WhistlePig Single Barrel Gordon’s “Lost and Found” 13 Year MGP Rye
Specs
ABV: 60.1%
Age: 13 Years
Recipe: 95% rye, 5% malted barley, finished in a bourbon barrel for 3 months
Distiller: MGP
Country/Region: USA/Indiana
Price Paid (MSRP): $100 ($100)
Tasting Notes
Nose: Herbal with pine and mint, cinnamon buns, deep rich oak and char, brown sugar, rye spice, anise, a little orange and touch of brandied cherry.
Palate: Thick and tannic mouth feel with lots of toasted oak, huge burst of cinnamon and black pepper spice accompanied by some heat. It drinks at its full 120 proof, perhaps even a touch above. Vanilla, marshmallow, caramel, and cherry notes bring some sweetness on the back end.
Finish: Long length, more sugar and caramel sweetness, heavy oak, rye and cinnamon spices, pop of mint, drying with a tannic mouth feel.
Rating: 88/100 – Excellent | Really quite exceptional
I love older MGP ryes and this WhistlePig selection was no exception. Their distillate stands up particularly well against the extra oak, staying fierce and lively while the aging process adds additional complexity. “Lost and Found” is a great example of this. It brought a bit more heat than I would have preferred, but it also exhibited a remarkable depth of flavor. I don’t think it quite comes together to reach the completeness of Redemption 10 Year, my gold standard for sourced MGP, but it’s a wonderful example of a well-aged rye that retains its brighter characteristics. I’m glad these bottles were found after somehow being lost in a Massachusetts warehouse for the past 6 years.
