Sazerac 18 yo Rye (2003)

On July 19th I invited some BOTLs over for a Rye tasting. We tasted 5 different rye whiskies before getting down to the serious drinking In the order of tasting with notes from the participants. The tasters were myself, Tone-ny, rob300c and Cigardawg. All samples were reduced to 90 proof and the other three didn't know what they were sampling until I reveled it at the end.

The Tasting notes form was broken down to:

Color
Body
Nose
Tasting
Finish
Overall

I will be following that format here too so without any more delay here is the third review.

3. Sazerac 18 yo Straight Rye Whiskey (Fall 2003 version) No additional packaging, 90 proof, newer versions available in limited amounts in late fall.




Color
AVB: Dark Amber
Tone-ny: Medium Amber
rob300c: Amber
Cigardawg: Nice dark amber


Body
AVB: Good strong legs
Tone-ny: Medium body
rob300c: Some legs
Cigardawg: A little thin but does have some legs


Nose
AVB: Rose & citrus, slight menthol with soft fruit
Tone-ny: Slightly sherry & vermouth, slight citrus
rob300c: Cherry & mint
Cigardawg: A little alcohol, fruit (pears..bananas?) Nice, can lose yourself; honey sweet with spice.


Tasting
AVB: Smooth! Rye pepper with floral notes and menthol, dried fruits
Tone-ny: Initial warmth with vanilla, a bit of oak spice sharpness and tartness
rob300c: Warm honey, apricot, vanilla & cherry
Cigardawg: Very controlled alcohol. Big oak character but with a ton of rye spice, some maple and over-ripe pear.


Finish
AVB: Long, a bit of vanilla, little oak at all with pepper. Lasts & lasts.
Tone-ny: oak & vanilla
rob300c: Caramel, menthol, apricot & banana. Long!
Cigardawg: Definite menthol; a bit astringent. Long and pleasant oak with memories of pear and spice on the side.


Overall
AVB: Excellent Rye! Will do well over one ice cube or straight up.
Tone-ny: Smooth overall taste with tones of vanilla and a very mild rye finish
rob300c: My favorite so far!
Cigardawg: My favorite of the first 3. Balanced and complex.


You can also see my review of this same bottle from January 2004 here.

I'm really enjoying the series of reviews you guys did. Sounds like it was a lot of fun.
Thanks for sharing!

Still 2 more reviews coming!

WOW Just saw this series of reviews. The invitees are one lucky bunch. Cigardawg was one of the very first BOTLs that I traded with and I am sorry that he doesn't post much anymore. Of course, we know about the other two suspects, don't we :thumbs: :thumbs: ; both outstanding BOTLs ......uuuummmmm did you take a quick peek in Anthony's gigantic travel humi as he was leaving :whistling: :whistling: :laugh: :laugh: .

This stuff seems just about impossible to get unless some retailer is your best buddy. I'm on two waiting lists for this years release. Hope springs eternal.

Nice reviews. Keep them coming.

I hope that you included the Van Winkle 13yo in this group. I would be interested to see how it compares.

The tasting was the icing on the cake, we had a great time and Ray and his wife are great hosts. He always surprises us with his special bottle for the table. Thanks again for sharing and also sharing our reviews with the rest of CP.

Louie the travel humidor was in full site for all to partake, LOL. I will say this, I did smoke less cigars than I ever have at Ray's. I guess I shouldn't have herfed the day before :laugh: