PBMichiganWolverine
High West A Midwinter Night's Dram
Rye — (bottled in) Utah, USA
Reviewed
December 4, 2015 (edited September 13, 2019)
Act 3, sc 1. Oh my I'm in love! I'm normally not a rye person, but this was better than I expected. I love the burnt Amber color, but I love the nose even more so. Have you ever been to Sevilla during the spring? A few years ago, I was in Sevilla...granted , tugging a baby stroller and holding diapers and milk bottles...but I still remember the aromas in the air. The streets are lined with orange trees, so during the spring you smell the flowers in full bloom. The bazaars have spices such as anise and cinnamon. You're surrounded by this aroma of oranges mixed with spices. That's what the nose is like. The taste doesn't let down. Red fruits like strawberries and raspberries, some lychees and vanilla. The finish isn't bitter at all, nor does it have a bite. It's medium length, orange peels and cream. Really well made. I wish I bought two!!!
Revisited Jan 2, 2016: I just shared this with a cousin of mine who normally is only a beer drinker. He immediately fell in love with it. Of course, once I told him the price ($90), he equated that to several barrels of his favorite ( Bud Light), and decided the VFM simply wasn't there for him. I'm still ranking this as a solid 5 star, and a pretty good VFM considering other options ( then again, I'm not a Bud Light person ). 1/4/2017: batch 4.4 thanks to a new Distiller friend, I got to try batch 4.4. (Thank you Lee!!!). I can smell or taste no difference than the batch I had over and year ago (batch 3.1). This is still just as amazing, hands down my best rye, and still top 10 overall. Amazing artistry. Note to Constellation brands---please, please, please keep up this level of quality!!! Again, thanks to Lee for the generous sample!
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Update 12/15: thanks to Scott, I got to try 4.1. So far I've had 3.1 and 4.4. Still one of my favorite ryes, but unfortunately it's no longer reasonable. I remember getting 3.3 for about $80 or so. Now these are close to $150. I recall loving 3.3 and 4.4, but this one seemed slightly less complex, which is unusual considering 4.1 and 4.4 are essentially the same batches. Maybe I left it out too long or I something I could've eaten before to throw off the taste, but either way still a great rye...just makes you wonder if it's $150 great as it was before at $80.
10/13: Just got 4.2 (this year's version, $90). Seems less "reddish" in color than last year's. More earthy-brown color. Haven't tried yet.
9/13: Unfortunately...High West is up for sale, in today's Bloomberg news. One of the bidders is Jameson's Pernod brand.
I think I was trying to say one can recall a moment more so with this dram more so than a Bud. (Hit post accidentally)
Moment with Bud Light or MWND
Agreed. This is a great dram. At $90 it is priced fairly. To each his own, but what you get out of this versus Bud Light, it's worth the value. Can one re a