WhistlePig 6 Year PiggyBack Rye

This is a good rye thats pretty widely available behind the bar.

The third and final Rye whiskey I'm mustering up the courage to taste is Whistlepig's 6 year Piggyback Rye. As mentioned in prior reviews of Rye whiskies or Rye forward whiskies, I am 100% not a fan of rye. But as I've been experimenting with Manhattan and Old Fashioned cocktails, they are best had with a robust Rye. And of course, as curious as I'll always be: I have decided to try the 3 I've purchased, neat. The nose on this 6 year Rye is significantly spicier than their 6 year Piggyback bourbon. Duh... I know. This nose is much closer to what I expected out of the Rye heavy bourbon of the same name. Astringent rye floats up with spicy peppercorn, cinnamon and dry leather. There's a little bit of singed grass in there... maybe that's the rye I'm smelling. Surprisingly, the taste does open quite sweet and really the palate isn't nearly as tannic and spicy as the nose suggests. Its definitely there, though. Rye spice and peppercorn set the underlying taste but also bring a little tongue tingle that brown sugar and vanilla ride in on. There might be some vanilla in there and at first you'd be fooled to believe the cinnamon on the nose is absent. But as the taste goes down that familiar sweet spiciness of cinnamon comes in strong, along with some tannic oak and hay. The finish is all spicy. The cinnamon and oak that came on late taste stays, some of that dry leather that was found on the nose makes its appearance during the finish. I don't ... hate it. I do like the bourbon more, from the inherent sweetness but I thought I was going to despise this and I don't. It is spicy enough to stand up to a good Manhattan or Old Fashioned but sweet enough to drink neat. That said, I'm still a bourbon man at heart but I'm giving this a solid 3.25 better than average rating.

A very nice rye whiskey with lingering cinnamon notes at finish. Pretty smooth for a rye. Worth buying again.

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