Review: Michter’s US-1 Toasted Barrel Finish Sour Mash Whiskey 2022

Michter’s devotees may have thought that the only limited release they had to look forward to in 2022 was the 10-year-old Single Barrel Rye, but this fall the distillery brought back their US-1 Toasted Barrel Finish Sour Mash Whiskey giving fans one more unicorn to chase. I can almost hear the enthusiastic jingling of car keys and hurried calls to the local liquor store now. After a three-year hiatus, this whiskey is returning to store shelves with about as much backstory as the original from 2019. Essentially, not much. US-1 Sour Mash Whiskey has long been Michter’s most mysterious offering with a grain bill that makes it not quite a rye and not quite a bourbon. For the Toasted Barrel Finish, that same whiskey has been additionally aged for an unspecified amount of time in a second toasted barrel, the exact toast profile of which was selected by Michter’s Master of Maturation Andrea Wilson. We enjoyed the debut, so let’s check out the sequel.

Like its predecessor, there’s plenty here for both the rye and bourbon lover, never mind fans of the now widespread “toasted” style. On the nose, a gentle, caramel-covered sweetness quickly gives way to minty spice and more lively and unique notes of tahini and crispy gingerbread. The palate is exceedingly approachable, a little soft but still well-spiced and sweet with early, silky notes of raw honey and clove. The midpalate transitions to banana chips, candied ginger, tea leaves, and char before a lengthy finish of caramel corn, dark butterscotch, and cinnamon buns, heavy on the cinnamon and vanilla frosting. While Michter’s may catch flack for not upping the octane on this one, its unique drinkability is half the charm. Happy hunting!

86 proof. Reviewed: Batch No. 22G2247.

A- / $100 / michters.com [BUY IT NOW FROM DRIZLY]

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