[su_note note_color=”#ffe3e6″]This post contains affiliate links. Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases from Amazon.com and other Amazon websites.[/su_note]
Kentucky- and Tennessee-based Corsair’s artisanal whiskies have been causing something of a stir. Made from 80% rye, with the balance being a mix of chocolate malt, malted rye and red wheat, this is a rather chocolatey whiskey.
Corsair Ryemageddon Review:
Overall: A pleasant rye, but it is a little overpowering on the rye front, so I would like a little more of the other malts to balance out the flavour. Despite this, the rich, chocolate malt is very complimentary of the spicy rye. One to autumnal evenings with.
The chocolate mix of malts gives a rich, almost dessert like flavour.
The real key to the success of great whisky is the final maturation period, it’s here where all these flavours combine and the oak informs upon the spirit allowing flavours to marry and become something more than each individual part. The great thing about the work that Corsair do is that they allow this marrying to happen in all their whiskies, and it really does have a great effect to the point where they have something truly unique to their whisky that I haven’t really seen before.
Personally I find this rye to be far better than most of the other distilled rye whiskeys available and one that would easily stand up to the much-loved Old Potrero 18th Century Style Rye Whiskey.
I am on record as saying that rye is my favourite American whiskey and this is one of the best I have tried.
Corsair Ryemageddon Tasting Notes:
Taste: The arrival is a little sweet and then has a real kick on the back of the palate as the rye cuts straight in like a jagged line. Its spiciness is slightly different to that of an Islay, but it is as warming and scratching. The finish is of longer duration and of average intensity.
This is a sweet flavour which has a little treacle as a finish, although it takes a little time to build up its intensity.
The sweet and sticky treacle flavour combines with the dryness of the rye in the initial delivery. There are also some tobacco notes in here, and the pepperiness of the rye makes itself known on the aftertaste.
The initial arrival is sweet with a little tang, but the rye builds step-by-step to a rich mid-palate that is dry and quite spicy. There is also a touch of toffee in the aftertaste, which goes nicely.
Immediately, there is the sweetness of the chocolate malts. There is a short spiciness on the initial delivery, but the mix of rye and chocolate is hugely complimentary and interesting. It is a little dry and then it does have a little treacle which develops a little later on, and the finish is long and dry.
The sweet chocolate note on the initial delivery is followed by a rush of rye which dominates the first half of a rather short delivery. Then, there is a little treacle which mixes with chocolate later on, and there is also the pepperiness of the rye on the finish. This rye is more in-your-face than the others.
The initial delivery is of a little sweetness, but it then moves directly to a spicy delivery that is full of the flavour of rye with the help of some coffee. There is some sweetness lurking around in the background, but it is much richer and fuller than the previous ones. It is slow burning, and it comes from a nice long finish with a lot of rye.
