Rating: 14/23 I've heard good things about this and I generally like Balcones' maple flavor, so it's time to check this out. N: This is funkier than I expected. It has some character of rhum agricole - or perhaps an american whiskey made in the Irish style a la Ransom The Emerald. The biggest note is sort of lightly rotting vegetation. It could be that the vegetation has a bit of herbal quality though or something. I do get a bit of spearmint. This is weird. There's also some licorice and something spiced and kind of rich and sweet, perhaps sort of like a ginger chew or mild gingerbread. I do smell the alcohol in here, but this isn't overly youthful. Mostly, it has an organic, bitter note. P: It's slightly sweeter than the nose suggested. There's still that vegetal and somewhat herbal bitterness, but then it turns a bit chocolatey, but then I get jalapeno earth and spice (though not hot spice) for days. Wow, so much jalapeno. There's some sweet creek water as well. Oddly, this is a bit more balanced than the nose was and the flavors have some interesting distinction. I get some nice papery sweetness like a Don Julio tequila, but on the fuller side. There's quite a bit going on and I do like the profile, but is it a rye? There's definitely a substantial malty character to this brining in that funky vegetal flavor and caramel sweetness. F: The jalapeno fades, especially its spicy element. more of the paperyt caramel sweetness comes out as the vegetal milk chocolate resurges. There is still a layer of spice though and that jalapeno earthiness doesn't disappear entirely. - Conclusion - This isn't bad, but it's super weird. It's always challenging to rate these ones that defy their categories. I'd been thinking that this was quite full, but then I tried it alongside Rossville Union Barrel Proof (13/23) and this wasn't as full. It does have less of an alcohol flavor, but Catoctin Creek Rabble Rouser (16/23) is definitely fuller and more traditional in profile. This is certainly more complex, but it's also more challenging, so it's tough to rate. This is fuller than Ransom The Emerald (14/23), but it's also less complex. I don't know how to rate this. I'm thinking that it's not better than the Catoctin Creek, so a 16 is the upper bound for it. At the other end, I do think that this beats the Rossville Union, so a 13 is probably too low. Most likely, I'll go for a 14 or 15. It probably comes down to how this compares with Ransom The Emerald. It's close, but I'm going for a 15. But this is still really weird; if I were looking for one rye to stock my bar with, this certainly wouldn't be it. OK, final couple of sips. I'm torn between a 14 and a 15. Since I was at a 15 previously, I'll stay there. Actually, no. This is going to be a 14. Thanks for the sample @ctbeck11 !