Heavy peat | Slight campfire smoke | Hay | Grain | Dab of honey | Light vanilla bean | Earthy and slightly sweet

Smoked wood | Peat | Rye spice | Mixed peppercorns | Malted barley | Hints of baking chocolate | Honey | Slight marshmallow | Earthy

Rye spice | Baking chocolate | Light dry oak | Mixed peppercorn spice | Smoke | Slightest dab of honey sweetness | Lingering smoky spice

Liberty Pole Spirits is located in southwestern Pennsylvania, 25 miles from downtown Pittsburgh. The family-owned and operated distillery was founded in 2016 and produces a number of standard whiskeys along with special releases such as Peated Rye Whiskey Barrel Proof. The company states that Batch #6 of the whiskey is composed of a blend of five barrels that have barrel dates ranging from August 2019 to August 2020, making it a blend of 3.5 to just over 4 year old whiskeys and their oldest batch of this release to date.

If you were blindly handed a glass of this in a bar, you’d have a hard time guessing it was a rye based on its nose. The whiskey opens with heavy peated scents that combine with campfire smoke, hay, and grain to form a bold earthy base. These mingle with slightly sweet scents that add a flair of variety. The rest of the sip follows a similar pattern with smoke and peat driving earthy scents, albeit with a pop of rye spice influence and sweetness weaved in. Liberty Pole Spirits Peated Rye Whiskey Barrel Proof Batch #6 drinks older than its young age would suggest and delivers an enjoyable sip overall. However, the main caveat this whiskey carries is that it’s far from a traditional-tasting rye and serves more as a bridge for scotch drinkers who are looking to dive into the world of American ryes.

The whiskey in review is bottle number 207 of 1052.