Pinhook Hard Rye Guy

Solid rye

Smooth and warm. Almost floral on the first sip. Rich and oily. Sweet for sure. Delicious rye

Nose - light, smooth, banana, vanilla, maple Palate - much more intense than the nose, spicy right out of the gate, herbal and all up in your nose like eucalyptus and mint, spicy Finish - lingering oak, spice, and walnut Edited to add the long lingering finishes as molasses. Very pleasant.

Mongo no like: mouth taste bad after drink

I’ve seen Pinhook around everywhere and had the chance to the the rye at a bar. I was excited to try this as I’m a big rye fan. The nose wasn’t great. Like minty and spice but an odd combination. The palate wasn’t great either as the taste had more of a kick to it with all baking spices. I wasn’t able to get a ton of flavors from it as it tasted hot with so much spice. The finish was just as poor for me. Hot finish with more spice that just overpowered everything. Overall, I wasn’t a fan and will probably not buy any Pinhook bottles until I can try them first.

Kentucky straight rye whiskey distilled by Castle & Key in Frankfort, KY. Mashbill 60% rye, 20% corn, 20% malted barley, aged "more than two years," but not much. Bottled in 2021 at 98 proof. Light golden color, average legs in the glass. Banana and maple syrup, with a little rye grassiness and spice on the nose. Sweet and a little sour in the mouth--vanilla and grain and some ethanol heat, giving way quickly to dry tannic oak (a little acrid), vanilla, and hot rye spice in a long finish. The sour and ethanol heat shows how young this is. To riff on an old 1960s song, "All we are saying, is give oak a chance." Needs more time to age. Ice cools it down but seems to accentuate the sweet/sour profile and tannic finish. Not the best neat, but good sipping with ice. This should mix well in cocktails--an Old Fashioned (ok, I tried it, it didn't) or a Manhattan (nope, not that either). OK, remains better on the rocks, maybe 3.5. It's just a little young to be more than a 3.25 neat. And since it mixes poorly... back to a 3.0, generously. But, will take some time and drink/think about it and that rating more. What's the hurry.