When one thinks of American whiskey, they immediately think of Bourbon and Tennessee whiskey, but Rye Whiskey can make a claim to being America’s original native spirit.
Before Scotch-Irish settlers made their way to Kentucky and distilled their abundant corn crops to make Bourbon, they settled in western Pennsylvania and Maryland and distilled local grains, which were mainly rye. Rye Whiskey remained popular up to prohibition, but the bold flavored whiskey never recovered after prohibition was repealed and was nearly extinct until a recent surge in interest among spirits enthusiasts and mixologists.
Rye Whiskey is defined as a grain spirit distilled to less than 190 proof with a majority of the mash bill, at least 51 percent, being rye grain. (Distillation proof is important because the higher the proof off of the still, the less character from the grains comes through; a rye spirit distilled to over 190 proof would be considered too neutral to be whiskey, and would become vodka.) Straight Rye Whiskey, which is the definitive style, is further defined as being distilled to no more than 160 proof, aged for a minimum of two years in new, heavy char American oak barrels, entering the barrel at no more than 125 proof.
I love rye whiskey. It’s not as elegant as Scotch or as versatile as Bourbon, but it has an unrestrained, intensely spicy quality that no other spirit can touch. Rye tastes like the whiskey of cowboys, the wild frontier, of the untamed wilderness (whether or not this is reality, it tastes like it). This love has caused me to accumulate a bit of a collection, so I decided to sit down and taste my way through a snapshot of the current American Rye Whiskey market.
I structured the tasting by going in ascending order of rye content; in other words, lowest percentage of rye to highest percentage of rye. Because three of the ryes I tasted were 100 percent rye, I also went from “most traditional” in terms of grain bill and aging, to “least traditional.”
The first up was Russell’s Reserve Rye from Wild Turkey distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. This is easily the most “traditional” rye of the bunch, in that it has not only rye but a portion of corn and malt in the grain bill. It is a 6 year old, small batch rye, with a grain bill of 65% rye, 23% corn, 12% malted barley. It well surpasses the 51 percent minimum required of straight rye whiskey. In many rye whiskey comparisons, this would have one of the highest rye contents, but in this esoteric bunch it is the only one with any corn, and thus comes first in the tasting.
Russell’s Reserve starts out sweet, with notes of vanilla, clove, cacao, cinnamon and mint. It is relatively smooth for a rye, but still has a bit of that Wild Turkey bite on the finish. A well made rye whiskey.
Next I sampled a single barrel bottling from Willett. The Willett brand is owned by Kentucky Bourbon Distillers LLC, the largest non-distiller bottler of whiskey in the US (although word on the street is that they recently resumed distilling whiskey after decades of only aging and bottling.) The whiskey was distilled in Indiana by LDI, then aged and bottled by KBD in Bardstown, Kentucky. In addition to Willett, KBD bottles brands such as Noah’s Mill, Rowan’s Creek, Black Maple Hill and Kentucky Vintange. This Rye is 95% rye, 5% malted barley. Willett bottles its single barrel rye at a variety of ages and proofs; this is a 4 year old, 110 proof version (barrel number 1122 if you were wondering).
Willett has a huge rye-spice flavor up front that caries all the way though to the finish. Big peppermint flavor, as well as tannin and vanilla from the barrel. Surprisingly, this has more oak flavor than the Russell’s Reserve, which is two years its senior. It has a dry finish with a bit of heat. This is a flavorful, vibrant young rye whiskey, with a maturity and oak flavor that is beyond its years.
Next were the whiskeys of the 2011 Woodford Reserve Masters collection. Every year Woodford Reserve puts out a whiskey that changes a variable from its standard Woodford Reserve Bourbon. For example, last year they finished their bourbon in barrels made of Maple wood. This year they ventured away from bourbon for the first time and made a 100 percent rye whiskey. Half of the whiskey was aged in a traditional, heavy char new oak barrels, the other half in used bourbon barrels, which are usually used for aging Irish, Scotch and Canadian whisky. The two whiskeys were sold as a pair. These whiskeys were triple distilled in copper pot stills (as opposed to the column stills used in most American whiskey), and barreled at very low proofs; the New Cask Rye at 100 proof, the Aged Cask Rye at a bizarrely low 86 proof.
The Woodford Reserve Masters Collection New Cask Rye is technically a Straight Rye Whiskey, although this is quite possibly the first ever made with 100 percent rye. The whiskey carries flavors from the barrel first and foremost, with vanilla, butterscotch, almond and tannin dominating. There is a hint of spicy peppermint and cinnamon from the rye grain, but this is a very barrel-forward whiskey. It is a bit shocking how little the expected “straight rye” flavor comes through in this whiskey, considering it is 100 percent rye. It is much more tame in rye flavor than the Willett. It has a very dry, smooth finish. More than anything else, the flavor reminds me of Woodford Reserve Bourbon, just with a dry finish and a bit more spice. A very interesting whiskey.
The Woodford Reserve Masters Collection Aged Cask Rye has more of the rye-spice flavor than the New Cask, but it still seems a bit subdued for a 100 percent rye. Some sweetness comes through from the oak, with vanilla, mint, and stone fruit notes. Unsurprisingly, this reminds me of a rather mellow Scotch or Irish whiskey, with some rye flavor thrown in. A very pleasant dram.
Lastly, I tasted a Rye whiskey from the small Chicago craft distillery Koval. Koval makes many different whiskeys. They make five different white whiskeys that they also age in small barrels. Some of them, called “Lion’s Pride” whiskey, are aged in barrels that are toasted but not charred, the common practice for wine barrels. The others, labeled “Lion’s Pride Dark” whiskeys, are aged in the more traditional charred oak barrels. (Lion, by the way, is the owner’s son’s name). Koval is unique not only for making only 100 percent single grain whiskeys, but that they distill their whiskey to a much higher proof than the standard “straight” American whiskeys. The result is whiskeys that have a flavor somewhere between a traditional American whiskey and a vodka.
I tasted the Koval Lion’s Pride Dark Rye whiskey. Compared to the other ryes, the first thing that comes to mind when tasting this spirit is that it is very clean. Very clean. Some green apple flavor, a hint of caramel and vanilla from the barrel, but overall very smooth and mellow. Nowhere near the character of the straight ryes I tasted, but a pleasant change of pace and a very enjoyable way to finish a rye tasting.
Overall I was most surprised by the restrained nature of the Woodford Ryes; I can only attribute this to the triple-pot distillation and relatively high distillation proof. (Most America straight-whisky is distilled to around 140 proof; Woodford Bourbon is distilled to 158, just below the legal maximum of 160. I assume the Ryes, coming from the same stills, were distilled to the same proof). The Woodford Ryes are great whiskeys, and I am glad I have the chance to enjoy these bottles, but they don’t have the rye bite I expected. If I had to pick a favorite, it would be the Willett; a great single barrel rye, and at just over $30 a bottle, a really great value too.
