Eau Claire Ploughmans Rye Whisky

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!Limited to 2 bottles per customer!

Eau Claire puts a lot of effort into being a 'Farm to Glass' Distillery, and this is something their Ploughman's Rye epitomizes. Made from a very high percentage or rye plus a small amount of malted barley. The Rye used in the distillation was harvested by horse from three local farms. After aging for two and a half years in Virgin American Oak Barrels, it was finished for a period of six months in two casks that previously held Batch 2 of Eau Claire's own Single Malt Whisky. Bottled at 43% ABV.

Evan's Tasting Note

Nose: Earthy and full of chocolate. Dark chocolate, espresso grounds, old leather, orange oils, Arnold Palmers (iced tea and lemonade mixed together), mint, fresh baked pretzels, beautiful charred oak notes and baking spices.

Palate: Robust, round, and oily up front with fruit and spice coming through. More orange oils, dark cherries, peppermint leaves, anise and black licorice, dark rye bread, and black tea with a squeeze of lemon.

Finish: Good length with lots of earthy, spicy warmth. Runs the delicate balance between sweet and dry with some of both aspects showing.

Comments: The first two batches of Eau Claire Single Malt received a lot of press and showed a lot of promise. In my opinion, this Rye Whisky is even better.  It drinks very well right now, but as my cohort, Shawn said: give this a decade in the barrel and imagine what it could be...

Andrew's Tasting Note

 

Nose: decadent, nutty and oily; butter tarts right from the oven, german rye bread and dill pickle flavoured Ruffles; doughy with Mandarin orange, muddled mint and sugar and a touch of musty oak.

 

Palate: creamy, dilly, decadent and spicy with floral vanilla cooling mint and more butter tarts fresh from the oven; more sweet Mandarin orange, cooked raisins and a touch of mojitos? its that cool mint again; building wood spices, candied fennel and clove; classic earthy-oily-rye tones. 

 

Finish: medium-long; fresh, creamy and coating; still decadent and a little less layered than the palate, a sign of youth?; but still very balanced.

 

Comment: this is brilliant stuff, I like it better than their innaugural single malt; for a 3 year old this is a solid base hit, maybe a double; give it 5 to 10 years and we are talking homerun territory!

 

From the Producer

"Ploughman’s Rye Whisky is a nod to Alberta farm pioneers, Eau Claire combines the first horse farmed rye since the turn of the century, with our special barley blend. From land in the Alberta foothills, we planted, harvested and distilled rye to produce this unique spirit. We named it Ploughman’s Rye to produce in honour of our hose farming heritage. Young, bold and flavourful. This will be a limited edition Rye release and the first of its kind from Eau Claire Distillery."

750 ml