Sweet charred oak | Brown sugar | Faint brown butter | Light dried tobacco leaf | Rye bread | Leather | Crème Brûlée | Pleasant

Peppercorn mix | Rye grain | Rye spice | Dry oak | Leather | Bold rye spice

Rye spice | Leather | Oak | Black peppercorn | Dried tobacco leaf | Lingering oak & rye spice

Preservation Distillery is best known for their portfolio of brands, consisting of sourced products, including Pure Antique, Very Olde St. Nick, Rare Perfection, Wattie Boone & Sons, and Old Man Winter, among others. For those brands, very little information is provided on the background of their source of distillation and often mashbill. The company changed that, with Preservation Estate Pot Distilled Wheated Bourbon, their first 100% in-house distilled product produced by Preservation Distillery. A little under a year later, they released their second in-house distilled product, Preservation Estate Pot Distilled Rye.

Much like their estate bourbon, the brand states that each batch is composed of only 1-3 barrels. While the exact mashbill percentage is not provided, the grains used in this whiskey are, and are grown locally to the distillery. Similar to their estate bourbon, the distillery doesn’t label this as a straight rye, which is customary for a rye of this age.

The whiskey starts with an intriguing aroma that’s full of a pleasing mix of sweet scents, along with more grounded classic rye scents. Charred sweet oak and brown sugar float to the top and sit on top of a base of rye bread, leather, and a light dried tobacco scent. As the whiskey transitions to the midpoint, the sweet influence found in the nose falls back as classic rye notes of peppercorn mix, rye grain, and bold rye spice jump forward. These carry through to the finish, which provides a pleasing lingering oak and rye spice note to wrap things up.

Rye can be a turn-off for some due to its spicy flavor profile. For others, though, this is exactly what attracts them to the category. Preservation Estate Pot Distilled Rye does a great job of delivering what classic rye lovers love, thanks to its spice-filled notes that never overstep. Instead, they integrate nicely with the other flavors, and for only being 7 years old, come across with more depth than you might be expecting. Like all of the distillery's products, the price is questionably high, but those willing to spend the money on Preservation Estate Pot Distilled Rye will no doubt be pleased with their purchase.