WhistlePig Old World Cask Finish Rye 12 Year

Not my favorite.

My favorite whistle pig so far, reminds me of four roses bourbon. Sweet and caramel, excellent richness.

Nose: Incredible Front: Incredible Finish: Incredible Too verbose? Ok but the point stands, Dave Pickerell could have just as easily called this WhistlePig Triple Play because of the way it blends the 3 wine casks perfectly. The nose is an outstanding confectionery of iced raisin rum cake with red plums and cherries jubilee, and just the right hint of dill and baking spices to perfect the picture. This is truly Christmas in a bottle(fitting since it was a Christmas present) note to @PBMichiganWolverine I guess I do have some small amount of will power after all. That blend forms just the right amount of bite, the 86 proof being a wise decision, no ethyl tinge to interrupt the goodness, the well aged juice ending in a sweet chord of tones also fitting for the Ana Vidovic Bach concerto on Spanish guitar that I happen to be listening to during this tasting. As Jason noted on the front page, you don't want to rush this, it's just too good. I'm going to leave off the half point of adjustment I normally would give/take for the price, it's Whistle Pig, it's pricey, we all know that, just move on and accept. The Madeira certainly stands out in the finish not that the Saurternes and even the Port aren't noticeable. If you are at all a fan of the Basils Dark rye or the rum finished Angels, you will certainly find something about this to appreciate. I was hoping I wouldn't have to draw on the WP 10 year for comparison and I don't, this simply blows it out of the water. Of course some don't like the sweet red spiciness of wine cask finishes, and that's fine, you don't want this, however for the wine and rye connoisseurs, this should be smack dab in your wheelhouse. I would add if you're going to spring for the 12 year pig, just try and get the triple cask, you won't regret it. Old World Cask indeed. Cheers!

Pair well with Maduro cigar