“I think that Act 12 is an absolute stunner and a staff favorite as well.”
High West Director of Distilling Isaac Winter beams with pride when discussing the Park City, Utah-based whiskey company’s most highly anticipated annual release, A Midwinter’s Night Dram. Of course, the guy who helped create the juice will likely be proud of his work. But I concur with Winter; this decadent, sweet-and-spicy Act 12 Rye is a legitimate banger and a worthy option if you seek a special bottle in the $150 price range. The proof on the expression of AMWND is 98.6, or 49.3% ABV.
Act 12 is technically the 13th release of High West’s annual and limited A Midwinter’s Night Dram. Like most of High West’s “finishing” products, AMWND was developed in Barrel Select, High West’s single barrel program which also serves as the distillery’s R&D laboratory. AMWND is made from a base of Rendevous Rye, a blend of High West made pot still whiskey and MGP distilled column still rye. These distillates are finished in a combination of Tawny and Ruby Port barrels to strike upon the final expression. Below, Isaac Winter walks us through a tasting of this season’s release, and details how this very special rye is assembled.
The Base: Rendevous Rye
Winter: A Midwinter’s Night’s Dram begins with a base of Rendevous Rye, our older rye expression which is also a limited, annual release. The average age of the whiskey is 6-7 years, and is comprised of a majority of column still and a minority of pot still rye. The column still whiskey is 95% rye and 5% malted barley, and the pot still whiskey is a mash of 80% raw rye and 20% malted rye. The column still distillate imparts focused rye botanicals, while our pot still whiskey offers heavier cereal grains and more ester character, adding depth and richness. Our column and pot still whiskey ratios change every year to bring individuality to each blend, even before it hits the finishing barrels.
The Finish: Tawny and Ruby Port Barrels
Changing the relationship of the finishing barrels allows us to celebrate each whiskey like a wine vintage. We may love the bright red fruit that ruby port barrels impart one year and favor Tawny Port the next. We pull these flavor levers to achieve each expression of Midwinter’s ultimate taste and personality. For this expression, I loved the Tawny port barrels. I think we gained a lot of interesting oxidated fruit notes, adding a sticky cherry jam flavor that I find phenomenal. So, the casks are selected to accentuate certain aspects of the blend or create an interesting counterpoint.
Tasting: The Rubber Hits The Road
When I key in on the palate, I focus on the balance of the distillate character and the finishing time. If fresh Port barrels sit too long, you risk covering up the whiskey nuance in the base blend. But this shows some bright, spicy rye character that blends well with the fruit character we added from the Port finishing barrels. In addition, cherry jam notes, maple, brown sugar, and molasses flavors come from our pot still whiskey. It has a nice mouthfeel and drinks easy for the 98.6 proof. It has just the right palate angle, making it interesting and edgy, not round and fatty. High West employees are the first to taste these whiskeys and are quick to tell you what they think. This year, we got thumbs up, so we knew we had something special.
“I think that Act 12 is an absolute stunner and a staff favorite as well.”
— Isaac Winter, High West Director of Distilling
John McCarthy is a spirit, travel, and lifestyle journalist, managing editor, and author of The Modern Gentleman and Whiskey Rebels: The Dreamers, Visionaries & Badasses Who Are Revolutionizing American Whiskey. McCarthy is also editor of Barleycorn Drinks and Director of Judging of the John Barleycorn Awards.
