Peach | Sweet apple | Vanilla cream | Brown butter crumble | Light honey | Dough | Light aged oak | Rye bread | Cigar box | Pine tree | Full of interesting scents

Bold rye spice | Black peppercorn | Dry aged oak | Cinnamon stick | Undertown of summer fruits | Lemon essence | Tree bark | Sweet cream | Hot & spicy

Rush of rye spice | Dry oak | Green peppercorn | Cinnamon spice | Banana | Prickly heat | Lingering heat

This year marks the third release of Barrell Craft Spirits Gray Label Seagrass. The 2024 blend combines two groups of 100% Canadian rye whiskeys that were aged for 19 years. The company states that to produce Gray Label Seagrass, “a portion of the first group was finished in Apricot Brandy casks, a portion of the second group was finished in Martinique rhum barrels, and a blend of the first and second groups was finished in Malmsey Madeira barrels. When each set of secondary maturation flavors peaked, those casks were pulled and slowly married into the final blend.”

Unusual in today’s bourbon space, this year’s edition cuts the price back from the previous $250 price point of the 2022 release to $199, which should make consumers take note. Additionally, while the finishing barrel combination is the same as the previous two releases, the age of the whiskey has increased from 16 years to 19 years.

The nose is a fascinating study, as nonstop aromas develop the longer you sit with the sip. Alternating from sweet, to wood-influenced, to more grounded, it forces you to linger before diving in. The midpoint swings wildly back smack dab into the rye camp, as a huge rush of spice is instantly evident. Various spice notes appear along with a heavy influence of dry aged oak. There’s a subtle sweet and fruity vein, but it’s easily dominated by spice and oak and shows its proof. The finish is long-lasting with upfront notes of rye, green peppercorn, and cinnamon spice. Dry oak acts as a base, while a banana note makes an appearance late into the game.

Overall, this is an interesting sip, but I was surprised at how hot and prickly it came across from the midpoint onwards. The various barrel influences are noticeable, especially in the nose, which seems to be a nonstop train of aromas. While these finishing influences still have an influence in the palate and finish, it’s the whiskey’s rye underpinning that takes charge and leads head-on full of spice. I’m not sure if it is the extra age, the barrel lots used, or a number of other factors, but compared to the 2022 releases, this current iteration doesn’t live up to the bar they previously set.