Jack Daniel's 2023 Special Release Twice Barreled Heritage Barrel Tennessee Rye Whiskey

VITALS:

- $70

- 100 Proof

- 8 years, 4 mos.

- Tennessee

While Jack Daniel's has seemingly shifted focus towards its age stated Tennessee Whiskey (and for good reason, those are incredible!), we'd all be remiss if we forgot about these initial Heritage Barrel limited releases that seemed to open a lot of people's eyes to just how amazing some of the stuff coming out of Jack Daniel's really is.

This was the second rye that Jack released as part of the Heritage Barrel series. It's "twice barreled," but now days that would be more readily recognized as a "toasted barrel," as its second maturation was in "heavy-toast, low-char heritage barrels."  Given that I've had other toasted barrel ryes that I've loved (Michter's and Elijah Craig, to name two), I didn't think twice about picking this bottle up. 

On the nose I got some of those great notes that made me love rye -- a sort of wintergreen mintyness, along with a light licorice note and a spicy cinnamon note. These are the kinds of flavors that made me fall in love with rye in the first place. It had a rich molasses sweetness on the nose as well, along with a hint of unsweetened vanilla.

I couldn't wait to dive in after pouring my first glass.  After smelling this from the bottle, I anticipated a certain level of sweetness that was never really there. Rather, it was full of rich and earthy flavors. I got licorice or anise almost right away, along with that spicy cinnamon hitting the tip of my tongue. It was also very vanilla forward, but, again, that unsweetened vanilla.

While this rye didn't sit in the barrel long, it was double barreled, and the oak certainly came through. It wasn't bitter or drying, but just added another layer of earthy notes. That oak was complemented by a pine note as well, a bit resin-like, but which seemed to go great with the unsweetened vanilla.

I really did miss the minty note that I got off the nose. I was excited when that aroma first hit, but then a bit disappointed when I didn't get that note on the palate. However, I did get a sweet walnut note that was a very pleasant surprise. It kept with the earthy notes, but added a sweet, almost candied element that was very welcome. As a result, this really seemed to sweeten up on the finish, completing the ride in a way.

Although I wanted that mint, this was still a very fun whiskey, and I really couldn't put my glass down. It was earthy and punchy and yet softly lowered you to the ground with a sweet finish. 

Grade: B+

Elijah Craig Toasted Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey

VITALS:
- $50

- 94 Proof

- NAS

- Kentucky

I feel like I'm usually up on new releases, particularly mainstay products from the big producers. Yet, this one caught me by surprise. In fact, when I was in the store and saw it on the shelf, I initially walked right past it thinking it was the toasted bourbon. I did a double take, as something was a bit different about the label, and I saw it was a toasted rye.

While I'm not big on toasted bourbon, I've has some positive past experiences with toasted ryes, so I didn't even bother with researching it.  I had no clue if this was a special or limited release or something that was going to be around consistently. I just put it in my basket without a second thought, and cracked the bottle as soon as I got home, just to satisfy my curiosity.

The nose provided a great mix of sweet and spice. I got a bit of a sweet malty note, as well as a distinct cinnamon note. But it didn't come across as spicy, but rather sweet cinnamon, kind of like the inside of one of those Fireball hard candies I remember from grade school.  There was also a bit of sweet spearmint to it as well.

The flavor brought that same balance of sweet and spice as well, and perhaps leaned a bit more to the sweeter side.  There was an undertone of shortbread cookie that I absolutely loved. Layered on top of that was a sweet honey note as well as a woody, earthy pine note. Yet it never came across as bitter.

There were malty notes, but sweet. It reminded me a bit of Honey Nut Cheerios. But along with that was a vanilla note, adding a sort of frosting quality. There was also a bright minty note, but, again, always leaned sweet.  It was that sweet mint and vanilla that really seemed to stand out on the finish, and I think that's what I liked most about this bottle.

I mention "sweet" a lot, but it was never overly sweet. It was just on the sweeter end of the rye spectrum. But it was delicious, and I was very impressed by what is otherwise now a mainstay on the shelf. I was surprised as the grade that I couldn't help but give this, but I liked it too much to give it anything lower.

Grade: A-

Michter's Barrel Strength Toasted Barrel Finish Kentucky Straight Rye - 2020

VITALS:
- $70
- 109.2 Proof
- NAS
- Barrel No. 20H1738
- Kentucky

Three years ago Michter's followed up their annual Toasted Barrel Bourbon with their Toasted Barrel Rye. Up to that point, I had only heard about the Toasted Barrel Bourbon, but had never gotten my hands on it. When I got my chance to grab a rye, I remember being thrilled at the chance. And once I opened it, I was even more thrilled at just how damn good it was!! Even three years later I still remember that bottle and just how much I really loved it.

