Sagamore Spirit Cask Strength Rye

Sagamore Spirit Cask Strength Rye, 4 YO, 56.1%

The back label says it contains a “splash of spring water”, so technically this cannot be a cask strength whiskey, but I am not sure I should bother. Does anyone care about such facts anymore? Anywho, this is a Maryland rye whiskey, allegedly aged between 4 and 7 years.

The Sagamore Spirit Cask Strength Rye is available from the distillery at USD 69.

Nose: Dark dried fruits set the tone alongside cinnamon, cardamom and earthy vanilla. With time it deepens into tobacco leaves, overripe banana and rye, followed by cracked black peppercorns, worn leather and green herbs. A complex and evolving nose.

Taste: Full bodied and firmly spicy at first, led by black pepper. Cinnamon, earthy vanilla, cardamom and nutmeg follow, before the profile softens into a gentle drizzle of honey and a dusting of icing sugar.

Finish: Medium to long. Increasingly sweet and delicate with icing sugar, vanilla and runny honey. Light and fruity before turning borderline sooty, marked by heavily toasted oak.

Comment: Spicy darkness melting into sweetness. 

Score 88/100

Sláinte!
-Thomas