Welcome back to Dice & Drams! This month, we’re keeping things on the lighter side with a short but crunchy card game paired with a sweet and delectable rye. Don’t let the simplicity fool you though – this pairing is worth slowing down and savoring. Let’s get into it!
The Pairing: Rabbit Hole Boxergrail Rye & Res Arcana
The Whiskey: Rabbit Hole Boxergrail Rye
The Boxergrail rye is one of the base offerings from Rabbit Hole Distillery, a fairly new distillery that has established itself as one willing to push boundaries in the whiskey space. Their products are well-regarded, and the Boxergrail Rye is no exception. Coming in with a mashbill of 95% rye and 5% malted barley, one would expect a pour with loads of spice, but I don’t find that to be the case at all.
On the nose, I find a beautiful caramel note that sits underneath everything – rich and full, and utterly delicious. I find some nougat, a light licorice note, and the smell of a cherry Coke. Interestingly though, I don’t find the rye spice you would expect on a 95% rye. How that’s the case, I have no idea. It’s a delicious nose, to be sure, but a strange one considering the mash bill. If you’re inclined towards bourbons over ryes because of that traditional rye bite, this might be a pour for you.
On the palate, the licorice and cherry Coke notes translate from the nose into a delicious mix. I do get a bit of rye pop here, which is welcome. There’s also a nice undertone of oak which frames the sweetness well. After swallowing, the licorice note swells back into the front of the experience. I personally like licorice, so this is a really pleasant experience, but your mileage may vary. The rye pop that was on the palate also makes a reappearance, surrounded by the sweetness of the caramel. All around, a truly enjoyable pour.
The Game: Res Arcana
Res Arcana makes no effort to hide its inspiration – this game that feels like a love letter to Magic: The Gathering. If you’re unfamiliar with Magic, it is the original trading card game, coming before Pokémon, Yu Gi Oh, and others. It was the first to implement the mechanic of tapping a card for various effects, which is a mechanic that’s ubiquitous in board gaming today. Magic is a complex but incredibly beautiful game, and since Res Arcana is essentially a condensed version, it shares that beauty, without the complexity.
In Res Arcana, you’re tasked with creating an engine of cards that create resources that can then be translated into points. Once a player reaches 10 points, the game ends, and the final point count is checked. Because of this point check, Res Arcana feels like a race to see who can get their point engine online first. You establish this engine by playing out, discarding, and purchasing cards that all tap for various effects including creating resources, filtering resources into points, or destroying your opponents’ resources. Once you understand the iconography, the gameplay loop is incredibly simple yet satisfying – starting with nothing, then in a few rounds creating five resources in one card tap scratches the itch in my gaming brain. To summarize the experience of Res Arcana, I’d say it offers a straightforward experience while having a broad enough decision tree to avoid being overly simple. It can be played in 30 minutes by experienced players, which is the perfect amount of time for a game like this.
The Final Pairing:
The connecting thread between the Boxergrail Rye and Res Arcana is the experiences they provide. Res Arcana takes a system of immense, beautiful complexity and boils it down to elegance without the complexity. Similarly, the Boxergrail Rye takes a mash bill that some might find unapproachable and turns it into something deliciously sweet. Brought together, they highlight this characteristic in each other. A truly delectable pairing.
Cheers and happy gaming!
