Name: Founders’ Cask Strength Straight Rye Whiskey
Color: Copper
Nose: Rye, spices, dry wood, dark fruits
Taste: Rye, spices, oak, cherries
Founders’ Cask Strength Straight Rye Whiskey is produced by Smooth Ambler, which is located in Maxwelton, West Virgina. I was not familiar with this distillery and this is the second bottle gifted to me by good friend Sam Dean.
Founders’ Cask Strength Straight Rye is aged for 6 years and bottled at 62.9% abv. The mash bill is 88% rye and 12% malted barley. They rye and strength of the whiskey very strong and too strong for me to drink neat or on the rocks, with one exception.
On my first taste I could only think was, “Holy shit has this stuff got some kick to it!”. I need to add some water to get the flavors to come out. Once my mouth calmed down, I tried again, and it was still a very strong rye and was for cocktails only. I tried it in a couple of old fashions and they were strong, but not as flavorful as Sagamore Cask Strength Rye. Founders just did not have a the same balance of flavors, so Sagamore is still number one for my rye cocktails.
The one exception…..When you are having a shitty day, chopping oak logs, you split the axe handle you can easily drink Founders’ neat or on the rocks. Trust me on this one.
Priced around $60 and very strong rye, but not as smooth as I would like it in a cocktail. I look forward to trying more of the expressions from Smooth Ambler.
If you like it, drink it! – Chris
If you like it, drink it!
