Jack Daniel's Single Barrel Special Release 2020: Barrel Proof Rye

I’d like to thank the folks at Jack Daniel’s for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

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We are going to do something a little bit different tonight. Usually, my wife and I do our tasting notes on Sunday afternoon. It’s a nice relaxing weekend activity that allows us to have plenty of time to think about our notes before publishing. Then when I’m writing we enjoy a little of that night’s topic just to verify that we hadn’t gone completely crazy on Sunday. Well, tonight I called a last-minute audible. These notes are from tonight and I had never tasted this product before 1 pm this afternoon.

You might be asking why I was drinking at 1 pm on a Thursday afternoon. And that would be an understandable question. Well, today I had the opportunity to have my very first Zoom call. And it happened to be with the new Jack Daniel’s Master Distiller Chris Fletcher.

Which is where the booze came in.

See this was a call with other writers to introduce the 2020 Jack Daniel’s Special Release. Being an opinion writer and not a reporter, I didn’t have many questions. But luckily for you, the other writers did. Here is what I learned about this particular release.

• The whiskey in this release was distilled in January 2015, so it is in the 5-6 year range. That is typical for Jack Daniel’s single barrel releases.

• The mashbill is 70% Rye, 12% Malted Barley and 18% Corn which is the same as their other rye releases.

• Jack Daniel’s rye distillate is run through 3 feet of charcoal before barreling instead of the 10 feet that their “bourbon mashbill” is run through.

• Their Master Distiller used the words “Bourbon Mashbill” to describe their non-rye whiskey.

• The majority of Jack Daniel’s Single Barrels come from the top floors of about 30-40 of their warehouses that had been previously identified as producing good single barrels. This release came from those same areas.

• There were 200 barrels in this release and they got about 130-150 bottles per barrel.

• The sample release of 130.8° proof is about average for their whiskey barrels after 5-6 years.

• This release was non-chill filtered, only being run through a single cellulose pad to keep the barrel chunks out of the bottles.

• This began to roll out nationwide at the end of November and the suggested retail price is $64.99.

Jack Daniel's Single Barrel Special Release 2020: Barrel Proof Rye

Purchase info: This sample was graciously provided by Jack Daniel’s for review purposes. Suggested retail price is $64.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50mL): $4.33

Details: 5-6 years old (unofficially as isn’t on the label). 65.4% ABV.

Nose: Cinnamon red hots, brown sugar, maple, vanilla, and chocolate.

Mouth: Spearmint, spicy cinnamon, dusty oak, barrel char, maple, vanilla, and dark chocolate.

Finish: Long and warm with lingering mint, cinnamon, and barrel stave.

Thoughts: I will be specifically looking for this on every trip to the liquor store for the next while. It’s a delicious rye whiskey. I'm a fan of the single barrel rye that is on shelves year-round, but it really sings at barrel proof. I really like this one.

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Heaven's Door Trilogy

I’d love to start this out by quoting the song that this whiskey is named after, but I’m of an age that I identified Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door as a Guns N Roses song instead of as a Bob Dylan song for most of my young life. I may never get that association out of my head and out of respect for other people my age who have had Axl Rose’s voice inflicted upon them, I’m not going to mention this again.

Heaven’s Door Whiskey is a brand created in collaboration with Bob Dylan, musician, native of my adopted home state of Minnesota, and (as I learned while researching the brand) Iron Gate Artist. The brand website is filled with images of Mr. Dylan creating his gates. In fact, the artwork on the front of each bottle is a representation of some of those gates.

I had no idea. I thought that was pretty cool.

These bottles came out of a multipack that I found on an end cap in my local Total Wine. I originally thought it was a gift set and I had slotted it in as part of last week’s rundown. But that post got a little too long to tack three reviews onto the end of it. And honestly, I don’t know if it was a holiday gift set or just a way for folks to try their core whiskeys.

So, here are the three core releases from Heaven’s Door. A Tennessee Bourbon, a Straight Rye finished in French Oak, and Double Barrel Whiskey (a blend of three six-year-old whiskeys that was aged in a second barrel for an additional year). Let’s see how they taste.

Heaven's Door Tennessee Bourbon

Purchase Info: $56.99 for three 200 mL bottles at Total Wine, Burnsville, MN. This whiskey at the same store is $46.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $3.13 (for the 750 mL)

Details: 45% ABV

Nose: Cherry, vanilla, cola.

