Savage & Cooke Cask Finished Rye Whiskey is distilled from 51% rye, 45% corn and 4% malted barley, with all grain sourced within 50 miles of the distillery. The mash is milled, fermented and distilled on-site in a 20-plate, 24-inch Vendome column still. Aged at least three years in #3 char white American oak barrels from Seguin Moreau, it is finished for about two months in Dave Phinney’s grenache barrels. Water comes from a spring on Phinney’s Alexander Valley property. The whiskey rests at 100 proof and retails for around $50.
The overall experience is quite pleasant. It’s awash with sweet honey, cherries, and green raisins (didn’t expect that from red wine) that make me think that the wine finish is stronger here. For better or worse (mostly better), it’s hard to exactly separate what comes from the rye vs the grenache.
The palate brings in notes of menthol and camphor, spice and floral elements mixing together indiscriminately. Peppery, grassy, and touched with vanilla on the finish, I don’t think you’ll find a more effusive and unique rye on the market.
