Bourbon Reviews, Distillery News and Information
Wilderness Trail Settlers Select Rye Review
I've been a huge fan of Wilderness Trail Distillery since their first bourbon release, a single barrel bottled-in-bond wheated bourbon, back in April 2018. That was soon followed by the Wilderness Trail Settlers Select Rye Whiskey later that year. It's made with Kentucky grown Heritage rye and bottled at barrel strength.
Wilderness Trail
Settlers Select
Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey
Single Barrel, Barrel Proof
113 proof
I’ve been a huge fan of Wilderness Trail Distillery since their first bourbon release, a single barrel bottled-in-bond wheated bourbon, back in April 2018. That was soon followed by the Wilderness Trail Settlers Select Rye Whiskey later that year. It’s made with Kentucky grown Heritage rye and bottled at barrel strength. Initially, the crew at Wilderness Trail experimented with the barrel entry proof, so a pretty wide range of proofs were available. My initial favorite was a 113 proof rye (not, this one – this is from a later batch) but I have also enjoyed many of the ones that came in at a lower proof. Since they are all single barrels, they will all be a bit different from each other anyway.
It turns out that from their experiments, Wilderness Trail decided that the lower proof ryes had the profile that they liked best, so current batches are barreled at 100 or 105 proof. However, there are still many of the higher proof ones around, and they probably aren’t going to just toss out the higher proof barrels, so you never know what you might find.
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Mash Bill
Mash Bill: 56% rye, 33% corn, 11% malted barley. Sweet mash. Char #4 barrels. Currently aged at least 4 years. Non-chill filtered.
Tasting Notes
It’s a graham cracker – ginger snap combo with some nice added citrus (grapefruit mainly), some Demerara sugar, char, a moderate burn and long finish to go with its 113 proof. That’s when I taste it from a shot glass. Your results may vary…?
When tasted from a Glencairn, the notes are similar, but the nose has more caramel.
I always enjoy Wilderness Trail Settlers Select Rye, no matter what the proof. Have you had Wilderness Trail Rye? What did you think? Happy FRyeDaY & Happy New Year! Cheers!🥃
Wilderness Trail Distillery released with a 6 year old wheated bourbon in 2020. Check out our review of the Wilderness Trail 6 Year Old Bourbon!
About the Editor: Ed Escott is truly "Bourbon Obsessed". He is the founder of Bourbon Obsessed, LLC, and an Executive Bourbon Steward of the Stave and Thief Society. In addition, he has authored and edited over 600 bourbon and other whiskey reviews, over 50 in-depth distillery write-ups, and many other related articles. He is on the board of the Kentucky Bourbon Influencers and a member of the Lexington Bourbon Society and the Bourbon Capital Guild. Last, but not least, Ed has attended many bourbon-related educational sessions, visited countless distilleries, and is on a never-ending quest to try every bourbon.
Prior to focusing solely on Bourbon Obsessed, Ed practiced in academic medicine for three decades. He most recently was a Professor at the University of Kentucky and served as Chief of the Division of Neuroradiology and Vice Chair For Faculty Mentoring, Development & Wellness of the Department of Radiology. He has extensive editorial experience in academic medical publication, and brings that same academic mindset to Bourbon Obsessed, which is a unique approach for a spirit-focused media company.
Ed can be found on social media on Instagram at @bourbon_obsessed and on Facebook at @BourbonObsessed
About the author: Ed Escott is truly "Bourbon Obsessed". He is the founder of Bourbon Obsessed, LLC, and an Executive Bourbon Steward of the Stave and Thief Society. In addition, he has authored and edited over 600 bourbon and other whiskey reviews, over 50 in-depth distillery write-ups, and many other related articles. He is on the board of the Kentucky Bourbon Influencers and a member of the Lexington Bourbon Society and the Bourbon Capital Guild. Last, but not least, Ed has attended many bourbon-related educational sessions, visited countless distilleries, and is on a never-ending quest to try every bourbon.
Prior to focusing solely on Bourbon Obsessed, Ed practiced in academic medicine for three decades. He most recently was a Professor at the University of Kentucky and served as Chief of the Division of Neuroradiology and Vice Chair For Faculty Mentoring, Development & Wellness of the Department of Radiology. He has extensive editorial experience in academic medical publication, and brings that same academic mindset to Bourbon Obsessed, which is a unique approach for a spirit-focused media company.
Ed can be found on social media on Instagram at @bourbon_obsessed and on Facebook at @BourbonObsessed
Gus
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