Jump to content

Kentucky Owl Rye


kevinbrink
This topic has been inactive for at least 365 days, and is now closed. Please feel free to start a new thread on the subject! 

Recommended Posts

So an 11 Year Old Barrel Proof Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey for $130, kind of seems like almost fair pricing when considering what Booker's Rye and Barrell Rye sold for, obviously not taking taste into account here.  Also interesting that it will have a wider release than the Bourbon hitting 25 markets including the two I shop in.  So maybe I'll have a shot at this if it's actually good, then again I probably won't if I wait to find out if it's good or not.... 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That sounds like fair pricing to me.

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, LCWoody said:

If I see it I will definitely pick one up. I'm sure its LDI juice. BUT nothing wrong with that. 

The whiskey is not Indiana distilled from LDI, if the label states it's a Kentucky Straight Rye.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

33 minutes ago, smokinjoe said:

The whiskey is not Indiana distilled from LDI, if the label states it's a Kentucky Straight Rye.  

Didn't look at it, that's what I get for assuming. That's good, at least its not from Canada. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, LCWoody said:

Didn't look at it, that's what I get for assuming. That's good, at least its not from Canada. 

Aye, that would be "Vermont Pig"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Best I can tell it is a blend of Kentucky rye barrels (which means it might not all be from one distillery? As best I recall "straight" does not mean it has to come from a single distillery for American whiskey the way a Scottish "single malt" must be from a specific single distillery). And apparently they have a fair amount of it as it is being distributed to a number of states, unlike the bourbon which has been fairly limited and the first few batches were KY only.

 

Never tried it myself. Maybe it is a great stuff and he found great older barrels that others missed but there is something about this brand that just seems disconcerting to me. Can't quite put my finger on it but I am just not interested at least until I try it for myself first. Not sure what Dedmon's background was before he started blending high priced sourced whiskey other than being the great grandson of a distiller from the past and maybe he indeed is a blending savant but I am still a tad skeptical of this relative youngster who as best I can tell did not work in the industry prior to releasing the first sourced bourbon (he manages a local hotel it would seem). Just like that Vermont pig it feels like there is a lot more lipstick being applied than it appears.

 

I did find this article and the below quote rather interesting and apparently Mike Veach seemed to like one or more of the early batches so maybe he can comment if he sees this.

 

Bemused and amused by all the attention, he added between grimaces and grins, “The whole time this is going on, I’m saying to (wife) Elizabeth, ‘What the hell? What is wrong with these people?’”

 

Good question...

 

And poking around the internet I see it was bought by Stoli earlier this year and now they have a lot of rye to distribute. Hmm.

 

And while the $130 price tag may well be the new standard cost that seems somehow rather depressing to me as well!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

^^^If the fever hits me, I think I'll just settle for a stop by Mr. Dedmon's establishment (Beaumont Inn) for a pour.  He does have a very well stocked bar there and It'll certainly be a lot easier on the wallet that trying to obtain a bottle. :lol:

 

It also doesn't hurt that his chicken and country ham are pretty good, so that'll be my excuse!  ;)

 

Edited by Paddy
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, tanstaafl2 said:

Best I can tell it is a blend of Kentucky rye barrels (which means it might not all be from one distillery? As best I recall "straight" does not mean it has to come from a single distillery for American whiskey the way a Scottish "single malt" must be from a specific single distillery). And apparently they have a fair amount of it as it is being distributed to a number of states, unlike the bourbon which has been fairly limited and the first few batches were KY only.

It can be straight as a blend as long as it is all sourced from the same state, I'm fairly certain. That is why High West products aren't straight as they are blends of straight whiskeys from different states (Indiana and Kentucky).  Hochstadter's get's around this by calling it a Vatted Straight Rye Whiskey, however I'm guessing if the TTB actually enforced the rules it wouldn't have the word Straight on it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

33 minutes ago, kevinbrink said:

It can be straight as a blend as long as it is all sourced from the same state, I'm fairly certain. That is why High West products aren't straight as they are blends of straight whiskeys from different states (Indiana and Kentucky).  Hochstadter's get's around this by calling it a Vatted Straight Rye Whiskey, however I'm guessing if the TTB actually enforced the rules it wouldn't have the word Straight on it.

You mean the TTB sometimes enforces the rules????

 

:o

 

Yes, thanks for the clarification. I remember that same state requirement now that you mention it!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, tanstaafl2 said:

You mean the TTB sometimes enforces the rules????

 

:o

 

Yes, thanks for the clarification. I remember that same state requirement now that you mention it!

I would dare not imply such a thing!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 9/8/2017 at 0:30 PM, tanstaafl2 said:

Best I can tell it is a blend of Kentucky rye barrels (which means it might not all be from one distillery? As best I recall "straight" does not mean it has to come from a single distillery for American whiskey the way a Scottish "single malt" must be from a specific single distillery). And apparently they have a fair amount of it as it is being distributed to a number of states, unlike the bourbon which has been fairly limited and the first few batches were KY only.

 

Never tried it myself. Maybe it is a great stuff and he found great older barrels that others missed but there is something about this brand that just seems disconcerting to me. Can't quite put my finger on it but I am just not interested at least until I try it for myself first. Not sure what Dedmon's background was before he started blending high priced sourced whiskey other than being the great grandson of a distiller from the past and maybe he indeed is a blending savant but I am still a tad skeptical of this relative youngster who as best I can tell did not work in the industry prior to releasing the first sourced bourbon (he manages a local hotel it would seem). Just like that Vermont pig it feels like there is a lot more lipstick being applied than it appears.

