Sometimes I read about people who have bottles open for a year, sometimes two. They taste slowly, take a nip here or there, comment on how the bottle has evolved over time with oxidation. Sometimes the oxidation changes the whisky's character in interesting ways, sometimes the bottle collapses completely. This always amazes me. In my view, it takes discipline to keep a bottle around that long. I always worry if I have something I really like and it's open too long the bottle will collapse and ruin my enjoyment (here I'm thinking Lot 40, which initially tasted like cherries and salted caramels, but after two or three weeks began tasting like sweat socks). That said, the longest a bottle lasts in my household is about two month at most. Unless it's bad from the get-go. Then it can sit in the back of my cabinet until hell freezes over. Sometimes, I love a whisky so much that I write a tasting review of it right after I've opened it (Laphroaig Cairdeas 2021 PX Cask). Sometimes I'll even write up a whisky that's only half-decent right away if I have what I'd like to think are interesting thoughts (Evan Williams 1789). But sometimes it takes until the end of the bottle to weigh in. And that's been the case with both the New Riff bottles I've sampled (BiB Rye and this Single Barrel Barrel Proof Bourbon). I'm not sure why that is other than neither carried with them a good backstory, a reason for me to get excited and sit down and tap out a review. This is not to say that either was a bad whisky. In fact, I gave the BiB rye 3.75 stars, and while I think it may be a tad overpriced, I'd buy it again. As for the single barrel bourbon, it was about time my number came up with a single barrel. The last two I've had have been underwhelming at best (Rebel Distiller's) and bland at worst (Elijah Craig). So, when I opened this, my expectations were low enough that even a 3-star whisky would have been a win. I opened this on my birthday, almost a month ago, and I gave my dad the first glass. When I did, he thought I'd given him a rye. And this a bourbon, at least in the barrel I got, that drinks more like a rye than a bourbon. The nose is heavy with prominent baking spices and citrus that make for a perfect end-of-year autumnal holiday pour. Imagine, if you will, sitting by the fire, next to a decorated Christmas tree drinking this. That! That! It's perfect for that! In fact, it's the kind of nose where, if you're into that, you could sit there smelling it for a while before you experience the urge to sip. The tune doesn't change much on the palate, but at barrel proof, it's nice and robust with flavor, and it's certainly none too sweet the way most high-corn or high-wheat bourbons are, but whatever sweetness is present is of vanilla and caramel, which compliments the baking spice and citrus nicely. The finish is strong and while maybe not the longest I've ever had sticks around just long enough for the enjoyment to last. Now given how close to a rye the flavor profile is, I'm curious as to how the Single Barrel Barrel Proof Rye is going to be, but that'll come in time. My dad's birthday is coming up, and since I always try to get him something special, I managed to pick up a bottle of that to give him. Of course, now that I've mentioned that, I can only hope he's not following my reviews here so I didn't ruin the surprise, and yet, I somehow don't think he'd mind it too much to find out that's coming his way a few days before I gift it to him. And of course, I should point out that while I thought $44.99 was a bit steep for the BiB Rye, $49.99 for the barrel proof bourbon is perfect. This is one I would definitely buy again at that value, but unfortunately, it seems to have gone out of stock near me, and I have to imagine once they realize what they have here, the price will go up accordingly, so I'd place this firmly in the pick it up if you see it camp.