Nose reveals almost nothing, with little more than ethanol on first pass. Time in the glass cuts the ethanol and shows a little vanilla and an unspecific sweet aroma but not much else. Like sniffing an empty bag of halloween candy corn. In a blind nosing I would likely identify this as a house-favorite cheap bourbon like Evan Williams black label or Old Barton. It’s ok, but there’s just not much happening. Palate is better, but don’t start doing cartwheels just yet. Its sweet, there’s vanilla, there’s nutmeg, a hint of clove aaaaannd then it’s done. Finish is the first and only time I could say for certain this is a rye, with a surprising burst of sharp baking spices that arrives and immediately departs leaving almost no evidence that I had anything to drink. This is nothing like the 10yr Small Batch or various single barrel offerings, and even though it’s not as costly as those two, it is certainly not cheap. Try it in a bar if you must have it, but Old Forester Rye is a third of the price and twice as good, and will continue to be my house rye.