Mouth: Sweet. Cinnamon, vanilla, cherry cola, and oak.

Finish: Medium length and warmth. Lingering notes of cherry and oak.

Thoughts: The nose on this is delicate but delicious. I'm loving the vanilla, cherry cola notes on the whiskey. I usually turn my nose up at "celebrity" whiskey brands, but this is good. I'd buy it again.

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Heaven's Door Double Barrel Whiskey

Purchase Info: $56.99 for three 200 mL bottles at Total Wine, Burnsville, MN. This whiskey at the same store is $46.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $3.13 (for the 750 mL)

Details: 50% ABV. Three 6-year-old whiskies combined then rebarrelled for a year.

Nose: Spearmint, Caramel, bubblegum, and raspberry

Mouth: I'm going to date myself on this one, but the first note I got was the "cardboard flavored gum" that came in a pack of Topps baseball cards in the early '80s. There are also mint, caramel, cinnamon, and oak notes.

Finish: Medium length and Warmth. Lingering cinnamon, and oak.

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Thoughts: Not really as much of a fan of this one. I definitely prefer the Tennessee Bourbon. The oak is a bit too forward and not well integrated. This one is a meh.

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Heaven's Door Straight Rye Whiskey finished in Vosges Oak Barrels

Purchase Info: $56.99 for three 200 mL bottles at Total Wine, Burnsville, MN. This whiskey at the same store is $75.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $5.07 (for the 750 mL)

Details: 46% ABV. Finished in toasted oak barrels from Vosges, France

Nose: Cinnamon, ginger, cedar, tall wild grasses, citrus zest

Mouth: Spicy and sweet. Bubblegum, citrus, cedar, cinnamon, and cardamom.

Finish: Warm and on the longer side of medium. Follows the month with bubblegum, cinnamon, and oak.

Thoughts: This is good, but not $75 good. I'd happily accept a glass if you are buying though.

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Wild Turkey Rye (81 proof)

Don’t tell my wife this, but I can be quite absent-minded. Even when I was young, I’d wander into a room and have absolutely no idea why I was there. I once found a tv remote in the refrigerator. I even once forgot my Aunt’s name.

I wasn’t proud of that last one. She’d been in the family since before I was born. I’ve made sure to use her name repeatedly every time I’ve talked to her since. I really want to make sure that she knows I remember.

Another recent example is tonight’s whiskey. Last month I did a rundown of all the Wild Turkey Rye whiskeys in comparison to their most recent rye release, Rare Breed Rye. But, do you know what I didn’t do? Look to see if I had ever reviewed any of them prior to that.

Luckily for me, I’d done the 101 Rye multiple times, both before and after its hiatus a few years back. I’d also reviewed Russell’s Reserve Rye. But…yeah. Never did the standard 81 proof version. I’m thinking that it is about time to remedy that. Especially since my bottle is getting a bit low.

Wild Turkey Rye (81 proof)

Purchase Info: $22.99 for a 750 mL bottle, Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Price per Drink (50 mL): $1.53

Details: 40.5% ABV

Nose: Mint, dried grass, clove, cinnamon, and a candy sweetness.

Mouth: Mint, cinnamon, cedar, and a light sweetness.

Finish: Short and pretty gentle. Lingering notes of mint and cinnamon candies.

Thoughts: I think of this one primarily as a cocktail ingredient. The flavors stand up well to other ingredients in rye-based cocktails. It's ok neat, but nothing to write home about. I'd much prefer a pour of 101 Rye if I was going to sip neat. For a cocktail though, I think I prefer the 81. It tastes just as good in spirit-forward cocktails, but is less expensive and allows you to consume slightly less alcohol.

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Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye

Just about one month ago, my wife and I each had a birthday. Because our birthdays are within a couple of days of each other, we tend to celebrate them together. Usually, we’ll go out to eat, see a movie, and maybe buy a bottle of our favorite “Special Occasion” bourbon (Wild Turkey Rare Breed).

Well, this year we didn’t go out to eat. Instead, I smoked a couple of Ribeye steaks. We didn’t go out to see a movie. Instead, we bought the new Bill & Ted movie and watched that at home. I did buy a bottle of Rare Breed Bourbon, but as I was looking up the price ahead of my trip to the liquor store, I noticed that Total Wine was also listing the new Rare Breed Rye as being in stock at a few of the stores in the area.

