Barrell Rye Cask Strength

“Pitch” restaurant pick from Pitch in Scottsdale, AZ. 133.68 proof. Nose is herbal and fruity with papaya, lemongrass, basil, pineapple, hay, lemon pepper, brown sugar, and unbuttered biscuit. There’s a nice rye grain funk that comes out as it opens up. Ethanol is nearly non-existent which is stunning given the proof. Palate is pretty explosive, opening with clover honey and green apple transitioning to sourdough bread, allspice, vanilla, pine, ginger, rye spice, and hops (!) Finish is spikey and hot with pink peppercorn, tropical fruits such as kiwi, guava, papaya, and bitter oak which brings some serious astringency. Mouthfeel is oily, but rougher and grainer than I wanted for the flavor profile and as dry as a sun bleached cow skull in the Arizona desert. Real issues here. Hmm. I wanted to like this more than I did. While I loved the fruity notes which are reminiscent of Barrell Seagrass, I ultimately found this too hot, sharp and rough to be truly enjoyable and its going to be a struggle to finish. At $80, it’s laughably far from a rebuy and I can think of literally fifty other ryes I would rather have. Disappointing.