Old Dragon Bones r/T8ke pick 20y Candian Rye. 

Source: Undisclosed Canadian Rye (Possibly Alberta Premium) 

Age: 20 years & 6 months

Proof: 138.8 WOW!

Finishing: finished in PX Sherry Casks

Nose: very sweet, Werthers caramels, dark cherry & or black raspberry fruit obviously a decent amount of ethanol from that proof with a touch of barrel char. 

Palate: Super thick & oily. Like melted butter poured in your mouth. Much sweeter than I expected for the age. But just the right amount. Caramel candys, vanilla but not the fake kind more like straight vanilla from the bean. Definitely some of that dark cherry almost cola like flavor shows up. Some stuff hidden in there my palate can’t pickup as well. 

Finish: a fantastic earthy, herbal finish that explodes past the palate. There is a note I pickup in some ryes (I’ve had it in Basil Haydens Dark rye, A High West Double Rye pick finished in Port & a couple others) that reminds me of the smell of fresh potting soil. I also get it in Jelly Belly Beanboozled Dirt flavored pieces. It’s this bright, earthy flavor that to me is refreshing. And then there is some mint & green herbal notes at the end that shine through nicely. And then right at the end it dries up & turns to a fantastic oak bomb & dusty leather. 

Final thoughts: I’m always on the hunt for super unique bottles & this one is one of the best. I’ve also been on a rye kick lately. This hits on both fronts. I don’t know for sure who distilled this, but I need more! It’s rich, viscous, flavorful to the max & so complex. I’m definitely not getting all the notes in this thing. It changes drastically from one second to the next. It really takes you on a ride. The more you sip, the more it changes. I let this rest for about 30 minutes due to the proof. The first 2 sips while hot, didn’t really seem like almost 140 proof to me & along the rest of the way it became easier & easier. 

I’m having a bit of a trouble rating it. Because it’s so incredibly good & I definitely think it’s one of my top bottles. 

I did try it with a few drops of water. And it surprisingly got sweeter & more of that caramel came through. Typically adding water makes it drier & more of the barrel influence shows up. 

Rating 9.5/10