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Bourbon is one of our favorites and one that we will often celebrate special occasions with. I also really like Wild Turkey 101 Rye whiskey. So I was pretty excited to bring the new bird into our birthday celebration. Unfortunately, it wasn’t at my usual store. Luckily it was at a location a few suburbs away.

I consider that extra drive part of my wife’s birthday present.

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye

Purchase Price: $61.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Total Wine, Chanhassen, MN

Price per Drink (50mL): $4.13

Details: 56.1% ABV

Nose: Mint, a hint of dill, brown sugar, cinnamon, and cedar

Mouth: Bright and lively. Mint, ginger, citrus zest, cinnamon

Finish: Medium and warm. Cedar and cinnamon notes linger.

Thoughts: This might just be my new favorite sipping rye. I really like the 100 proof Old Forester rye, but the added proof on this one raises Rare Breed Rye above that. Rare Breed Bourbon is my favorite Wild Turkey Bourbon. Depending on the day, I can see this competing with that for my favorite Wild Turkey product.

So, how does this newcomer compare to the other Ryes in the Wild Turkey lineup? In case you were curious, I’ve done a mini If You’ve Had… for the Wild Turkey Ryes below.

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Comparison to Other Turkey Ryes

Rare Breed Rye vs 101 Rye:

Noses are very similar. Rare Breed is bright and lively whereas 101 tends more toward sweet caramel flavors

Rare Breed Rye vs Russell’s Reserve Rye

Russell’s Reserve is sweeter and fruitier on the nose. On the mouth, Russell's Reserve shows more ripe fruit compared to the citrus zest of Rare Breed. Russell's Reserve also shows more oak.

Rare Breed Rye vs 81 Rye:

The nose on 81 is less concentrated. Much like 101, 81 is sweeter in presentation and obviously Rare Breed Rye has much more burn due to the 30 point proof difference.

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Four Gate Whiskey Company: Batch 7, River Kelvin Rye

I’d like to thank Four Gate Whiskey Company for providing a review sample with no strings attached.

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If you’ve been reading my work for any length of time, you will know that I am a very frugal person. Probably not as frugal as many of my readers, I mean I do buy enough whiskey to keep this site filled with reviews. But I am pretty frugal in spite of, or maybe because of, that.

I appreciate delicious whiskey but I know that you don’t have to spend a lot of money to get a delicious whiskey. In fact, much of the time what you are paying for is scarcity, not quality. Though they might line up on occasion, charging $100 for a whiskey doesn't make it a good whiskey. Charging $200 doesn’t make it better. Cost and quality can, and do often align, but that is more correlation than causation.

Take tonight’s whiskey. This whiskey is described as “95/5 Indiana Straight Rye” on the info sheet. I’m going to guess MGP but have not asked specifically. They aren’t selling a bottle of barrel strength MGP for $175 because it is amazing whiskey (though odds are that it is, MGP very consistently makes amazing whiskey). They are selling it for that price because they are only selling 1,484 bottles of the stuff.

Is the price unreasonable? Well, from the producer’s side of the equation..no idea. I have no idea how much a barrel of 7-year-old MGP rye sells for these days. But I did some quick math based on the retail cost and if every bottle sells at the Suggested Retail Price only $259,685 will be made from Batch 7. And that will need to be split between the retailer, the distributor, the tax agencies (state, local and federal), and the producer who will then use their cut to pay for overhead, supplies, and manpower while hopefully making a profit.

I honestly didn’t think that I was going to be defending the price of the whiskey when I sat down to write this. And I’m really not. Like I said above, I am super frugal, and a freelancer, so there is no way I can afford a bottle of their product. But after sitting down to do the math, I can at least understand why a company might feel the need to charge this high of a price. Whether that price is worth it to you on the retail end is not my call. But let’s see what it tastes like anyway.

Four Gate Whiskey Company: Batch 7, River Kelvin Rye

Purchase Info: This sample was graciously supplied by the producer for review purposes. Suggested retail price is: $174.99

Price per Drink (50 mL): $11.67

Details: “95/5 Indiana Straight Rye” (going out on a limb to say that means MGP though this has not been confirmed by the company), 56.6% ABV, 7 years old, 1,484 bottle batch. Available in Kentucky and Indiana.

Nose: Mint, bubble gum, brown sugar, baking spices

Mouth: Mint, brown sugar, baking spice, oak

Finish: Long and spicy. Cooling mint, brown sugar oak, cinnamon, and a hint of cedar.

