Very Olde St. Nick Cask Strength Summer Rye Whiskey

It’s December 25, 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. (4/5, WT101, Whistlepig 10, Whistlepig 12, Old Riff) 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 nauseating rye. I want the one that went to Scotland to escape a scandal but falls in love with a castle, thereby having to deal with and/or fall in love with the grumpy but kind duke who resides therein. >>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<< What would Christmas Day be without a St. Nick? A Very Olde one at that. Nose of this is fantastic, and honestly a relief. You never know with these people. I get sour apples, lemon, honeysuckle. Perfume, flowers. Sweet tarts. Orange peel. Body is green apple. Brine. Syrup. I could see a really sweet grapefruit. Delicious. Finish is cinnamon, caramel apple. Citrus comes back, orange this time. This is quite possibly the best VOSN out there right now. By comparison, the VOSN 12 antique has a bit of an odd aftertaste, and the 16 years are all prohibitively expensive (albeit arguably worth it still). If you like these types of notes, this whiskey is balanced expertly. If you feel compelled to buy VOSN products (and I understand why you may not) let me be your guide to the VOSN universe. I have now officially had all of them since the reboot, and would like to share the following advice: 1) Buy the VOSN 12 yr bourbon. I prefer the antique over the estate, but both are good. 2) Need to treat a friend and have that Whistlepig 18 money? Buy them the VOSN 16 yr antique. Bonus points for the unicorn bottle. It’s a truly special experience. Overpriced, but it is (read: claims to be) bourbon history in a bottle. 3) Buy this bottle. It’s delicious. 4) I can’t emphasize this enough, though I will try. AVOID ALL OTHER VOSN PRODUCTS LIKE THE PLAGUE. AVOID RARE PERFECTION LIKE THE PLAGUE. THEY ARE TRASH, NOT WORTH THE COST, OR BOTH. I feel better now.

Superlative rye that is touch to find. The approach, flavor and finish are all worthy.

Just opened. Rested in glencairn 15+ minutes. The nose is like an old-time soda jerk! Vanilla cream soda and cherry cola are just dripping from this nose. It's got oak, cinnamon, nutmeg, and some pepper to tone the sweetness down a bit. A yeasty bread note appears after even longer sitting in the glass. Smooth, coats the tongue very well. Starts peppery, with a burst of rye spice, that fades to sweet cherry and vanilla. A medicinal quality that I think it tows the lines perfectly between artificial cherry cough syrup flavor vs real cherry and medicinal notes. It really tastes of the two things separate. The proof really lingers and warms the throat. and there is a fair amount of tannins in this too. The finish is super long, I was still getting some lingering sweet vanilla and oak for 2+ minutes after each sip. Not sure exactly where this liquid is sourced from or why it's priced so high, but damn did I love this rye. It's pretty sweet, but that's my style, hence the score. Savor this one if you can get your hands on one and the price doesn't deter you.

I love hot ryes. Great heat while maintaining smoothness. Great nose. Great Oakeyness with long lasting finish. Mild pleasant bitterness. Soft vanilla and caramel flavors late.