Russell's Reserve Single Barrel Rye

I always thought this and the single barrel bourbon version had the barrel info on the bottle, but I guess I was mistaken. That's certainly a bit of a let-down, but I'm still excited and have been for many years to finally try this, since everything Wild Turkey puts out is fantastic (minus the celebrity failure that unfortunately has their name on it). Vanilla, and lots of it, is the main scent here. It almost smells like a birthday cake, but it's source, the super charred oak, is enough to shake the hallucination. Only after remembering that this is a rye whiskey was I actually able to detect the rye grain on the very end of the nose; you could easily trick me into thinking this was a heavily aged 101 bourbon. My palate immediately could tell this was a rye, because the spice quickly sinks into the gums, and burns any cuts found on the roof of the mouth with the iconic, bright spice. Similar to the smell, however, there is a decent sweetness here, coming from the barrel but also being mellowed by the oak at the same time. There is a boring finish of more of the same, until you add air. One breath in causes an explosion of mint and fresh rye grain to rocket out like fire, with all the spiciness that I would expect from proper rye. The finish is plenty hot, but from flavor and not so much the proof, with the oak sweetness from before adding a good balance. I was most excited about this pick from my recent haul, and for good reason. Wild Turkey always produces quality, and with what few of their single barrel products that I've had, I can still say that they are just as vulnerable to bad barrel picks as anyone else, because they've not always been good. However, even with their bourbon, Wild Turkey clearly knows how to use rye, and make it into a good whiskey or high-rye bourbon. Put that into an elevated product line like Russell's and pick out a good barrel like this one, and it's an easy winner every time for a more potent, special rye experience. The only improvement that I think can be made is the addition of barrel information on the bottle. Without it, I'm less likely to buy this product again, because I can't tell if I've had that barrel before or not. Plus, with the growing number of online documentation and reviewing of individual barrels, it would also be possible to compare and contrast different barrel flavors. This risks people ruining the product line by finding an exceptional barrel and then scalping the price (as so many single barrel whiskeys are subject to), but then again, what is whiskey if not annoying a majority of the time?

Spicy/peppery but not overly so. Just enough for character. Smooth finish. Oak comes thru nicely and balanced by sweetness. Excellent pour. Will buy again.

Had a very sweet taste in the beginning followed by a nice spicy peppery note.

Great tasting rye, love the spice you get from this style.