WhistlePig 10 Year Single Barrel Rye

Total Wine and More store pick in Gilbert AZ, barrel # 50112. 106 proof. Nose doesn’t exactly jump out of the glass, but what is here is niiiice. Butterscotch, honey, light potpourri, cooking herbs (basil, oregano), and cinnamon sugar. The total lack of ethanol makes this fun to get in and huff. Palate hits you with mostly the same notes as the nose which is a good thing. The sweetness is definitely honey forward, paired with a little banana, followed by some mild herbals in the form of coriander and mint. What really stands out is how strongly the flavors are integrated and well balanced, letting the herbal notes shine without going full bore into left field. I believe the age on this has rounded off a lot of rough edges. Pleasingly warm tingle on the tongue. Finishes on the shorter side of medium, with a slow morph from the palate flavors into a peppery kick of rye spice. Mouthfeel is medium bodied but decently oily. This one definitely hit he right notes for me, and I would rank it among one of the better ryes I have tried. That said, the price is a bit high at $92 and my rating reflects that; for that price I don’t just want “nice”, I want “stellar” but I don’t regret the purchase either. Considering what’s out there in the rye universe in $50-$70 range (Bonesnapper, Willet 4 yr) it’s hard to justify a rebuy, but don’t let that make you think for a second that it isn’t pretty damn good.

Cotton candy jumps out at first, but mellows into a balanced finish. Solid sipper.

Smooth after opening up a bit with a sphere. Not the biggest rye fan but overall I would consider this a great rye.