You know those drams where you wonder what it would be like if you could bump the ABV up to 46%, or the drams that make you wish they had a bit more depth of flavor, or the drams you wish you could turn the intensity up a few notches? This is not one of those drams. Enter Pikesville Straight Rye. There’s been a lot of chatter about this rye recently, and even I had seek out a pour of it before hunting down a bottle (I previously reviewed this on the fly). When I found it on special for $40, I couldn’t resist. Let’s see this bottle’s specs. Mash Bill: 51% Rye, 35% Corn, 14% Malted Barley Age: 6 years ABV: 55% Price: $39.99 (typically seen for $40-$50) Nose: Rich and sweet. Red vine licorice, candied cherries, vanilla, rye spice, and burnt caramel with a bit of the accompanying smoke. All of this is enveloped in the aromas of a walk-in cigar humidor. The proof is suspiciously concealed. Palate: Rich, full-bodied, fruity, and spicy. The sweetness is definitely there but it’s almost an afterthought because there’s so much else going on. Woody cigar tobacco, more red vine licorice, cherry syrup, and burnished crème brûlée crust. A tiny bit of balancing salt. Dangerously drinkable at full strength, water is unnecessary. Finish: My goodness, this is long and it hangs around afterwards. I’m curious if it smells like I was steeped in tobacco after drinking this. More spice and oak, leather, and burnt caramel sweetness. Overall Impressions: Highly enjoyable dram. I tasted this alongside it’s younger cousin, Rittenhouse Rye Bottled-in-Bond (review for this forthcoming). I’m finding conflicting information on Rittenhouse’s mash bill (I also found conflicting information on Pikesville’s mash bill until I confirmed it on a Heaven Hill page) and after tasting these side-by-side, it’s hard to imagine it’s just 2 years of age separating them. So I’m calling them cousins instead of brothers until this is clearer to me. Verdict: This begs the question - if you could only have 1 rye....? I’m unabashedly loyal to Rittenhouse for the balance of price, quality, and adeptness as a mixer. I imagine Pikesville could also be a great mixer, but at $40+ and with all these rich flavors, it would be remiss of me to cover them up. So I’d want to keep Rittenhouse around for my Manhattans and Pikesville for my sipper.* For now, I’m feeling pretty good about sticking with my original rating of 4.0, but I’m very curious how this will evolve over the course of the bottle.** 4.0 ~ 88 ~ Great *As a little tasting experiment, I also poured myself some Michter’s US*1 Single Barrel Straight Rye, a bottle Distiller describes as “Rich & Full Bodied”. Now, I know full well that this was a bit of an unfair comparison given how intense I knew the Pikesville was, but I did it any way for curiosity’s sake. The Michter’s transformed into a light, herbal, floral, and fruity dram, attributes not typically ascribed to it en masse. I won’t be writing up a review of this tasting of the Michter’s because it was a bit unfair, but it just goes to show you how powerful and rich the Pikesville is. **I’m also curious to see how Pikesville stacks up against its up-and-coming NAS brother, Elijah Craig Rye, which will launch with a limited release in January 2020 and is confirmed to share the same mash bill as Pikesville. Here’s to hoping I can get my hands on some to compare!