Very Olde St. Nick Cask Strength Summer Rye Whiskey

Rating: 19/23 N: Quite full and rich! Orange peel, orange, mint, light caramel, various other herbs, faint maple, some oiliness. The faintest creosote. This is a really promising nose. I'm looking forward to drinking this rye, despite my prior disappointments with Very Old St. Nick. P: Rich and spicy, with some sweetness and maturity. It's a big, bold toasted sweetness, with vanilla, and slightly overcooked caramel providing a faint char. The spices bite quite a bit, but they don't burn a ton. They mix nicely with the bitter herbs, including some mint. The spices come across as pepper, ginger, clove, and cinnamon. I also get some nice oily richness that makes me think of an oloroso finish. It does muddle the flavors a bit though. I'm really digging this palate. It's very tasty, with big, bold flavors, yet quite little alcohol. F: Rich toasty wood, orange, vanilla, spices. Decadent and long-lasting, though certainly not as distinct at this point. Hints of bitter herbs. - Conclusion - This is a delight. I was not expecting much after the prior two Very Old St. Nick ryes I tried, but this one knocked it out of the park. We aren't talking perfection here, but this is easily one of the best ryes I've had. The clean, herbal, spicy complexity balances with the sweet decadence so nicely. Whistlepig PiggyBack (16/23) has more herbal funk, is more muddled, and is less sweet. This really stands above it. This is has more of a bourbon sweetness to it, but it's a whole lot better regardless. Dad's Hat Cask Strength (19/23) has way more creosote and bitter herbal complexity going on. The Dad's Hat still has plenty of sweetness, but it's playing a different game than this is. Both are quite hedonistic and they're close in quality. If I had to pick one, I'd pick the Dad's Hat, but it's on the high side of a 19, so I'm thinking an 18 to 19 for this. I'm landing on an 18 because there's some alcohol now that I wasn't getting before. It's just not quite a 19. Eh, it could be a 19. This is right in that range. Coming back to this, I'm finding that it is well on parr with Russell's Reserve Single Barrel (18-19/23) and is similarly competitive with Belle Meade Cask Strength Reserve (18-19/23). Of the three, I'd give this a slight win, but I don't think that its muddled flavors are pulling past a 19. I'm finding Smoke Wagon Uncut Unfiltered (18/23) to be very competitive with this. It's a high 18 though and taste a bit younger than this does. I think that oloroso fruit and nuttiness pulls this up to a 19. It's flawed, but excellent. What a turn-around after those couple of underwhelming age-stated releases! Thanks, @Milliardo , for providing this fun flight :)

Just opened. Rested in glencairn 15+ minutes. The nose is like an old-time soda jerk! Vanilla cream soda and cherry cola are just dripping from this nose. It's got oak, cinnamon, nutmeg, and some pepper to tone the sweetness down a bit. A yeasty bread note appears after even longer sitting in the glass. Smooth, coats the tongue very well. Starts peppery, with a burst of rye spice, that fades to sweet cherry and vanilla. A medicinal quality that I think it tows the lines perfectly between artificial cherry cough syrup flavor vs real cherry and medicinal notes. It really tastes of the two things separate. The proof really lingers and warms the throat. and there is a fair amount of tannins in this too. The finish is super long, I was still getting some lingering sweet vanilla and oak for 2+ minutes after each sip. Not sure exactly where this liquid is sourced from or why it's priced so high, but damn did I love this rye. It's pretty sweet, but that's my style, hence the score. Savor this one if you can get your hands on one and the price doesn't deter you.

Lot # 08: 113.7 proof (56.86%) Bought as a gift to myself for my 30th. Poured neat. Very subtle nose, almost disappears with the more you try to smell. Velvety and floral, with notes of vanilla, white wine and antique furniture. Slightly oily mouth feel with a burst of tart cherry pie off the cuff. That turns to a more medicinal cherry cough syrup through the mid palate before fading to a sweet cornbread. Subtle notes of mint, honey and toasted oak fill in the gaps from there. Finish lingers for a while with notes of black tea, baking spice, cherry wood, and a little more cough medicine. Definitely enjoyed this whiskey more after letting it open up for a few weeks than when it was first cracked. The flavors were dense but the nose was underwhelming. I'd recommend trying to find it at a bar before springing for an entire bottle. Overall I felt that it fell short of my expectations being such an expensive bottle.

It’s December 25, and I’m going to try a new rye whiskey every day this month. And while my rye game is not as weak as my Scotch game was this time last year, I’m always up for suggestions on good rye whiskies. And now that I have goals (it’s good to have goals), there are some key players I could use your help finding. Send me your favorite, readily-available rye. Goals (abridged): 5 ryes. 4.5 stars. Readily available. (4/5, WT101, Whistlepig 10, Whistlepig 12, Old Riff) I want to recognize the difference between any bourbon and any rye. First try. One of these must be an Empire Rye. (1/1, Hudson) I want a nauseating rye. I want the one that went to Scotland to escape a scandal but falls in love with a castle, thereby having to deal with and/or fall in love with the grumpy but kind duke who resides therein. >>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I can see why they call it a summer rye. Light in nature making good on its ‘summer’ tag. Juicy grapes are front and center with some green apple underneath. Gives me vibes of sparkling grape juice from when I was a kid. White pepper cuts through this sweetness nicely reminding me it’s a rye. Some caramel and molasses show up as well. Finishes dry and earthy with some dill and oregano. Very enjoyable pour.

Ordered a glass at a restaurant. I was expecting something smoother for the price; pretty complex, with a good amount of rye spice on the front. Made it tough for me to pick out more notes because the front end was rough. Now when I added a splash of water... Things for better. I got all those cherry wood and baked apple flavors others mentioned.