I’ve developed a taste for rye. My favorite is Copper Fox Rye, with Redemption being a close second. I’m not a huge fan of Old Overcoat or Jim Beam’s rye.
Anyone else? Rye is going through a bit of a rebirth in the US these days, so I’m always interested in trying new brands.
Last year I tried the rye made locally by Tuthilltown Spirits and I thought it was fantastic. I’ve been meaning to tour their distillery and pick up a bottle, but haven’t gotten around to it. I don’t know how widely available it is, but I think it’s quite expensive.
I’ve been drinking Russell’s Reserve Rye as my go-to whiskey these days. I’d love to find some others to try, but it’s hard to find other brands where I live (apart from Jim Beam).
Just picked up a bottle of Sazerac rye for Manhattans. My default there is Russell’s Reserve Rye. It’s the best there is at that price point. Old Overshoe isn’t worth the cost of the bottle. For cheap-ass rye (that is actually quite sippable) try Pikesville.
Templeton Rye (from Iowa) is my go-to rye whiskey. Then again, I also like Old Overholt and think it’s the best liquor bargain out there, so what do I know?
I like Russell’s, I bought a bottle of Catoctin Organic Rye and found the stuff almost undrinkable. Every poker game, everyone has to have a shot when the last hand is played.
In the $25 per bottle range, I like Rittenhouse Bottled in Bond 100 Proof. But for a few more dollars, you can’t beat High West Double Rye. High West is making some amazing rye whiskies these days. When money is no object, try Michter’s 10 year old straight rye.
I like High West, for some reason when it first came on the market in DC it was being sold for like $85 a bottle (no lie), but now I see it for more in the $40 range.
I have four varieties of High West rye, from least to most expensive: Double Rye, Rendevous Rye, 16 year old Rocky Mountain, and 21 year old Rocky Mountain. All are outstanding!
Check this out. Bulleit isn’t bad, either!
We’ve been enjoying ryes for about a year now. We’re big fans of Redemption and Whistle Pig. I’ll have to give Copper Fox a try.
How in the heck did I forget about Bulleit 95? That stuff is excellent, especially for the price.
Finger Lakes Distilling makes McKenzie Rye Whiskey Very smooth.
The best part about Bulleit (since you like Templeton, that is) is that it’s made from the same recipe by the same distillery (LDI, in Lawrenceburg, Indiana) as Templeton but half the price.
My list of recent favorites:
Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye
Thomas Handy
Rittenhouse BiB
Bulleit Rye
Black Maple Hill 23 and 18
Sazerac 18
A fun exercise: Try to figure out where these new micro distilleries are getting their aged product since they can’t possibly have any whiskey older than the length of time they’ve been in business.
Redemption, Bulleit, Templeton - all are the same 95% rye product from LDI
Whistlepig - likely comes from the Alberta Distillery (I think Mischief comes from here as well.)
High West - comes from all over, some comes from LDI for sure.
No kidding? I thought Templeton was distilled in Iowa. So it’s exactly the same thing, just branded differently? ETA: Yeah, I see Wikipedia agrees. Distilled in Indiana, shipped to Iowa and bottled there.
I like Jim Beam’s Rye just fine. It’s not top shelf, but it’s good, and more than a shade better than their standard. $19 a 1/5 seems like a steal.
Not to pick on Templeton specifically, because a lot of the small distillers do this, but they talk about their “recipe” being part of the heritage that ties them to the prohibition era. Well, it’s awfully convenient that the bulk rye whiskey sold by LDI to them and High West and Bulleit and many others just happens to match that recipe.
It’s similarly convenient that Bulleit’s heirloom bourbon recipe happens to be available in bulk from Four Roses, given that Bulleit has no distillery. And so on and so on. There’s a lot of, um, creativity in the marketing of a lot of these smaller brands.
Well, it’s good to know that at least my tastes are consistent.
I love Bulleit bourbon, can’t take the rye. No sure why.
Rittenhouse-100 is my go-to rye.