Thoughts: This is a delicious rye whiskey. It is also, as I said above, way out of my price range. If $175 is an easy spend for you, then this is great. You should buy it if you see it. If like me, you gasp a little at the thought of paying almost $200 for a whiskey, then you should probably pass on this one. It is a very good “95/5 Indiana Straight Rye” (probably MGP) but there are a ton of those out there that are in my price range even if they don’t have the same age or proof on them.

I will, however, be looking forward to the two barrel finished batches of this whiskey that they will be putting out later this year. One in the “Split-Stave” style barrels that they have used on previous bourbon batches and one that will be finished in a “Ruby Port-Rum casks.” I’ve saved as much as could of this sample to compare on the off-chance they send a sample of either of them over.

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Willett Family Estate Bottled Small Batch Rye, 2-, 3- and 4-years-old

Just as the pandemic started gaining steam in the US and just as Minnesota was entering our lockdown phase, I finally decided to get off my butt, hop in the truck, and drop off a few of the whiskey samples for a buddy of mine. Talk about waiting until the last minute.

I left them on his front porch and in return he left something for me. It was a perfectly socially distanced exchange as we waved at each other through the windows. I had included a few of the more interesting items that I had picked up since we had last gotten together along with some of the fun things that producers had sent my way. He included a couple of samples of things he’d picked up along with two bottles of Willett Family Estate Bottled Small Batch Rye. He’d warned me that he was including “something that might inspire a trip to the store for a vertical tasting.”

To say I was shocked at two full bottles being in my sample bag was an understatement, but all I can say is that I really do have the best friends.

Willett Family Estate Bottled Small Batch Rye, 2-year old

Purchase info: This was a very generous gift from a good friend. Guessing it had been sitting in his collection since it was first released.

Details: 55.7% ABV. Two years old.

Nose: Cinnamon candies, orange zest, and cedar

Mouth: Cedar, orange zest, toffee, ginger

Finish: Medium length with lingering notes of "orange slice" jelly candies, cinnamon, and hints of cedar wood.

Thoughts: Very bright and energetic. Spice, citrus, and cedar throughout. I originally reviewed this way back in 2014. At the time, I thought it needed to more time to age, but these days, I’m ok with the bright energetic flavor of it. In fact, I really enjoyed it. It’s fun to see how our tastes evolve when you’ve had over half a decade between tastings of a product.

Willett Family Estate Bottled Small Batch Rye, 3-year old

Purchase info: This was a very generous gift from a good friend. Guessing it had been sitting in his collection since it was first released.

Details: 55.2% ABV. Three years old.

Nose: Toffee, cinnamon, orange zest, and cedar

Mouth: Cinnamon candies, "orange slice" jelly candies, toffee, Cedar, and a nutty note.

Finish: Long and warm with lingering nutty notes. Cinnamon and cedar with hints of dark chocolate.

Thoughts: You can definitely tell this started as the same whiskey. This is a lot sweeter as the sweet barrel notes are influencing the orange to make it more candy-like.

Willett Family Estate Bottled Small Batch Rye, 4-year old

Purchase info: $47.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Price per Drink (50mL): $3.20

Details: 55% ABV. Four years old.

Nose: Dark Chocolate, toffee, cinnamon, and cedar

Mouth: Cedar, cinnamon candies, dark chocolate, toffee, and hints of mint

Finish: Long and warm with lots of cinnamon and cedar, some dark chocolate, and just hints of orange.

Thoughts: I found it interesting how by four-years-old the orange notes are practically non-existent. I'm getting just hints of them at the tail end of the finish. It is also interesting how that cedar note intensified.

In fact, the cedar was one of the dominant flavors throughout the vertical. If you are like my wife and you do not like that flavor, you won't like these. If you like it then you should pick up a bottle. Me? I don't love it, but I don't mind it either. It’s not my favorite rye whiskey note, but it is one I have enjoyed on more than one occasion.

Weirdly, I actually think the four-year-old is actually my least favorite of the bunch. Contrary to my 2014 assessment, maybe it didn’t need time to “grow up.” Compared to the brightness of the 2-year-old, the current 4-year-old feels muted. In fact, I actually prefer to blend the three rather than drinking any of them alone. The base of the four year old brings richness while the addition of the 2-year-old adds a bit of liveliness to the whiskey that I really enjoy.

