Rittenhouse Rye Bottled in Bond

Not much on the nose...or elsewhere. Edit: Ok, second review. It's better when tasted before tasting others. It's no OGD Bonded, but it's ok. Probably a very good mixer.

This is okay but not my favorite. The nose strikes me as rather thin, with mainly vanilla and some cinnamon and other spices. This is accompanied by a faintly sharp or sour note that is hard for me to describe but that I find unpleasant. There's also a bit of ethanol in the mix. In the aroma that sour note is muted, but in the taste it is much stronger, and for me that really brings down the enjoyment here. Apart from that there is more vanilla and some nice rye spice that almost reminds me of sichuan peppercorns. The finish is probably the best part, with the sourness fading away, leaving only a taste of burnt sugar, spice, and vanilla. My impressions of this whiskey have varied over the course of the bottle, and I should note that my experience now in writing this review is probably toward the low end of the range of reactions I've had. But it's not like I ever thought it was superb. I'm finding that a certain kind of sourness is one of the biggest turnoffs for me when it comes to liquor, and while this isn't the worst I've had in that regard, it does tread a bit into that dangerous region. Overall it is an okay rye and I don't dislike it, but I probably won't get this again. On the plus side, it is affordable at about $23 a bottle. I think the problem is that in that price range (or even lower) I can get bourbons that I like better, so it's hard to justify getting this rye instead.

It’s December 26, and I’m going to try a new rye whiskey every day this month. And while my rye game is not as weak as my Scotch game was this time last year, I’m always up for suggestions on good rye whiskies. And now that I have goals (it’s good to have goals), there are some key players I could use your help finding. Send me your favorite, readily-available rye. Goals (abridged): 5 ryes. 4.5 stars. Readily available. (5/5, WT101, Whistlepig 10, Whistlepig 12, Old Riff, VOSN Summer Rye) I want to recognize the difference between any bourbon and any rye. First try. One of these must be an Empire Rye. (1/1, Hudson) I want a burning rye. I one the one that feels like Tabasco sauce on chapped lips. >>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<< Big thanks to @Anthology for recommending this rye! Nose is brine, salt, pear, yeast, dust. Melon. Body is anise, licorice, leather, sugar, mint. Finish is heavy on mint, with a bit of dark chocolate. This one screams Heaven Hill profile to me. It’s not an arrangement of flavors that I’m crazy about, but like all HH products, I can’t deny the talent in the bottle. I could see this being an amazing mixer, but not something I’d reach for neat on a regular basis.

Great for old fashions