Rye Advice

[IrishWiskyChaser]

Hi All,

Hope ye don't mind me jumping in here as I only pop my head in from time to time but don't really post as I have my own forum to look after the Irish Whiskey Society forum, hence 3 posts in 3 years :bigeyes: . Anyway that's neither here nor there.

We have a tasting every month and usually had one 4th of July tasting last year with US whiskies. We are planning another this year but thinking on concentrating on RYE.

Why?

Well last year we had a line up of whiskies that we basically got from our members so there was not real method to the selection which was ...

George Dickel No. 12

Blanton's Special Reserve

Eagle Rare 10yo

Elijah Craig 12yo

Rittenhouse 100 Proof

McCarthy's

The Rittenhouse 100 Proof was the run away winner of the night getting the thumbs up from over half of the members present which brought us to the conclusion to have a RYE tasting this year and explore it more.

Further RYE has been likened to older style Pure Pot Still Irish WHiskey which is not really made any more but an interesting parrallel.

So basically I'm hoping that people can suggest some good RYE that is readily available nationwide in the US (We have our sources :cool: ) or even better here in Europe.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

[unclebunk]

Hi All,

Hope ye don't mind me jumping in here as I only pop my head in from time to time but don't really post as I have my own forum to look after the Irish Whiskey Society forum, hence 3 posts in 3 years :bigeyes: . Anyway that's neither here nor there.

We have a tasting every month and usually had one 4th of July tasting last year with US whiskies. We are planning another this year but thinking on concentrating on RYE.

Why?

Well last year we had a line up of whiskies that we basically got from our members so there was not real method to the selection which was ...

George Dickel No. 12

Blanton's Special Reserve

Eagle Rare 10yo

Elijah Craig 12yo

Rittenhouse 100 Proof

McCarthy's

The Rittenhouse 100 Proof was the run away winner of the night getting the thumbs up from over half of the members present which brought us to the conclusion to have a RYE tasting this year and explore it more.

Further RYE has been likened to older style Pure Pot Still Irish WHiskey which is not really made any more but an interesting parrallel.

So basically I'm hoping that people can suggest some good RYE that is readily available nationwide in the US (We have our sources :cool: ) or even better here in Europe.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

The trick will be finding ryes available to you in Europe but if you have the means of getting stuff from the US, the sky is the limit, as we have no shortage of fine quality ryes on the market. You may wish to seek out the following:

Rittenhouse BIB (100 proof)

Wild Turkey Rye (or Russell's Reserve Rye but I prefer the standard WT)

Sazarac Straight Rye (aka "Baby Saz")

High West Rendezvous Rye

Old Overholt Rye Whiskey (much improved in recent years)

I've left the big guns (Sazerac 18, Thomas Handy Sazerac Rye, Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye, WhistlePig 10 Year Old Rye, etc.) off the list because they are quite expensive and will no doubt prove difficult to find, though you may be able to score them through "your sources." In any event, the ones I've listed will give you a nice overall selection to try and will not break the bank. Have fun and let us know how things turn out. And I'll be checking out your web site too! Thanks for dropping in again.

[IrishWiskyChaser]

Excellent Unclebuck that is exactly what I'm looking for.

I've actually heard that High West Rendezvous Rye is supposed to be good and can actually source that over here which is a plus.

I also can source Jim Beams Rye over here but what are peoples thoughts on that?

We already have a bottle RI1 but have no idea about it?

How much would Sazerac Rye 18yo be in the US ... again available over here but well over 100Euro here. The regular is also available here so an easy call on that one if needs be or a single barrel version is also available.

Thomas Handy is again over 100Euro over here :-(

WhistlePig 10 Year Old Rye is a total mystery to me as I've never heard of it.

Cheers so far

[White Dog]

I don't have a high opinion of Beam Rye, or of RI1, which, like Overholt, is also made by Beam.

Saz 18 should be the same price as Handy. Again, I say should. Handy is worth it, though, IMHO.

Whistle Pig is only available in a few states, with Illinois being one. It's actually made in Canada(Probably Alberta Springs.), it's 10yr, and 100proof.

UncleBunk's list is very comprehensive, and would make for an interesting tasting. And he's right on about WT. Get the standard bottling. If you can find a Van Winkle Rye, I would highly recommend its inclusion. There should be a Rye with age on it, to give some scale.

[unclebunk]

Excellent Unclebuck that is exactly what I'm looking for.

I've actually heard that High West Rendezvous Rye is supposed to be good and can actually source that over here which is a plus.

I also can source Jim Beams Rye over here but what are peoples thoughts on that?

We already have a bottle RI1 but have no idea about it?

How much would Sazerac Rye 18yo be in the US ... again available over here but well over 100Euro here. The regular is also available here so an easy call on that one if needs be or a single barrel version is also available.

Thomas Handy is again over 100Euro over here :-(

WhistlePig 10 Year Old Rye is a total mystery to me as I've never heard of it.

