I look forward to High West Distillery’s annual release of A Midwinter Night’s Dram. It is always an excellent whiskey. This year it is a rye whiskey finished in Port Wine casks. The whiskey is only bottled by High West Distillery so at least part of the rye going into this bottle is sourced whiskey. There is nothing wrong with sourcing whiskey and High West sources some excellent barrels. They then finish the whiskey in Port wine casks, but they do it in a way that allows the rye whiskey to shine through the finish. Matt and I sat down to taste this rye whiskey the other day and here are our tasting notes.
A Midwinter Night’s Dram, Act 14, scene 1
Proof: 98.6
Age: No Age Statement
Nose:
- Mike: Rye grass, caramel, raisins, plums, baking spices and oak wood.
- Matt: Rye grass, cereal grains, pomegranate, raisins, baking spices and oak wood.
Taste:
- Mike: Rye grass, caramel, raisins, plums, cinnamon and oak wood. Tasted with a dried cranberry brought out a note of cherry and black pepper. Tasted with a pecan and raspberry notes with black pepper join the party.
- Matt: Rye grass, caramel, raisins, citrus notes, floral notes and oak wood. The dried cranberry added brown sugar to the mix of flavors. The pecan added chocolate and butterscotch to the flavors.
Finish:
- Mike: Medium long with oak wood, cinnamon, black licorice, and caramel. The dried cranberry made the finish longer with oak wood, black pepper and black licorice. The pecan made the finish long with oak wood, raspberry, black licorice and lingering caramel.
- Matt: Medium long with oak wood and raisin fruit. The dried cranberry made the finish longer and added black licorice to the finish. The pecan made the finish long with oak wood, butterscotch and black licorice.
I would pair this rye whiskey with an Arturo Fuente Gran Reserva Maduro cigar. I think the vanilla and caramel in the smoke would pair well with the sweeter aspects of the whiskey.
Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller