RaggedReview [In Depth]
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co. 10 Year Rye
by: ALEX WANG
Founder, writer
Founder, writer
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co. 10 Year Rye Details
Distillery: New York Distilling Co. (sourced by Lost Lantern)
Type & Region: Rye whiskey, New York, USA
Alcohol: 66.9%
Composition: 70% rye, 10% malted rye, 20% malted barley
Aged: 10 years
Color: 1.4/2.0 on the color scale (tawny)
Price: $150
From the company website:
This special release, made from 70% rye, 10% malted rye, and 20% malted barley, was aged for a full 10 years in a new American oak cask, making it one of the oldest whiskies ever to come from Spirit Works. The nose bursts with hints of fresh lemon and spearmint, while the palate is both fresh and powerful, with deep, balanced oak notes. A grassy and warm straight rye whiskey that embodies the warmth of northern California.Spirit Works was one of Lost Lantern’s first partners–we released our first whiskey from them in 2021, and they were only our second rye partner. Our first release was a 5-year-old straight rye, followed by a truly unique sloe gin-cask finished rye. We are very excited to revisit their whiskey, now with a 10 year age statement!
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co. 10 Year Rye overview
Again, Lost Lantern has introduced me to another distillery that I didn’t know existed. I lived in Manhattan from 2012 to 2016 and New York Distilling Company, founded in 2011, never once crossed my mind. It’s clearly been a long time since I lived in NYC, because they have 10 year old rye whiskey, and Lost Lantern has brought it to the public. Sounds like something fun to try, hopefully it was worth the wait.
Let’s find out what the New York distillery has to offer in this Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co. 10 Year Rye review.
This sample was provided to me at no cost. All opinions are still my own.
As an FYI, I bought and use these Glencairn glasses for everything (they’re the best): Glencairn Crystal Whiskey Glass Set of 6, Set of 4, Set of 2, or just one. Full transparency, this is an affiliate link, so I may earn a commission if you buy this or something else from Amazon.
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co. 10 Year Rye smell
I smell candied honey, licorice, dark candied pineapple, toasted oak, clove, anise, baked red apple, cinnamon, grapefruit peel, cedar, and leather. The 66.9% ABV is well controlled. I’m surprised that this doesn’t have that much herbal or vibrant pop from the rye. The oak, for better or worse, pushes back those representative rye notes.
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co 10 Year Rye smells really good and the richness is really good too, but the range and dynamics aren’t great. As it stands, it may be a bit too oaky, although not overoaked, for its own good. I wish that it were more vibrant to counterbalance the oak.
After swirling, I smell honey, licorice, roasted oak, anise, cinnamon, vanilla, grapefruit peel, and some maple syrup. Even after 18 minutes of rest, the heat still kicks. It ends up taking nearly 25 minutes for the heat to settle down so I can really pick out the scents.
The scents lean more towards the dark herbal sweetness and oak. Unfortunately, it makes me miss the tropical and vibrant pop that rye whiskey usually has. That would really liven this up and make it more interesting. As it stands, the scents are dark and dense, but it feels straightforward without meaningful rye pop for more depth.
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co 10 Year Rye is a bold but straightforward rye that sacrifices nuance and complexity for brawn. The scents are pleasant and good, but not amazing, I’m not that impressed.
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co. 10 Year Rye taste and aftertaste
I get dense honey, licorice, roasted oak, candied pineapple, anise, cedar, baked red apple, cinnamon, and licorice. The heat kicks more than it does in the scents, but it’s not too bad. Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co. 10 Year Rye is big and bold, but flabby and straightforward.
I get dense honey, licorice, roasted oak, candied pineapple, anise, cedar, baked red apple, cinnamon, and licorice. The heat kicks more than it does in the scents, but it’s not too bad. Lost Lantern New YorIt offers a rush of good flavors, but it doesn’t really evolve over time to keep me engaged. A lot of it has to do with the fact that it’s very woody (but not overpowering), but it needs more vibrant and tropical pop to balance out the dark oak to complete the experience.
The flavors are good, but really limited, and it honestly feels nearly unbalanced.
With “chewing” I taste dense honey, licorice, dense roasted oak, preserved lemon, anise, cinnamon, vanilla, a little candied pineapple, and a solid punch of heat. Oh boy that heat punches hard. It’s not quite overpowering, but I wish it was toned down a few notches so I could enjoy the flavors more.
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co 10 Year Rye is still very oaky and not as vibrant and tropical as I want from a rye whiskey. Bright pop and vibrance would make such a big difference. With those missing layers, the balance doesn’t feel right to me even though there is dense sweetness and oakiness. There are a lot of ways for the balance to be right, but this isn’t one of them.
The finish leaves honey, fennel, roasted oak, anise, cinnamon, and more dark woodiness.
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co 10 Year Rye is still a big and burly rye with good flavor, but it comes at the expense of nuance, complexity, and range that would make this much better.
I’ve unfortunately lost some Glencairn’s while in transit, and that made me very sad. So, I wised up and bought this Glencairn Travel Case that comes also comes with 2 glasses so I don’t need to worry so much about them breaking. I think it’s great, and I think you’ll love it too.
Seriously, if you already have glasses, protect them.
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co. 10 Year Rye Rating
Lost Lantern New York Distilling Co 10 Year Rye isn’t my jam. It’s still a good rye with bold traits and some layers, but I’m not that excited about it. I’ve had a lot of rye whiskey in my life and recognize that there is a huge range of profiles, but this profile doesn’t feel right / good for me.
Right or wrong, Kentucky Owl Rye Batch 1 is my gold standard for mature (and expensive) rye whiskey that shows off the magic of what rye can be. To that point, this rye misses most of the top end tropical fruit and vibrance that I believe elevates the experience. The low end is there, but the top end is mostly missing. Maybe others will enjoy this a lot more, but this isn’t my thing.
Especially at $150, I don’t think that the quality of this whiskey justifies the price.
Meet the Author: Alex
I have far too much fun writing about whiskey and singlehandedly running The Whiskey Shelf to bring you independent, honest, and useful reviews, comparisons, and more. I’m proudly Asian American and can speak Cantonese, Mandarin, and some Japanese.
There are no sponsors, no media companies, and no nonsense. Support The Whiskey Shelf by Buying Me A Shot.
Shattered glass really sucks, so if you’re on the move, this Glencairn-like stainless steel snifter glass should survive your travels. Full transparency, this is an Amazon affiliate link, so I may earn a commission if you buy this or something else from Amazon.
BrüMate NOS’R, Double-Wall Stainless Steel Whiskey Nosing Glass – 7oz (Matte Black)
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