Bulleit 12 Year Old Rye Whiskey Review

Sourced from MGP, the Bulleit 12 Year Old Rye Whiskey is made using their famous 95/5 mash bill and costs around $50. Which really isn't that bad for rye carrying an age statement these days. When I first heard about it I was figuring it would be at least 50% higher than that just because of the double-digit age it's carrying; I'm happy to be wrong.

In fact, on the whole, I'm happy with this whiskey, which we'll cover in the rye whiskey review below, but if I had one request it would be higher proof. I'm not mad at 46%, incredibly happy it's not 40%, but would love to see a CS LE version of this at some point, if they have the stocks. Because, while double-digit age-stated rye is rather rare on the market today, cask strength double digit is even more so.

Bulleit 12 Years Rye Whiskey Review: Details and Tasting Notes

Bulleit Rye 12-Year-Old Straight American Whiskey is the fifth addition to the Bulleit Frontier Whiskey family, as well as the first extension of Bulleit Rye, a whiskey with one of the highest rye percentages on the market. Using the same mash bill as its predecessor - 95% rye and 5% malted barley - this small-batch rye whiskey was fully aged and matured to perfection in new charred oak barrels for a minimum of 12 years to create a balance of smoothness and spice worthy of Bulleit Rye's impressive list of credentials.

Bulleit 12 Years Rye Whiskey Review: Details (price, mash bill, cask type, ABV, etc.)

Region: Illinois, USA

Price: $50*

Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color

Bulleit 12 Year Old Rye Whiskey Review: Tasting Notes

NOSE
Rye bread, Smarties, Strawberry Necco, baking spice, dried dark fruit, oak and some chalk, dill, vanilla and metallic notes.

PALATE
Rye spice, cinnamon, tangelo, chalky cocoa, toasted grain, caramel, oak and some notes of passion fruit, chalk, metallic notes and dill.

FINISH
Medium -> Oak, baking spice, dark fruit, dill and menthol.

BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Good sense of balance, medium body and a velvety feel.

Bulleit 12 Year Old Rye Whiskey Review: Overall and Score

Tasty, aromatic this has less of that dilly pickle water character than the regular Bulleit Rye. Aroma is heavy with fruit notes layered with oak, spice and something that's a bit metallic. Palate is remarkably fruity with all the similar rustic and sweet notes that fill the aroma. Finish is nice and ends with a menthol kicker that's the perfect compliment.

It's a good whiskey and the fact that the Bulleit 12 Year Old Rye Whiskey is carrying a half-way decent price point on it makes me happy. It's richer, rounder and all around a better whiskey than the regular Bulleit Rye which I find a bit... rough. This whiskeyis definitely worth at least a taste.

SCORE: 88/100 (B+)

*Disclosure: This Bulleit 12 Year Old 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.