Review #: 352
Description: Barrell Gray Label Seagrass 16 Year
Spirit: Rye
Background: Barrell’s Gray Label has been their outlet for limited, special releases. This one builds off of their standard Seagrass but this time with a 16 year age statement and only using canadian rye (rather than a blend of Canadian, Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee rye in the regular). So is it that much better to warrant over 3x the price? Let’s find out. (It does come with a fancy box and an impressively heavy cork)
Distillery – Alberta Distillers
Bottler – Barrell Craft Spirits
Brand – Barrell
Selection – N/A
ABV – 65.41%
Age – 16 Years
Nose – Much darker on the nose with the fruit than the standard. Almost smells like a well aged brandy with the fruit and oak. Vanilla buttercream, honey wheat bread, butter pastry, pipe tobacco, a tiny hint of the agricole rum lightly in the background.
Taste – Sweet, rich and syrupy. Grape jam, honey, toffee, light fudge
Finish – Apricot defines itself more, rye, tobacco, cocoa, Dr. Pepper, waffle cone. Rich and spicy. Feels closer to 60% than 65%
Score: 7
Would I buy a bottle? I don’t think it’s bad value, but I don’t need a bottle at $250
Thoughts: This is definitely high quality, great whiskey. I want to make that clear. Once again, Barrell made a harmonious and delicious whiskey even with the use of 3, pretty wild cask finishes. It has similarities to regular Seagrass but definitely sets itself apart especially with the age. To me, it loses a bit of the rye punch (like the Stellum Rye with the Black version) that helps keep it interesting and in a category of its own. With how brandy like this is to me, I can’t help but think that you can get a similar experience with a Cognac/Armagnac for under $200. But with the presentation and still a great experience, I’ll say it’s a perfect gift whiskey if you can find it at retail.