Of course, from there Michter's went back to the Toasted Barrel Bourbon, and they even released a Toasted Barrel Sour Mash. But this past year, they went back to the Toasted Barrel Rye well, and I couldn't have been more thrilled. Once it was announced I put all my feelers out there to make sure that I got my hands on a bottle, and luckily for me it paid off. It's not every time that I get a new bottle that I open it right away, but that was absolutely the case here.

The nose on this one was soft and mellow. I got the traditional notes of brown sugar and vanilla. There was also the anticipated light note of pine, as well as a decent amount of cinnamon spice. I did get a sort of salted caramel note, however, that seemed to take over more and more as I made my way through the bottle, which I really enjoyed.

That caramel note really seemed to carry over to the flavor, but with a slight twist. It was almost like a spiced caramel. In addition to the rich, sugary sweetness of the caramel, it also had a nice spicy mix of black pepper and cinnamon. It was a great mix of sweet and heat, something that to me defines a good rye.

It had a light woodiness to it, that betrayed some age, though not a lot, and it certainly wasn't enough to dry it out at all. It was, without question, a sweeter rye whiskey. However, the light notes of pine and that mix of pepper and cinnamon was enough to keep it from being overly sweet.

On the final few pours I was consistently getting a flavor that was familiar to me, but I just wasn't able to place it. Eventually, though, it hit me, and I was definitely getting a prominent note of pancakes with maple syrup. It's at this point that the spice really took a back seat and that it truly became a sweet rye. It was still delicious, don't get me wrong, but it wasn't quite what I loved about the first 3/4ths of the bottle.

It's possible I built this one up to much in my mind. It's also possible that this one simply wasn't as good as the first run. That said, that first run set the bar very high, and I can't say that I was necessarily expecting it to get over that bar. That said, this was still a fantastic whiskey, one which I had a hard time saving, despite how much I may have wanted to. I hope Michter's continues to make this, as, at least in my mind, it's the best of the toasted barrel offerings.

Grade: A-

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon

VITALS:

- $45

- 94 Proof

- NAS

- Kentucky

I love getting my hands on new products from the big guys. It seems that with the big distillers like Heaven Hill it's getting harder and harder to release creative new products that are not allocated or limited releases. That's why we're seeing traditionally bourbon brands releasing rye whiskeys (Old Forester and Rare Breed) as well as expansions of existing lines (such as Weller and Benchmark).

That being said, when it's a solid, well-loved brand like Elijah Craig, and when the creativity doesn't stray too far from what's been working, I'm all for it! Toasted barrel finishes certainly aren't anything new, but it is new to Heaven Hill. I think Elijah Craig was a good product to use for it, too, being on the lighter side of pricing which helps keep more limited releases such as this (I honestly have no idea just how limited this will be) at a reasonable price.  The same can be said for the Barrel Strength as well.

As expected based on my experience with other toasted barrel finish whiskeys, this immediately came off sweeter than normal Elijah Craig on the nose. I got some light burnt orange or orange peel, as well as some salted peanuts.  However, I also got some rich toffee as well as kind of a white sugar note. It was almost like light corn syrup, and I got a bit of sugar cookie from it.

As to flavor, one of the first notes I got was a light oak flavor. It wasn't strong, and I was surprised that it was what hit me first. Immediately behind that, though, were the flavors I was getting from the nose. I got a lot of toffee from front to back, including on the finish. I also got that orange peel or burnt orange note. This combo was pretty consistent throughout.

I also got some dark cherry, with a little bit of anise bite to it. There were some notes of almond extract as well to add a bit of richness and complexity to the flavor.  I'm not sure exactly which notes may have been added by the finishing in the toasted barrel, whether it was the toffee notes or the anise spice--perhaps both.

Overall, though, this came across as a bit sweeter than Elijah Craig, but also spicier. However, the added spice wasn't peppery or even cinnamon, as so many bourbons tend to lean.  Rather, it was that anise note, even a bit of a ginger bite, that seemed to amp this bourbon up a bit. Additionally, there was an added rich layer of dark cherry and dark chocolate, particularly towards the end, that added to the richness and complexity.  While this isn't necessarily in my wheelhouse (anise and dark chocolate aren't really my thing), I know many bourbon drinkers that would love this profile. So take my grade with a grain of salt.  There are those out there that will love this for sure.

Grade: B