Dark Arts Whiskey House "Blunt Blend": Straight Rye Whiskey finished in a Madeira Cask and in a Armagnac Cask

Batch #: 2 Bottle #: 4502 I CANNOT believe this is already added to Distiller, and with no spelling mistakes, proper capitalization, and a photo that actually follows some of Distiller's rules (or at least is close enough, comparatively); I guess it's not entirely full of anarchy all the time, just most of the time. In any case, even with an unlimited character count, there simply isn't enough good that I can say about Dark Arts. I had the recent pleasure of visiting and tasting around their extremely impressive and extensive menu, and although I would have liked to take multiple bottles home, their price point isn't appropriate for that yet, and is one of the only things they still have to work towards perfecting. Although I could spend hours talking about the... whiskey house? I guess it's not a distillery if they don't produce or distill anything themselves, but the focus here is this hilarious play on a cigar blend, since the owner of the house prefers weed over tobacco. I've had a few cigar blend whiskeys before, but they were mostly bourbon, and even after a Google search, are confirmed to not really follow any standard set of rules or requirements, other than being finished in other alcohol barrels being the only commonality. This has so many refreshing differences to it to begin with, though, including a huge age statement for this market, barrel strength proof, 2 different barrel finishes, and the best damn rye mash bill ever invented (and confirmed to be sourced from MGP, the champions of the almighty 95/5, which is even on the label, marking perhaps the first ever American whiskey I've ever seen with the mash bill printed on the bottle). Put on top of that a very personal bottle and label set (the "DANK ARTS" standalone label strip on the side was originally misread, and I love the unique change to just this batch), and you've got a product that finally brings something new and different to the ever increasingly boring American whiskey market and the grayscale selections that accompany it. A very dark color reflects in the glass, but isn't surprising given the duo of finishes delivered at cask strength. Having said that, the mahogany and deep brown/red is still unique and stands out quite obviously, even at a good distance. I have not had either madeira or armagnac by themselves before, but even with a basic understanding of what they are and what flavors are typically found, I can really only get those particular notes on the nose as opposed to any of the base rye. This includes stewed cherries and a general nuttiness, as well as grape must, rich cinnamon/baking spices, and a refreshing and shocking blend of leafy greens (and maybe even some cucumber). The proof communicates it's power, but does not burn or push the nose away, and instead feels more inviting than anything else. The flavor begins with a bit of sweet, sour, and bontanically spiced wine (there's our madeira) before quickly digging into the gums to introduce the aggressive cinnamon and mint that's known to be amongst MGP 95/5 rye. Once this settles, the slightly sour grape must comes out to play, introducing the armagnac flavors well. More delicate flavors become difficult to pick out, as the proof does heat things up and demands time to accommodate to. After some time, however, the finish turns back to a blend of the finishing barrels, leaving behind a general sweetness and keeping the spicy rye in the back seat. At the end of the day, this is just as unique a blend that Dark Arts produces as almost all of their other products. Although they themselves don't distill or age anything, this new model of finishing and playing around with readily available and generally cheap contact distillery products is a huge breath of fresh air in the stagnant whiskey market, and is more than welcome on my shelf any time. Although this certainly won't be my last purchase from Dark Arts, as their price point will require time to become competitive, but it won't stop me from taking the 200+ mile round trip to visit their incredible lounge and not only provide support for the brand, but enjoy the most flavorful portfolio I've ever had from any given bar or "whiskey house."

Beautifully finished dessert rye. Plenty of compleixity from the 8 years for a juice bomb. Long casky wine/grape flavor, lingering candy like mouthfeel.