Sazerac Rye
“There is no place on Earth even remotely like New Orleans. Don’t even try to compare it to anywhere else”
Surely the only time a whiskey name has ever been derived from the name of a cocktail and coffee house? The said coffee house was in New Orleans, USA, and the Sazerac cocktail was originally concocted of cognac, absinthe and Peychaud's bitters.
Thomas H Handy was once a bartender at the coffee house before becoming the owner. Mr Handy also owned Peychaud's bitters (that was handy). Over time the cognac in the cocktail was replaced with the rye whiskey in this very review.
This now famous rye whiskey is today made at the Buffalo Trace distillery. It is officially a no age statement release but there are strong rumours that it is at least 6 years old. The bottle is an absolute gem and you can imagine this exact bottle shape being used throughout the USA in all kinds of coffee houses, bars and saloons in the mid-19th century.
Citrus fruits, mint and herbaceous on the nose. Viscous spice, pepper and just a hint of smoke on the palate. A well balanced medium length, rich and spicy finish.
This is a very approachable rye whiskey bottled at 45% AVC. It is around the £40 mark in the UK, though it is quite often on offer. Remember vividly buying our first bottle many years ago and being quite underwhelmed to be perfectly honest (also weirdly remember it costing more than it does today).
Competition around rye whiskies at a similar price point is also very healthy. Yes, there are in our opinion better rye whiskies available (Rittenhouse, Elijah Craig, Knob Creek) but this whiskey certainly stands up as a contender for your home whiskey bar for its versatility and for its awesome bottle shape and design which is quite unique and very cool.