Cheers so far

Well, if the Jim Beam Rye is readily available to you, then I'd substitute that for the Old Overholt. Neither of those are tremendous ryes but they are solid and respectable and may be a nice starting point for your tasting session. The Sazerac 18 would be comparable in price to the Thomas Handy Sazerac and I only mentioned it as a possibility so that you'd experience rye whiskey that has been in the barrel a very long time. (You can start a fist-fight around here arguing about Saz 18 vs. Thomas Handy Sazerac, so I won't go in to that. ) WhistlePig is from Canada and is not widely available in the US (New York, Chicago and LA, I believe) but is an interesting example of pure 100% rye whiskey, the likes of which you do not come across often. The big mail-order retailer here, Binny's (based in Chicago), sells it for $70 US and it's worth it on my book if you can find it. Speaking of Canadian ryes, are you able to score Alberta Premium in your neck of the woods? I've never even seen it myself but I've read wonderful things about it and if you have any Canadian contacts it may be worth exploring.

Loved your web site, by the way. I'm a huge fan of Irish whiskey, having grown up in an Irish neighborhood in NYC with many Irish relatives who seemed to have whiskey within arms' reach at all times. Good luck and l hope you find this information useful.

[IrishWiskyChaser]

Have a few connections up north too but unfortunately Canada is really a no go unless someone is traveling and that does not happen often ... those Canadian Custom officials are super efficient and not much gets past them. While on the other hand we have a fairly free trade of bottles (even though technically illegal) both ways with the US through the postal system :cool:. The worst that has happened is that I get caught for tax on this side which I don't mind.

Yes I'm aware of Binny's so a good one to know and one of our contacts is in the Chicago area also so the posiblity of getting Whistle Pig is there. However that may go against our Fourth of July tasting theme.

Okay let's do a bit of a List

We currently have members that have bottles of

RI1 & Pikesville plus possibly 2 other unknown bottles.

but if these are deemed bottom of the barrel (excuse the pun) we may dismiss them.

Wish list so far as these seem to be easily available to us

Rittenhouse BIB (100 proof)

Wild Turkey Rye

Sazarac Straight Rye (aka "Baby Saz")

or

High West Rendezvous Rye

Jim Beam Rye

Whistle Pig 10yo (Possibly)

Have also noticed available in a retailer over here

Balcones Baby Blue Corn (Rye Whisky)

Bitter Truth Bourbon (Rye Whiskey)

Any ideas on these one guys ?????

@ WHite Dog, yes we'd like to get a couple decent aged ones to top the list too, so good point.

If we can get 2 bottle in the US more cheaply it may work out better for us. For instance I purchased a bottle of GTS and WLW a few years ago for $65 each plus $50 postage. Totla $180 or just under €130Euro ... price over here was €150 each because of all the hype when they first made headlines in Jim Murray's WHisky Bible :smiley_acbt: They are now down a small bit but still over €100Euro

So we can get some aged ones but they do look expensive.

High West Rocky Mountain Rye 16yo for 90Euro

High West Rocky Mountain Rye 21yo for 132Euro

Old Rip Van Winkle 12 year old rye for 120Euro

Ritten house 21 year old Rye for 218Euro

Ritten house 25 yo single Barrel Rye for 213Euro

Ritten house 23 year old Rye for 242Euro :bigeyes:

Sazerac 18 year old rye for 122Euro

Thomas H Handy Sazerac 2009 for 122Euro

Thomas H Handy 2008 3rd release for 116Euro

Vintage Rye 23 year old for 213Euro

What would ball park state side prices be?

[unclebunk]

Have a few connections up north too but unfortunately Canada is really a no go unless someone is traveling and that does not happen often ... those Canadian Custom officials are super efficient and not much gets past them. While on the other hand we have a fairly free trade of bottles (even though technically illegal) both ways with the US through the postal system :cool:. The worst that has happened is that I get caught for tax on this side which I don't mind.

Yes I'm aware of Binny's so a good one to know and one of our contacts is in the Chicago area also so the posiblity of getting Whistle Pig is there. However that may go against our Fourth of July tasting theme.

Okay let's do a bit of a List

We currently have members that have bottles of

RI1 & Pikesville plus possibly 2 other unknown bottles.

but if these are deemed bottom of the barrel (excuse the pun) we may dismiss them.

Wish list so far as these seem to be easily available to us

Rittenhouse BIB (100 proof)

Wild Turkey Rye

Sazarac Straight Rye (aka "Baby Saz")

or

High West Rendezvous Rye

Jim Beam Rye

Whistle Pig 10yo (Possibly)

Have also noticed available in a retailer over here

Balcones Baby Blue Corn (Rye Whisky)

Bitter Truth Bourbon (Rye Whiskey)

Any ideas on these one guys ?????

@ WHite Dog, yes we'd like to get a couple decent aged ones to top the list too, so good point.