 

I did find this article and the below quote rather interesting and apparently Mike Veach seemed to like one or more of the early batches so maybe he can comment if he sees this.

 

Bemused and amused by all the attention, he added between grimaces and grins, “The whole time this is going on, I’m saying to (wife) Elizabeth, ‘What the hell? What is wrong with these people?’”

 

Good question...

 

And poking around the internet I see it was bought by Stoli earlier this year and now they have a lot of rye to distribute. Hmm.

 

And while the $130 price tag may well be the new standard cost that seems somehow rather depressing to me as well!

A certain retired master distiller who consulted with them on an early batch told me that the individual barrels were not very good but that in the right ratios they blended well.

Don't know if that means the guy is a blending savant or just lucky. Either way, I'm still not shelling out the dough for one of these (or any of the bourbons). 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

How does it taste? I'm really curious to hear where this actually comes from, so bonus points if you can pick out a particular flavor profile that would suggest who is distilling it. Actually it looks like the label says Bardstown so that narrows it down. I don't think Barton makes a rye, Willet hasn't been operational long enough to have an 11 year. So that means Heaven Hill is the likely culprit? 11 year Rittenhouse/Pikesville juice at barrel proof? Somewhat interesting, though the proof looks to be just about the same as Pikesville at ~110.

 

Also, say what you will about WhistlePig (personally I am a fan as their Canadian sourced whiskey is delicious, and I couldn't care less about the drama), but you can pick up a store pick barrel proof WP10 for about $80. I have a 120 proof bottle from Stagecoach that is absolutely stellar. If someone knows a better source for 10 year old barrel proof rye, I'm all ears.

Edited by EarthQuake
Link to comment
Share on other sites

56 minutes ago, EarthQuake said:

How does it taste? I'm really curious to hear where this actually comes from, so bonus points if you can pick out a particular flavor profile that would suggest who is distilling it. Actually it looks like the label says Bardstown so that narrows it down. I don't think Barton makes a rye, Willet hasn't been operational long enough to have an 11 year. So that means Heaven Hill is the likely culprit? 11 year Rittenhouse/Pikesville juice at barrel proof? Somewhat interesting, though the proof looks to be just about the same as Pikesville at ~110.

 

Also, say what you will about WhistlePig (personally I am a fan as their Canadian sourced whiskey is delicious, and I couldn't care less about the drama), but you can pick up a store pick barrel proof WP10 for about $80. I have a 120 proof bottle from Stagecoach that is absolutely stellar. If someone knows a better source for 10 year old barrel proof rye, I'm all ears.

Barton make Fleischman's rye IIRC which is only available in Wisconsin, they are also the source for the older rye that is in High West Double Rye, Rendezvous Rye and their variants.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, kevinbrink said:

Barton make Fleischman's rye IIRC which is only available in Wisconsin, they are also the source for the older rye that is in High West Double Rye, Rendezvous Rye and their variants.  

Ah yes good catch! There is some Barton rye in one of my favorites from High West: Bourye 2015. So Heaven Hill and Barton both look like reasonable sources.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The label in the pic says "bottled" in Bardstown.  That doesn't mean it was necessarily distilled there.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

An interesting tidbit, I missed, and no one corrected me on, despite the high proof this sucker is not barrel proof. Apparently it was in the 130's and brought down to 110.6 to "make it more approachable to the casual drinker". 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 9/24/2017 at 7:29 PM, kevinbrink said:

An interesting tidbit, I missed, and no one corrected me on, despite the high proof this sucker is not barrel proof. Apparently it was in the 130's and brought down to 110.6 to "make it more approachable to the casual drinker". 

And to increase the profit margin too!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Finally cracked this open.

Anyone who drinks a lot of HW rendezvous rye will immediately recognize which rickhouse this owl flew out of.

I'm a buyer of this stuff all day long @ retail.  Yes, it's expensive, but unless you can tell me where to find some old bottles of Rocky mountain rye @ a reasonable price, it's all I've got.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 hours ago, 0895 said:

Finally cracked this open.

Anyone who drinks a lot of HW rendezvous rye will immediately recognize which rickhouse this owl flew out of.

I'm a buyer of this stuff all day long @ retail.  Yes, it's expensive, but unless you can tell me where to find some old bottles of Rocky mountain rye @ a reasonable price, it's all I've got.

Must be Barton then. I don't think I'll stumble across this at retail but I would like to try it as I've only had Barton rye in HW blends like HWRR and HW Bourye, would be great to try it on its own. 

Edited by EarthQuake
Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, Charlutz said:

Anyone else taste this yet? A local store has a single bottle for $120. I passed and don't have remorse. 

I passed on this today as well @ $129... I've given much more for bottles without hesitation, but as much as I'd like to try it, I just can't talk myself into pulling the trigger on this one... I guess THH, Pikesville , and CEHTR all being less could have something to do with it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Picked up one of these last night and cracked it. We did a side by side with this...2016 Mitchter's 10 year rye, SAOS 9 year Rye, THH, a 16 year old Rye from High West (basically the older rye component of rendezvous rye). This one surprised me as it was my fav just under the 16 year old stuff and way better than the other ryes. They all share similarities on the nose but the palate was amazing, maybe owing to being a higher proof. The bigger loser in my book was the THH, just hot and unsophisticated. For the money, the SAOS is probably the best deal but this 11 yr is really a treat if you can get it. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.