Pink Bubblegum out a bit more along with a light Floral Note. On the Palate, the Oak loses some of its Tannic character and becomes more Musty. It also brings some of the Herbal character out that is a Rye Hallmark. VERDICT: I normally treat myself to a special bottle with some of my Holiday Bonus, and this year it was this one. I really liked this, but I did ding it a little for the $99 price tag. Had this not been Holiday Bonus time, I most definitely would've passed. I really see this as being more of a $60-$70 bottle. I'm going to enjoy it, but will probably pass on future years releases, especially if something else shiny catches my eye during the holidays.

Nose: cherry syrup, almond jello, vanilla, rye spice. Wish it were a tad stronger Palate: oak, jim beam peanut, rye spice in the finish. Three flavors that work incredible together. Layers of pepper and cinnamond Finish: more oak, cherry cola, rye spice. Medium intensity Wish that nose and finish had a touch more intensity but the palate is perfect. 8 on the t8ke scale