On their website, the James E. Pepper Distillery has very little to say about the Old Pepper Rye “Finest Kentucky Oak”. 8 words little: “Very Limited. A few of our favorite barrels…” Good thing they’re a bit more verbose on their bottle (below).
I think it’s interesting they didn’t call this a double oak or double barrel or anything like that. Interesting because there seems to be a sharp uptick in this kind of releases lately. These and rum finishes.
I’m glad they didn’t call it any of that btw, but as always with these, the question is… did they waste those second set of barrels? All too often that’s the case and of course, there’s only one way to find out; on to the rye whiskey review!
Old Pepper Rye “Finest Kentucky Oak” Review: Details and Tasting Notes
In James E Pepper Distillery’s Words:
A fine straight whiskey given a second maturation in a heavily toasted barrel made from staves of the Finest Kentucky Oak, which were air dried for 24 month prior to assembly.
Details (price, mash bill, cask type, ABV, etc.)
Region: Indiana, USA
Distiller: MGP
Bottler: James E. Pepper
Mash Bill: 95% Rye, 5% Malted Barley
Cask: New Charred Oak (2x)
Age: 3 Years
ABV: 58%
Cask Strength | Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color
Batch: K02
Price: $80*
Tasting Notes
EYE
Ruddy oak,
NOSE
Strawberry jam and toast, oak, rye, spice, butterscotch, cocoa and dark fruit.
PALATE
Cocoa, oak, rye spice, anise, clove, dark fruit, char and cardamum.
FINISH
Long -> Sweet and oaky and a touch spicy.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Good sense of balance, medium-full body and an oily heavy feel.
Old Pepper Rye “Finest Kentucky Oak” Review: Overall and Score
This is really good rye. The Aroma is fruity and bold without being too aggressive and killing the sinuses; Palate is sweet and complex without being cloying or overly oaked; Finish goes between spicy and sweet in a nice fade.
Most of the time I think the “doiuble oaked’ stuff is a waste of casks. I’m of the mind to do it right the first time, but this is something else, this is well done and perfectly balanced. I do still think it’s a bad use of good casks, but at least the end result is delicious with this one.
SCORE: 4/5
*Disclosure: This rye whiskey was graciously sent to me by the company for the purposes of this review. The views, opinions, and tasting notes are 100% my own.
Old Pepper Rye Finest Kentucky Oak Review $80
Overall
4- Nose (4.5)
- Palate (3.5)
- Finish (4)
- BBF (4)
User Review
0 (0 votes) Comments Rating 0 (0 reviews)Old Pepper Rye Finest Kentucky Oak Review Summary
Not always a massive fan of these double matured whiskeys, but this one comes together quite well. Nice to see.
