Wilderness trail rye whiskey family reserve cask strength

This particular single barrel is 5 years, 3 months. Bottled at 53.85% ABV. The nose is powdered sugar on rye bread, caramel, orange peel, something slightly floral. The palate has caramel, mint, fresh cracked pepper, cinnamon, mild herbal note, orange and a smidge of grapefruit bitterness on the back end. I remember being more impressed with the previous single barrel I tried, although it was 58%, and was only a small taste at a whiskey night tasting with many bottles. This is pretty good, although for the price I’d favor Pikesville or Contradiction coming in cheaper.

The Party Source pick Barrel No. ISC 779761 Rickhouse B-E12N4 Yeast Strain FP1 Age - 4 years and 4 months 53.46% abv; 106.93 proof Open 1 month Nose - Butterscotch, caramel, honey, herbal tea, anise, soft citrus, light oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - Soft caramel, white pepper, pine needles, dill, honeysuckle, white sugar, and dry oak. Finish is medium with herbal and floral rye notes, white pepper, mineral water, dried honey, and light ethanol. I've had Wilderness Trail Rye Cask Strength before, but apparently they're switching their cask strength single barrels to a white label and renaming the single barrel to Family Reserve. Thoroughly enjoyable and affordable rye whiskey, and unique in its flavor profile that makes it stand out amongst the barely legal ryes and MGP ryes. Not as good as the previous single barrel I've had, but still a really good bottle.

This was the batch bar pick. Nose: Rye spice, sweet almost a cheesy tang in the back end. Woody rye caramel spice taste. Very solid

Oak, maple, baking spice, black pepper