Restoration Rye 2022 (Batch 3) Review
In-Depth Review
Castle and Key might be the most stunning distillery in all of Kentucky. Built on top of the ruins of the Old Taylor distillery (of EH Taylor fame), the team at Castle and Key have painstakingly restored the grounds to its former splendor. And while you can simply tour the grounds (or book it for your next big event), they didn’t just keep it as a pretty property. In 2018, Castle and Key celebrated the grand opening (or re-opening depending on how you look at it) of the distillery and released their first batch of aged product in 2020. That first aged product was a called Restoration Rye.
Today, we are going to dive into the 2022 version of Restoration Rye to see how their spirit has progressed from those early days. This is the 2022 expression, (Batch 3) and is bottled at 106 proof, features a 3 year age statement, and uses a 63% rye, 20% malted barley, and 17% yellow corn mashbill. It retails for around $45 and comes in one of the most beautiful bottles in the industry. Let’s dive into one of the flagship products from this up-and-coming distillery!
Age: 3 Years
ABV: 53%
Cask: New Virgin Oak
MSRP: $45
Distillery Name: Castle and Key
Review Date: 12/27/23
Color: Dull Gold
Nose: The nose starts off almost imperceptibly soft. I have to dig deep into the glass to find much. After letting it settle in the glass for a few minutes I find musty grapefruit, sawdust, sour milk, and spa water. Then comes waves of cucumber, winter mint and a hint of light ethanol. A strange nose that got me a bit worried.
Palate: On the taste it’s clear that the strange nose is an anomaly. The palate is immediately much better. There’s still that spa water note (with lots of cucumber), but now there is more brown sugar, vanilla, eucalyptus, and green tea. The rye spice also jumps to the front – bringing with it more spearmint and pine. But all of the green rye spice is balanced nicely with the sweetness to create a viscous, tongue coating mouthfeel with a gently building heat.
Finish: Long and lingering finish with a much more distinct rye spice that plays beautifully with sweet caramel, toasted oak, and a perfect amount of heat. This is by far the best part of the experience.
Final Thoughts: If you look beyond the frankly amazing bottle design, you will find that the 2022 expression of Restoration Rye is a good middle shelf rye that will please those looking for a bit more spice in their glass. And while it isn’t a “barely legal rye”, with its 63% rye mashbill, this is a great introduction to rye for those bourbon fans out there. The palate is full of classic eucalyptus, wintergreen, mint, and pine but balances nicely with sweeter notes of caramel, brown sugar and vanilla. The very muted nose definitely threw me for a loop, but the solid palate and excellent palate saved the day. You can immediately tell that high quality spirit went into making this – and at only 3 years old, it begins to give a glimpse of what we can expect from Castle and Key in the future. Keep an eye on them in 2024, as I expect their distillate to become even better with a bit more age on it.
