Jack Rose High West Tasting! Double Rye, Rendezvous Rye, Campfire, Cask Strength Bourbon, and Jack Rose's Aquavit Pick Reviews
Background
Coming to you live, and by live I mean two weeks late, from the Jack Rose High West Tasting! Honestly, it's pretty tough to beat the cost of this one. $25 to taste through five whiskeys, not a bad way to spend a random Tuesday evening! We even got to take home a High West Glencairn, so big thanks to the Jack Rose team for putting this on. Will keep it short and sweet in the intro since all five whiskeys are reviewed below!
High West Double Rye (NAS, 92 Proof)
Nose: Applejacks and a wholeeee lot of mint! Pretty straightforward in my opinion, and minty fresh.
Palate: Sliced apples dipped in honey, cloves and cinnamon. Funny how the mint dropped off and it shifted to more apple/cinnamon centric. It's a little oily in texture which is nice.
Finish: I’m still picking up a lot of apples and cinnamon hanging around. There's an off-putting, astringent wood note. The spice level also goes about one notch up from the palate, which is a little sweeter.
Sub-par (4/10)
Overall: Not terrible, but just kind of a snooze to be honest. The palate is thin, and fairly simplistic. I certainly don’t think I’d find a whole lot more interesting sip by sip over the course of a botte, and the finish leaves me kind of trying to chew away that weird wood note.
High West Rendezvous Rye (NAS, 92 Proof)
Nose: Orange marmalade, cinnamon sticks, and still a fair bit of mint.
Palate: More of that jammy citrus with some baking spices and honestly more apples. Though it has more of an artificial, applesauce flavor then the Double Rye, which was closer to a natural apple note.
Finish: I still get a somewhat off, damp wood note. There's a big, nice, baking spice kick that helps it out though. It does drop off a bit quick.
Sub-par to Good (4.5/10)
Overall: A slight step up from Double Rye, but still nothing that knocks me out. I wish I could shake that damn astringent note from these finishes. The spice is nice, especially when paired with the rich fruit.
High West Campfire (NAS, 92 Proof)
Nose: Smoldering logs and ash, creme brulee charred too long, roasted walnuts.
Palate: Toasted marshmallows, chewy caramel, and yeah... A campfire! The smoke is anchored well by the sweeter notes coming from the bourbon.
Finish: A LOT of toasted marshmallows and vanilla, it's sweet but smokey with both lingering in equal measure.
Good to Very Good (5.5/10)
Overall: A whiskey that absolutely succeeds at its premise. It's got a lot going on, and sometimes the smoke tilts a littleeee too far towards "ash" but still, I enjoy it. To hear the High West rep tell it, “I swear, this tastes better around a Campfire.” Honestly, I believe him!
Jack Rose American Prairie Bourbon finished in Aquavit Casks (NAS, 92 Proof)
Nose: Redberry jam, muddled mint, and a bunch of anise and herbal funk coming through.
Palate: Oh that's weird. Black pepper and anise and melted licorice. There is also a herbaceous background that reminds me of absinthe.
Finish: Peppercorn, more jammy red fruit, lemon and yeah a lot of spice!
Very Good to Great (6.5/10)
Overall: WEIRD! And I like weird. Jack Rose loves going off profile and I love them for it. There's a bunch of pepper but before it verges into too hot, the red fruit and herbal notes show through to save the day. Robust flavor for its 92 proof.
High West Cask Strength Bourbon (NAS, 117.4 Proof)
Nose: Big vanilla! Toasted marshmallows, Milky Way candy bars. Nougat-y and vanilla-y.
Palate: Melted caramels, big big caramel and vanilla. Some anise and cloves cut the sweetness. Hints of lemon rinds.
Finish: Coca-cola, peppercorn, cloves and again a touch of citrus. Medium in length and it leaves a decently spice forward finish.
Very Good (6/10)
Overall: It's a little spicy, a little sweet, and all around a solid dram. It's just not wildly interesting. I wish the palate and finish lived up to the promise of the nose which is incredibly inviting.
