Fleischman's Rye Info...

[ratcheer]

Still is, actually (Point, or Rhinelander, for instance)... Rhinelander was a cheap+good favorite of mine back in my college days - it came in returnable longneck bottles, long after returnables had otherwise fallen out of fashion in Illinois.

The very first cargo that I hauled with the pickup truck I used to own was a case of Rhinelander. :slappin:

Yes, but I never see those in this part of the country, anymore. I can remember when the beer selection in the South was dominated by Milwaukee and other WI beers. Especially Schlitz, Miller, and Pabst, but there were others, too.

Tim

[chasking]

Rhinelander---God, that brought back a lot of bad memories. :puke:

Besides Busch, Miller and Coors, just about all the other macrobrews are now owned by one company: Pabst, which is based in San Antonio (!) but according to reports will be moving to Chicago. Pabst owns the Old Style, Schlitz, Stroh's, Blatz, and Old Milwaukee labels, and a bunch of others too. As I understand it, Pabst itself no longer brews beer; its products are contract-brewed for it by Miller. Exceptions to the consolidation of second- and third-tier brands are Hamm's, which is actually owned by Miller, and Rolling Rock, recently acquired by Anheuser Busch. I think Leinenkugel's is still its own company, although they may be subtly connected to one of the big ones. I don't know that for sure though.

Notwithstanding consolidation, there are still differences between the various beers: at a party recently we had a blind taste test featuring an assortment of cheap American beers, including Pabst Blue Ribbon, Old Style, and Schlitz, and everyone detected differences in the flavors of those three Pabst-owned beers. (Schlitz is my favorite, of that rather bland genre.) And two of the other beers were Miller High Life and Hamm's, so five of the six beers (the other being Busch) were brewed by Miller, but they didn't taste the same.

[hookfinger]

Other Wisconsin things:

The Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward.

Door County - One of the prettiest little stretches of scenery anywhere.

A couple of friends of mine will be joining me this year at KBF/Gazebo. Due to demand they will be bringing several bottles of Fleishman's Rye for sampling/trade/divesting.

You can always PM me if you want to be absolutely sure you don't miss out.

[cowdery]

Since the gazebo is within spitting distance of the Barton distillery, it amuses me that we have to go to Wisconsin to get one of their products.

[wispotsill]

I have only been up here 6 month's but the first thing I noticed was the wide array of rye available. Fleischman's is a great rye, it is one of my regular pours, but it is not a patch on Heaven Hill's Stephen Foster. Both are young ryes just bursting at the seams with spice and dry rye. Beam rye has a very big following up here, I have been told that it outsells Beam bourbon almost 2 to 1. Probably the best up here or anywhere in my book, is Old Overholt. I will tell you that If you like rye you are in luck up here, but in sad shape for corn whiskey, and Dickel. I have my supplier ordering a case next week.

[gr8erdane]

Be careful, there, Wisconsin might have laws against sippin your Dickel in public, eh?

[BourbonJoe]

A couple of friends of mine will be joining me this year at KBF/Gazebo.

What happened Hook? We were lookin fer ya.

Joe :usflag:

[CrispyCritter]

I have only been up here 6 month's but the first thing I noticed was the wide array of rye available. Fleischman's is a great rye...

I was up in the Milwaukee area last month, but the few liquor stores where I stopped to take a peek didn't have any Fleishchmann's Rye, just the blended whiskey.

Fortunately, Chicago is a bit of a rye stronghold in itself (Rittenhouse 80 and BIB, Sazerac Jr. and sometimes 18yo, Beam, KBD "Vintage Rye" bottlings, Old Overholt, and WT are all available around here, and Van Winkle rye sometimes shows up on shelves as well). As far as I know (based on other threads in this forum), Fleischmann's Rye is only available in Wisconsin.

[luv2hunt]

Well, I'd like to know where in Wisconsin it's hiding? I've looked in Beloit, Madison, Eau Claire and a few other small towns. Same story.....only the Blended stuff!?!?

Dawn

[cowdery]

I'm going to take a wild guess that wispotsill is in Door County (way north, on the lake) and that's where he's seeing Fleischmann's Rye. Am I right?

[chasking]

It is fortuitous that this thread has revitalized: I am taking a vacation to Door County next week, and one of my goals is to get some of the rye that is not available here. Fleishmann's is my number one target, but the reference to Stephen Foster is also intriguing. Can anyone identify specific places up that way where those ryes are available? We'll also be in the Sheboygan/Elkhart Lake area for a while.

[chasking]

Well, my search for rare Wisconsin-market-only rye whiskeys went better than I expected. East-central Wisconsin is indeed rye country. The first liquor store I checked in the first town we stopped in had both Fleischmann's and Steven Foster ryes, as well as Rittenhouse, Jim Beam, Old Overholt and Van Winkle Family Reserve. So if you're in Plymouth (near Sheboygan and Elkhart Lake) you can find those elusive ryes at Cut-Rate Liquors on Eastern Ave.

When was the last time you went into a place with a name like that and found six different brands of rye whiskey on the shelves? There might have been more; I was in a hurry and didn't take the time to look carefully at their entire selection. (Actually, they appeared to have a pretty good assortment.)

[jburlowski]

Well, my search for rare Wisconsin-market-only rye whiskeys went better than I expected. East-central Wisconsin is indeed rye country. The first liquor store I checked in the first town we stopped in had both Fleischmann's and Steven Foster ryes, as well as Rittenhouse, Jim Beam, Old Overholt and Van Winkle Family Reserve. So if you're in Plymouth (near Sheboygan and Elkhart Lake) you can find those elusive ryes at Cut-Rate Liquors on Eastern Ave.

When was the last time you went into a place with a name like that and found six different brands of rye whiskey on the shelves? There might have been more; I was in a hurry and didn't take the time to look carefully at their entire selection. (Actually, they appeared to have a pretty good assortment.)

I grew up in southern Wisconsin... you're making me homesick.

[Gillman]

I find this fascinating. This area apparently uniquely is a surviving outpost of straight rye whiskey, a kind of living fossil (don't misunderstand the metaphor, cheeseheads ). At one time such a liquor choice was common in the North East generally and parts of the mid-West. I wonder what explains this remarkable survival. Good subject for an M.A. thesis, there is a discipline called historical geography I believe which might cover it..

Gary

[CrispyCritter]

Hmmm... sounds like a Wisconsin roadtrip is in the cards for me... as much of an F.I.B. [1] as I might be, I have quite a fondness for Wisconsin in general [2]. Rye makes it even better!

[1] F***ing Illinois Bastard. One step shy of a FISHTAB (F***ing Illinois S*** Head Towing A Boat). But I can pronounce "Mequon," "Waukesha," and "Oconomowoc," and I know what a bubbler is. :slappin:

[2] Except for the Packers. I still haven't forgotten 1986, when Charles Martin picked up Bears quarterback Jim McMahon and spiked him. :hot: