Barrell Gold Label Seagrass Whiskey
Last year, Barrell shocked the whiskey world by introducing Barrell Gold Label Bourbon, an ultra-premium offering at $500. Gold Label doubled their previous high price and quality, the Gray Label series that had come in at $250 per bottle.
The Barrell Gold Label Bourbon was a blend of 16- and 17-year-old bourbons, marrying four profiles into a coherent whole. I happily rated that offering a 7.8, well above average and just on the verge of excellent. The price, I felt, was validated by the components and the skill involved in blending those profiles together.
Of course, that set a hell of a standard for the next Gold Label.
Then again, anything with Seagrass has another heritage to live up to. I’ll be honest, I didn’t love the original Barrell Seagrass. In short, it felt overly complicated. One finish was lost, the other redundant, and the third overpowering. Barrell’s strengths in blending weren’t showcased (again, that’s for me - you can find any number of more positive reviews out there).
At first, Seagrass was simply the third in Barrell’s named series after Dovetail and Armida. There was every reason to believe that it was a blip - and given how I feel about the Barrell Bourbon line batch-by-batch, any time I don’t like a Barrell product I simply put it to the side then wait for the next one.
Then, Seagrass received a massive endorsement: Fred Minnick named it his second-best American whiskey of 2021, second only to Russell’s Reserve 13 Year Old. Suddenly, Seagrass flew off the shelves and increased in price. I saw it as high as $200, a ridiculous price that Barrell would agree is twice what it was worth.
Around the same time, Barrell doubled down internally on Seagrass, releasing the Barrell Gray Label Seagrass. The Gray Label was Barrell’s ultra-premium level prior to the Gold Label Bourbon release, and they upped the ante to get Seagrass there. The Indiana rye was dropped in favor of a 100% Canadian rye at 16 years old and barrel proof (130+), and the finishings were kept the same but balanced much better, in my opinion. Its $250 price tag was well-earned, and it answered many of my complaints about the original Seagrass.
People with better crystal balls than I probably saw it coming, but I’ll be honest, the Gold Label Seagrass caught me completely off guard. In hindsight, it makes perfect sense, but I was more surprised by how rapidly they turned it around. I was thrilled to receive a sample shortly thereafter.
Barrell Gold Label Seagrass is excellent - I’ll start off there. The Gray Label balanced out the finishings and added much-needed power in the Canadian rye. That being said, at 130 proof, nobody was confusing it for an easy sipper. It had some rough edges that, while I enjoyed, others who don’t enjoy the burn probably found too harsh.
Gold Label Seagrass, at 128.12º, is just shy of its Gray Label predecessor in that realm but adds four more years to the age at a round 20 years old. Those extra four years sand down the rougher proof-driven edges, truly finishing Seagrass’s evolution from an imbalanced and underpowered experiment to a full-fledged basher of a whiskey and, finally, to an elegant and powerful pour that will delight any who get a chance to try it.
Of course, I left the price for last. $500 is steep for any whiskey, no exception here. Yet unlike its cousin, the Barrell Gold Label Bourbon, I don’t think this is as close to the $500 mark. For me, at $350 it’s an insta-buy. At $300, get me two. But at $500, it’s just not twice as good as the Gray Label Seagrass. It’s better and more refined for sure, but not twice-the-price refined.
The Gold Label series is still in its infancy, and Barrell is undoubtedly testing the market. Maybe they’ll find that the consumer can bear $500 for these, but something tells me it will be a bit too far a bridge. With multiple Gray Label releases in the past year, it’s clear the $250 mark is acceptable for ultra-premium Barrell products, and I’d be happy to pay that for both the Gray Label Seagrass and the Gray Label 24-Year-Old from last year. I don’t see the same immediate pickup at $500 - and I’m curious to see what the consumer says.
Barrell Gold Label Seagrass Whiskey: Specs
Classification: Canadian Rye Whiskey
Origin: Undisclosed Canadian Distillery
Mashbill: Undisclosed Canadian Rye
Proof: 128.12 (64.06% ABV)
Age: 20 Years Old
Location: Finished in Kentucky, Distilled in Canada
Barrell Gold Label Seagrass Whiskey Price: $499
Barrell Gold Label Seagrass Whiskey Review: Tasting Notes
Eye: Hazy 18K gold. Bleeding rims and quick syrupy legs.
Nose: The finishes are all out in full force here, fruity and sweetly grassy. The proof remains in the background as orchard fruit and orchard wood press forward. Stewed sultanas in sweet wine, lightly spiced, fragrant and just a bit tannic.
Palate: The rum finish hits first followed by a burst of proof heat, like an overproof rhum agricole. Gin-soaked golden raisins, heavy madeira notes collecting in the corners of my mouth. Semisweet-to-dark chocolate grows all over the tongue like a shell. The apricot brandy rolls in last, understated but firmly stone-fruit heavy, adding a bit of acidity and brightness over the chocolate shell. Mouthfeel is velvety and coating, the apricot building towards the end. Chewable and dense.
Finish: Takes the drinker through the full lineup again before settling down on the palate. Long, chewable, and delicious.
Overall: Takes the raw power of the Gray Label and rounds out the final rough edges. Elevates the Seagrass experience to a new level.
Final Rating: 8.1
10 | Insurpassable | Nothing Else Comes Close (Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Old Label Batch 4 or 2, Blanton’s Straight from the Barrel)
9 | Incredible | Extraordinary (GTS, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof B518 and B520)
8 | Excellent | Exceptional (Stagg Jr. Batch 10, Highland Park Single Barrels)
7 | Great | Well above average (Blanton’s Original, Old Weller Antique, Booker’s)
6 | Very Good | Better than average (Four Roses Small Batch Select, Knob Creek 14+ YO Picks)
5 | Good | Good, solid, ordinary (Elijah Craig Small Batch, Buffalo Trace, Old Grand-Dad Bottled-in-Bond)
4 | Has promise but needs work
1-3 | Let’s have a conversation
More Barrell Reviews
