499766 Sun Mar 16 16:44:13 -0700 2008 7 36 Spirits 0 3498928 So I was bored today and thought I would do a tasting of the 6 year (Baby) Sazerac, the Sazerac 18, and the Thomas Handy. The Baby Saz is my go to mixing rye, and the Saz 18 has always been my favorite rye (though I love black maple hill 23 and haven't tried hirsch or old portrero yet), but I've been curious about how these would match up glass to glass. I had someone else pour to go blind and went at it. It turns out I know these three really well. I was able to nail them from smell alone... though after this test I think they are different enough that just about anyone could do it. The Baby Saz smelled like cherries and spice, with a sweet back-end; it immediately put images of Manhattans dancing through my head (probably because I've made countless manhattans with this liquor). The Saz 18 was the richest and most robust. It had a heavy vanilla and oak scent. The Handy is all dried fruit and obviously, at 138.4 proof, a heavy alcohol whiff. Tasting confirmed my suspicions. The Handy (which I tried first) tasted like apricots, and was expectedly hot. I know it's a strong whiskey, but I've always felt like the handy was one of the sweetest whiskeys I've ever had. It's great for sazerac cocktails and a riff on the moto guzzi (1 Handy to 1 Punt E Mes, stirred for quite a while - only for fans of the bitterness), but when I'm sipping it the fruitiness overwhelms. The 18, which I tasted second, was like coming home. So smooooooooooth and delicious. Even though I love serious upfront ryes (and even prefer a bourbon like Bulleit that uses a lot of rye), I feel like the 18 has the sophistication of a fine scotch, and while it's hard to track down, the comparative price levels make this the steal of the century. After the Handy, tasting the Baby Saz was like tasting water, but the spiciness shined through, and I still think it's a superior mixer when compared to overholt or rittenhouse, and worth the extra dollars. Still, I'd never sip it when the 18 is within reach. Sun Mar 16 16:44:13 -0700 2008 16620 bza 1 3500089 I have no reason whatsoever to question your assessments. That said, speaking strictly for myself, I prefer Old Overholt Rye in my Sazerac cocktails and the 18-year Old Sazerac Rye for sipping. While there may be a difference in a Sazerac cocktail made with Old Overholt and one made with the 6-year old "Baby" Sazerac, I myself don't detect a significant enough difference to spend twice the amount of money for it. For example, Old Overholt is $14.29/750ml where I live; Sazerac 6-year old Rye is $27.99-$29.99; and the 18-year old ranges from the low-$40s to mid-$60s (depending upon where you shop). Old Potrero Rye is $69.99, Black Maple Hill 23-year old is $109.99, in the FWIW Dept. Cheers, Jason Mon Mar 17 06:51:22 -0700 2008 3498928 28122 zin1953 2 3500189 I can generally find the 6-Year for 23-25 dollars, and since I mostly drink rye cocktails, it's worth it to me. But, probably due to the fact that rye still isn't a healthy market, every rye I've tasted is decent, and when I'm out, I don't really mind at all that most bartenders use overholt (I'm happy enough they have rye at all). Mon Mar 17 07:24:56 -0700 2008 3500089 16620 bza 2 3501448 I think the bonded Rittenhouse is in between Overholt and the young Sazerac price-wise with a ton more flavor than Overholt. I'd been mostly hoarding my bottle of 6-year Sazerac, b/c it wasn't available in GA. That's changed recently, so I need to drink some more of it. I recall a distinct grassy note to it that I thought was unusual. Love the 18-year-old Sazerac, but I haven't been able to find a Thomas Handey to purchase. Mon Mar 17 12:47:21 -0700 2008 3500089 12626 ted 1 3500850 Thanks for the report. I love both Baby Saz and especailly Saz 18 but haven't gotten around to Handy yet. From what I've heard, Black Maple Hill may well be Saz as well. Old Potrero is fantastic, but is much different from Saz or any other rye on the market. It's a single malt rye, so it's 100% rye and lacks any of the corn that softens and sweetens the others. The result is an immensely powerful rye flavor...pure spice. I love it, but it's not for anyone. I drink all of it neat, so I can't say how any of it would do in a cocktail. Mon Mar 17 10:22:09 -0700 2008 3498928 10132 sku 2 3502072 that actually sounds great, I love the spiciness. The BMH23 (and even the 18) is much more brash and gritty than the the saz 18, so I would be surprised if it was from the same stockpile... though I have heard they won't tell anyone where the BMH comes from and neither rye is put out by the original distiller. Of those ryes, the only one I would drink in a cocktail is the baby saz. I drink the handy in cocktails because, honestly, the frutiness is just too much for me, and I can only really get into it when it has some added flavors. I was somewhat disappointed in the handy, since I had heard such great things about it, but the few cocktails I've made with it have been really spectacular. However, I wouldn't touch the 18 or the BMH with so much as an ice cube. Mon Mar 17 15:22:15 -0700 2008 3500850 16620 bza 3 3620407 IMO - the reason you're not liking the Handy as much as you expected to is b/c you're drinking the 134.8 (2007) release - whereas most net reviews have been of the earlier, 132.7 (2006) bottling. There is a substantial difference between the two - I find the '06 to be far spicier, more robust, and with much less of an alcohol whiff than the small change in % would imply. I was a bit let down myself, frankly, after searching out as much Handy as I could find following the most recent release - but be that as it may, it's still a superior Rye. To my mind, it's unlikely that BMH 23 or 18 are from the same stock - or even distillery - as the Sazeracs. The flavor is vastly different, though all are excellent. And yes - no ice, please! The Sazeracs are from Buffalo Trace, as you know, but the BMH is not produced by the Van Winkles or Buffalo Trace, though I do belive that Julian Van Winkle did supply the initial allotments. He has a post somewhere on the web to this effect. I seem to recall that he suggests that the Kulsveens are responsible for the newer source - and I must remark - the labeling and wax topping are DARN similar to those on the Willett bottles! The flavor would suggest as well that Julian was right in his suspicion. Kentucky Bourbon Distillers does seem to produce much of the good rye we - the lucky ones - get to imbibe. BMH - Brash and Gritty? I find them smooth, smooth, smooth. LeNell's Red Hook Rye? Brash hardly begins to explain it.... ;-) Thanks for the posts. Glad to see some other Rye lovers out there. Tue Apr 22 16:53:44 -0700 2008 3502072 186089 michaelep 4 3631089 See, smooth is what I get from the 18 saz, but to each his own... I'm dying to try the red hook rye, I was in new york a few weeks ago and a bottle was staring me in the face, but I couldn't drop the big bucks on it. That's too bad about the handy, I doubt I'll ever find an unopened bottle of the '06 to taste, but I am enjoying my 18, so I'm not too torn up about it. Fri Apr 25 21:32:44 -0700 2008 3620407 16620 bza