Shortbarrel The Afterswarm

Shortbarrel The Afterswarm is a limited honey-cask finished straight rye: 95% rye and 5% malted barley, aged at least five years, then finished about a year in Kelvin barrels that were first soaked with raw honey and emptied so the rye takes structure from the wood, not a sweetener dumped in the whiskey. Indiana distillate, bottled in Georgia at 116 proof (58% ABV). High rye keeps pepper and grain in charge; the honey-conditioned oak is what you taste as honeycomb and vanilla around that spice. It is a cold-weather pour.

Honey, vanilla, and cinnamon open, then cherry and clove fill a thick sip with rye spice and oak. The finish is long, warm, and a little smoky, honey balanced by pepper so it never drinks as flavored rye. It coats the mouth and keeps the grain talking after the sweetness fades.