Overall, as with many ryes, I’ll probably use these in cocktails more than I will neat. I like them but, I think I might have some blending to do in the near future so that I like them even more.

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Dad's Hat Pennsylvania Straight Rye Whiskey

Just a little over five years ago, I took my first look at a product from Dad’s Hat. It was a nine-month-old rye whiskey that had been finished in Vermouth barrels. I wasn’t really a fan. I rated it a meh and said the following:

Not being a fan of really young ryes, this is not quite to my palate. That said, it feels like it was a nicely crafted rye before the barrel finishing and I hope they have some stuck away in big barrels for the future.

Honestly, it was the vermouth that threw me on the last one as much as the age. (Turns out, I’m not really a fan of vermouth.) So when I noticed this four-year-old version sitting on the shelf of my local Total Wine during a recent “content run” I knew that I’d need to take another look at the brand. And of course, I picked one that had been aged long enough that it no longer needed an age-statement, even though they were kind enough to put one on the label anyway.

Dad's Hat Pennsylvania Straight Rye Whiskey

Purchase Info: $59.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Total Wine, Burnsville, MN.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $4.00

Details: Aged a minimum of four years. 47.58 ABV. Mash bill: 80% rye, 20% malt. Aged in 53-gallon barrels.

Nose: Cedar greenery and mint.

Mouth: Cedar, oak, mint, caramel, ginger.

Finish: Medium and warm. Lingering notes of pine needles, anise, and greenery.

Thoughts: Lots of cedar and mint on this one. A good hit of rye malt flavor on the finish, even though the mash bill doesn't list malted rye in it. This pairs very nicely with the Summit "Juicy" IPA I'm having with it. There are similar pine/cedar flavors in them.

Fun fact, I like this better when tasting in a Glencairn glass than I do while drinking it out of my usual old fashioned glass. That’s kind of a knock against it for me as I don’t like drinking out of a Glencairn. Overall I like this because it is interesting but I don’t know that I’ll be reaching for it frequently. Definitely a “change of pace” neat pour for me. It makes a hell of a cocktail though. That said, I’m not sure I’m willing to dish out another $60 for a product I’ll mainly be using as a mixer.

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George Dickel Rye Whiskey

Damn, I’m tired.

I’m not sure if you noticed this, but I am a wonderful husband. So much so that I took today “off” from work in order to build my wife a permanent fence around her garden. Well, start building anyway. This is going to be a much bigger job than I had anticipated when I told her that my building this was her Mother’s Day present. Today I used an auger to dig 14 two-foot holes and put in 14 posts. If I had good soil, it probably wouldn’t have taken as long (or been nearly as hard) but I live on clay. Very wet clay.

The good news is that if I ever decide to get into pottery, I have all I would ever need just a few inches below the surface of my yard.

Luckily for me, my wife is an amazing wife too. As I finished cleaning up and sat down to write, a Sazerac magically appeared at hand. She decided that I needed to have a post-work cocktail. And knowing what I was writing about tonight, she used that.

George Dickel Rye is the whiskey that made me realize that I’d never reviewed most of the Dickel lineup. I seriously thought I had. I bought it right after it came out for the express purpose of reviewing it. It was an era when most of the rye coming out was from MGP. This probably was as well, though I doubt anyone actually admitted as much. But I remember that the word on the street was that they bought it fully aged and then ran it through charcoal. Kinda the opposite of the Lincoln County process that Dickel usually uses.

But I wanted to see what the filtering did to the product. At the time, I really didn’t notice much and I’ve bought it as a cocktail rye off and on since. And yes, the entire time, I thought I had reviewed it. So here I am finally making up for lost time and letting you know what I think of one of my rotating cocktail ryes (I guess that might be a hint right there).

George Dickel Rye Whiskey

Purchase Info: $24.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Village Liquors, Prior Lake, MN

Price per Drink (50 mL): $1.67

Details: 95% Rye whiskey mash. 45% ABV. Filtered through maple charcoal.

Nose: Cedar, mint, hints of brown sugar.

Mouth: Brown sugar, mint, cedar.

Finish: Gentle and on the shorter end of medium length. Notes of mint, baking spice, and a hint of maple.

Thoughts: I like this one as a cocktail rye. It has a lot of the typical 95% Rye-Style flavor notes but is just a bit sweeter than I like my rye to be when I sip on it. I really like it in an Old Fashioned or Sazerac though.

OK. Now. I am off to take my second shower of the day because, honestly, I stink.

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Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

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