Review: Mic.Drop Rye L20-01 4 Years Old

The latest Mic.Drop release from PM Spirits isn’t a bourbon but a rye, another young gun at 4 years old, sourced from Wilderness Trail Distillery in Danville, Kentucky. Mic.Drop L20-01, which was released late last year, is drawn from just 5 casks of rye distilled in 2015 and bottled in 2020, made from a mash of 56% rye, 33% corn, and 11% barley malt. This is purportedly the first time Wilderness Trail has ever sold barrels of aged whiskey to anyone instead of bottling it themselves.

Well, let’s try it out.

Hearty on the nose, the whiskey has the classic punch of rye, all spice and pepper and dried fruits, impregnated with cedar wood and notes of dill. The palate is quite sweet but also impressively spiced, the notes of green herbs and fresh-cut cedar wood punching with some force. Then comes more of the fruit: Apple fritters in sweet cream. A splash of water does some good, tempering the heat and bringing out more of the barrel influence, including a gentle chocolate note that emerges on the finish. Hints of vanilla and brown sugar calm some of the unruly rye spice notes up top, letting the young but expressive rye do its thing with more of a sense of balance.

In the final analysis, it’s really fun stuff. Tough to justify at nearly $100 a bottle, though, but I presume you can convince yourself through whatever logic you need.

108 proof.

A-

The 25 Best Bourbons of the 21st Century (So Far)

Bourbons have become increasingly collectible. Here are the ones you need to stash away.

There’s much to love about the world’s great Japanese, Scotch and Irish whiskey distilleries. But when it comes to innovation, the wily bourbon producers in the United States have been leading the way for years. In Kentucky and beyond, purveyors of America’s native spirit have refused to let the excellence of their existing products stand in the way of coming up with new ones. And over the last decade and a half, a plenitude of incredible new whiskey with a mash bill of at least 51 percent corn and aged in charred new oak barrels—the house rules for a whiskey to be called a bourbon—has come to market, some from brand-new producers, others new expressions from venerated houses. Fortunately, we’ve got you covered. Here are 25 of the best bourbon releases of the last 20 years.

Mic.Drop.

A delicious blend of 20 different casks of eight-year-old whiskey that offers multifarious flavors highlighted by maple syrup, coconut, cloves, and dark fruit. Mic.Drop. came out of nowhere in 2017 and now resides on the back bars of some of the country’s most prestigious drinking establishments. It’s easy to spot, too, with an eye-catching label designed by comic book artist Chris Batista. The follow up, Mic.Drop.2, was released in 2018 —140 bottles at $450 a pop.

WhiskyCast reviewed - Mic Drop Rye, 93 pts

MIC DROP RYE L20-01

Country: USA
Region: Kentucky
Type: Rye Whiskey
Bottler: PM Spirits
ABV: 54%
Score: 93 points

This 4-year-old Rye was distilled at Kentucky’s Wilderness Trail Distillery using sweet mash fermentation with a mashbill of 56% rye, 33% corn, and 11% malted barley. The nose has good notes of baking spices along with a touch of oak, toasted caramel, cocoa beans, black cherries, and molasses. The taste is very spicy with cinnamon bark, allspice, and clove, while a hint of maple syrup comes out as the spices start to fade along with black cherries, pipe tobacco, and oak. The finish is long with lingering spices and hints of maple syrup, anise, and oak. Excellent!  (December, 2020)