Dark Arts Rye Blunt Blend Madeira Armagnac Cask Whiskey - 750ml

PALATE

Dark fruit | Black currant | Black raspberry | Peppery aged oak | Rye spice | Baking spices | Slight dill

Baking spices | Rye spice | Dark fruit | Brown sugar | Lingering spice | Long

Dark Arts Whiskey House is a niche whiskey blending, rebarreling, and finishing house located in Lexington, Kentucky, and is headed by Macaulay Minton and David Peet. The company’s personality shines through a bit with this release. As Dark Arts Whiskey House’s Co-Founder and CEO David Peet puts it, “We don’t smoke cigars. We smoke blunts. And needed a whiskey that paired.” Unofficial “cigar blends” have increased in popularity since the original concept was introduced to the market by Jos. A. Magnus & Co., but Dark Arts Whiskey House’s release is the first whiskey I’ve seen that’s being marketed to pair with blunts, which are cigars that have had the tobacco replaced with cannabis. Batch 1 was released on April 20 in celebration of 420 day, and is planned to be an annual release each April thereafter.

The whiskey is a full-flavored affair and has a lot going on. It has the typical peppery aged oak, rye spice, and hint of dill that you often see from 95% rye MGP ryes, but layers in a soiree of additional flavors most likely attributed to its Madeira and Armagnac cask finishing. Dark fruit, stewed apples, and peach cobbler join rye spice forming a warming heat on the nose. The fruit's presence persists and gains both richness and variety on the palate, with more dark fruit, black currant, and black raspberry. They’re balanced by peppery aged oak, rye spice, and baking spices. It’s also here where a slight hint of dill emerges. On the finish, spices and fruit hold, with brown sugar joining in the mix, resulting in a long and enjoyable end to the sip.

This is a whiskey fans of rye who also enjoy bold, more complex whiskeys will appreciate, whether indulging in a blunt or not. Its rye base shows through and combining multiple barrels and finishing styles allows Macaulay’s ability to curate a blend show through as well. I’ll be marking my calendar for next year’s release for sure.