If we can get 2 bottle in the US more cheaply it may work out better for us. For instance I purchased a bottle of GTS and WLW a few years ago for $65 each plus $50 postage. Totla $180 or just under €130Euro ... price over here was €150 each because of all the hype when they first made headlines in Jim Murray's WHisky Bible :smiley_acbt: They are now down a small bit but still over €100Euro

So we can get some aged ones but they do look expensive.

High West Rocky Mountain Rye 16yo for 90Euro

High West Rocky Mountain Rye 21yo for 132Euro

Old Rip Van Winkle 12 year old rye for 120Euro

Ritten house 21 year old Rye for 218Euro

Ritten house 25 yo single Barrel Rye for 213Euro

Ritten house 23 year old Rye for 242Euro :bigeyes:

Sazerac 18 year old rye for 122Euro

Thomas H Handy Sazerac 2009 for 122Euro

Thomas H Handy 2008 3rd release for 116Euro

Vintage Rye 23 year old for 213Euro

What would ball park state side prices be?

[imbibehour]

WhistlePig. Great stuff not cheap though but worth it.

[sku]

Okay let's do a bit of a List

We currently have members that have bottles of

RI1 & Pikesville plus possibly 2 other unknown bottles.

but if these are deemed bottom of the barrel (excuse the pun) we may dismiss them.

Wish list so far as these seem to be easily available to us

Rittenhouse BIB (100 proof)

Wild Turkey Rye

Sazarac Straight Rye (aka "Baby Saz")

or

High West Rendezvous Rye

Jim Beam Rye

Whistle Pig 10yo (Possibly)

Have also noticed available in a retailer over here

Balcones Baby Blue Corn (Rye Whisky)

Bitter Truth Bourbon (Rye Whiskey)

Any ideas on these one guys ?????

@ WHite Dog, yes we'd like to get a couple decent aged ones to top the list too, so good point.

If we can get 2 bottle in the US more cheaply it may work out better for us. For instance I purchased a bottle of GTS and WLW a few years ago for $65 each plus $50 postage. Totla $180 or just under €130Euro ... price over here was €150 each because of all the hype when they first made headlines in Jim Murray's WHisky Bible :smiley_acbt: They are now down a small bit but still over €100Euro

So we can get some aged ones but they do look expensive.

High West Rocky Mountain Rye 16yo for 90Euro

High West Rocky Mountain Rye 21yo for 132Euro

Old Rip Van Winkle 12 year old rye for 120Euro

Ritten house 21 year old Rye for 218Euro

Ritten house 25 yo single Barrel Rye for 213Euro

Ritten house 23 year old Rye for 242Euro :bigeyes:

Sazerac 18 year old rye for 122Euro

Thomas H Handy Sazerac 2009 for 122Euro

Thomas H Handy 2008 3rd release for 116Euro

Vintage Rye 23 year old for 213Euro

What would ball park state side prices be?

Sounds like a great tasting. A few comments:

Pikesville is a Heaven Hill product, a solid budget rye and probably a younger version of Rittenhouse.

Balcones Blue corn is a corn whiskey. As far as I know, they don't make a rye.

Bitter Truth is a German bottler. They do make a rye but it's not available in the US so I can't tell you anything about it.

If you can get it, the one thing I would throw in would be Old Potrero. It's expensive and hard to find, but it would add a new dimension to your tasting as it is made from 100% malted rye.

As to ballpark US prices:

High West Rocky Mountain Rye 16yo $90

High West Rocky Mountain Rye 21yo $130

Van Winkle 12 year old rye for $70

Ritten house 21 year old Rye for 218Euro

Ritten house 25 yo single Barrel Rye $180

Ritten house 23 year old Rye $170:bigeyes:

Sazerac 18 year old rye for $75 - 120

Thomas H Handy Sazerac 2009 $75-120 (if you can find it)

Thomas H Handy 2008 $75-120 (if you can find it)

Vintage Rye 23 year old $95

[SMOWK]

Van Winkle 12 year old rye for $70

If you can find Van Winkle Old Time Rye 12yr I would jump on it!

[IrishWiskyChaser]

Balcones Blue corn is a corn whiskey. As far as I know, they don't make a rye.

Bitter Truth is a German bottler. They do make a rye but it's not available in the US so I can't tell you anything about it.

Thanks Sku they were listed under the US whiskies and also listed as Rye so good to know.

If you can find Van Winkle Old Time Rye 12yr I would jump on it!

Just had another look and can only see a

Van Winkle 13yo Family Reserve Rye. Uncle buck mentioned that one actually as having much older whiksies in it also so sounds like one to punt for. Might even get one for myself.

This is great lads sounds like I have struck gold by asking around here.

[Josh]

Yes I'm aware of Binny's so a good one to know and one of our contacts is in the Chicago area also so the posiblity of getting Whistle Pig is there. However that may go against our Fourth of July tasting theme.

[mrmountainhop]

Van Winkle 13yo Family Reserve Rye. Uncle buck mentioned that one actually as having much older whiksies in it also so sounds like one to punt for. Might even get one for myself.