SanTan Sacred Stave Rye Whiskey Madeira Cask
45% ABV - Arizona, United States
Nose: Sweet oak and spices. Heavy rye influence (yes, obviously) with loads of baking spices, cinnamon, and touches of clove. A sweet orchard fruit starts to take over.
Taste: Very light, with oak, vanilla, and rye spices upfront, followed by warming spices, apple pie, and a fruit compote.
Finish: Medium-short leaving oak tannins, vanilla, and lingering sweet and spice.
When we were visiting my family in Tempe, Arizona, one of the places they recommended that we check out was SanTan Brewing (in Chandler, Arizona), and when we arrived it was a surprise to find out that they also had a whiskey program going! So there we are, at 11:30 AM, sipping on a flight of their Bourbon (Port Cask), Rye (Madeira Cask), and a Single Malt (Arizona Red Wine)... this Madeira was our favourite, and we were able to find it in a liquor store nearby for around $65 CAD (after converting from USD).
As seems to be a habit of mine, I didn’t get around to opening this bottle for another three and a half years! Wow, had we been missing out on opportunities to sip on this. I had totally forgotten how juicy it is—put another way, how much of the Madeira cask influence there was… it must have been a very fresh barrel.
Looking at their website, I think this is a regular product now and there are a number of other offerings. I looked for an old photo from our visit and it appears there was only 3 or 4 expressions available to taste at the time (in May of 2019).
This bottle will hold a special spot in my heart because it reminds me of our whirlwind Arizona adventure that took us from Tempe to Sedona to the Grand Canyon to the Petrified Forest National Park to the Tonto National Monument and along the amazing (and amazingly scary to drive) Apache Trail/Highway 88 back to our homebase.
Details: Batch No. 4-002. Date 12-18. 95/5 Rye Whiskey.
Tasting Notes (Official): Nose: Baking Spices, Cinnamon, Slight Oak. Notes: Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Sweet Cereal.
Tasted 15 February 2023. (Posted 15 February 2023.)
