Tasting notes

nose

butterscotch, cinnamon and cherry, with crème brûlée and spiced apple pastry

palate

full and silky with a firm tannic grip; toasted vanilla and caramel, then cherry, green apple peel, clove, gingerbread and brown sugar

finish

medium-long and warming; apple peel, cinnamon and toasted marshmallow, with tobacco and peanut brittle before dry oak spice closes it

Mash bill

Rye, corn and malted barley, in proportions Michter's does not publish. Michter's makes its rye in what it calls a Kentucky style, with more corn and malted barley than most American ryes carry, and Master Distiller Dan McKee says that extra corn and barley gives a rich sweetness to set against the rye spice. Michter's describes this barrel-strength version as a way to taste those traditional rye traits with the balance of sweetness and spice left uncut.

Why it's craft

Michter's fills its rye barrels at 103 proof, well below the 125 allowed, and says the lower entry gives a richer whiskey even though it costs more in barrels and warehouse space. This release shows that choice uncut: every bottle comes from a single barrel, at the strength that barrel reached. It first appeared in May 2015, part of the rye revival Michter's has worked on since the 1990s. Michter's does not say where the rye in this release was distilled; its own Louisville stills filled their first barrel in August 2015.