Rating: 9/23 OK, I take issue with this dram's name. "Ancient Cask"? Really? Is 8 years considered "ancient" now? I wouldn't call this a young rye, but 8 years is barely even impressive. N: Oily, with a bit of rich, bitter herbs balanced by a lightly carameled sweetness drizzled atop some modestly toasted wood. A faint hint of orange peel. Not a very full nose though. P: Oily more than anything else. Spicy with some burn. Some toasty notes with hints of vanilla. Honestly, this tastes a lot like a mellow single grain Scotch. I wanted there to be more going on here, but there really isn't that much happening. It's a pretty bland, uninteresting palate. The burn keeps it from even being an easy sipper. I do get a little bit of rye happening here, but this really has more of a single grain profile. F: Oily with a touch of alcohol. Faintly lingering spices. - Conclusion - I wanted to give this a 10, but it's just a bit too boring. I'm thinking that a 9 is the right rating for this. Coming back to this the next day, I'm finding it more enjoyably mellow, but still far from great. It burns less than Compass Box Hedonism (12/23), but it's also less fruity and complex (which goes to show just how bland this is). The Hedonism is the clear winner Caledonian 29 (1987 ) (12/23) has a quite nice sweet woody nuance in comparison with this. The Caledonian definitely gets the win here. This is certainly not a 12, nor do I believe it's an 11. A 9 is certainly possible, but I'm thinking it's a 10. The Sexton (9/23) is actually quite close in quality to this. I'm rethinking that 10. On my final sip, I'm deciding that this is a 9 after all, but it's very close to a 10. I've been very curious about Very Old St. Nick for a while now, so thank you for providing this introduction, @Milliardo !