Parker’s Heritage Collection, 2023, Cask Strength Rye Whiskey

I’d like to thank Heaven Hill for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

Parker's Heritage Collection is Heaven Hill’s annual “Ultra-Premium” bourbon release named for Parker Beam, Heaven Hill’s late Master Distiller Emeritus. For many years now, a portion of each bottle’s price has been donated to support ALS research and patient care in honor of Mr. Beam. To this point, sales of Parker’s Heritage Collection have raised over $1.2 million, which is pretty cool.

So on to the bourbon, Heaven Hill was very detailed on how this bourbon was created, so instead of rehashing everything, I’ll just let them speak for themselves in this one.

The 17th edition is comprised of 10-year-old Rye Whiskey that was barreled in August, October, or December of 2012. The barrels were aged on the first floors of Rickhouses H1 and H2, the fifth floor of Rickhouse FF, the third and seventh floors of Rickhouse BB, and the second floor of Rickhouse DD. At bottling, the liquid was non-chill filtered to preserve the natural flavors of the aging process. The mashbill for this edition is comprised of Heaven Hill Distillery’s traditional Rye Whiskey Mashbill 51% rye, 35% corn, and 14% malted barley and bottled at cask strength, 128.8 proof.

Let’s see how it tastes.

Parker's Heritage Collection, 17ᵗʰ Edition, 10-Year-Old, Cask-Strength Rye Whiskey

Purchase Info: This sample was provided for review purposes by the producer at no charge. The suggested retail price is $185.00

Price Per Drink (50 mL): $12.33

Details: 10 years old, 64.4% ABV. Mash Bill: 51% rye, 35% corn, and 14% malted barley

Nose: Cola, cedar, honey, and herbal mint.

Mouth: Hot and very sweet. Honey, cedar, cherry, and herbal mint.

Finish: Hot and long with prominent notes of honey and cherry, followed by notes of oak and baking spice.

Thoughts: Wow! Not only is this really hot—at almost 130° proof, I expected that—but it's much sweeter than I anticipated. In fact, I'm not sure I've ever had a rye with this much honey sweetness before. And you know I love honey, so this one hits in all the right places for me. I will say, though, that I prefer it with a small piece of ice or a splash of water. All the flavors stick around, but the heat is tamed a bit. It's delicious in either case. I like this one a lot.

Now, I usually pour off a section of these samples to share with local friends who love whiskey. But this time, I decided on a whim to use this more lavishly. I made myself possibly the most expensive Sazerac I’ve ever made at home. I used two ounces of Parker’s Heritage Rye, five shakes of barrel-aged Peychaud’s Bitters, and a squeeze of Agave syrup in a glass spritzed with absinth and a lemon twist. Oh my goodness! I know I’ve never had a Sazerac this good. Not in a bar, not at home, not in New Orleans. It was very possibly the best cocktail I’ve ever made. And after using $15 worth of whiskey in it, it should be. Just thought I’d share that. Not that anyone who didn’t get it for free (or is extravagantly wealthy) would use it this way, but if you were curious like I was, there you go.

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Square 6 High-Rye Rye Whiskey & Square 6 Wheated Bourbon

I’d like to thank Heaven Hill for providing these review samples with no strings attached.

Hey, we’re back with the two newest releases in the Square 6 lineup. I’m not going to lie to you. I found the High-Rye Bourbon that we reviewed in the last post to be very disappointing. As far as I’m aware, I’ve seldom, if ever, disliked a Heaven Hill product, especially when it was something that was selling for almost $100.

Heaven Hill touts the Evan Williams Experience as an “Artisinal” distillery. And I can see that logic with it only being able to produce a barrel of distillate daily. And honestly, the High-Rye bourbon tasted like an early craft whiskey. Unfortunately, they priced it like one as well. We used to call that the “craft tax.” You’d pay too much for sub-par whiskey because the small guys didn’t have the economies of scale to buy enough product to get the lowest prices for their ingredients or the cash flow to let it age out to the point of smoothing off the rough edges. Heaven Hill has no such issue here. Sure, at a barrel per day, they will never have a lot of the whiskeys. But if it isn’t on the same level as your other ultra-premium whiskeys, is it worth watering down your brand by pricing it like one of them? I honestly don’t know. I just yell into the void on the internet. But from my chair, I wouldn’t have done it that way.

Anyway, I’ll start out with a spoiler. The next two do, in fact, taste better than the High-Rye Bourbon. I even liked one of them. Though even then, I certainly wouldn’t pay $90 for it.

Square 6 High-Rye Rye Whiskey

Summary of the Press Release: On October 18, 2022, Heaven Hill Distillery introduced the Square 6 High-Rye Rye Whiskey, the second craft product of its series launched from the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience. This exclusive Rye Whiskey features a mashbill with 63% Rye, 24% Corn, and 13% Malted Barley, distinguishing it from their traditional Rye Whiskey mashbill. Bottled at 95 proof, it boasts intriguing notes of black tea, sweet honey, fig, molasses, allspice, pepper, vanilla, and cardamom. Limited in quantity, the Square 6 High-Rye Rye Whiskey is available at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience and select Kentucky retailers for $89.99.

Purchase Info: This sample was provided at no cost by Heaven Hill for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $89.99

Price per Drink (50 mL): $6.00

Details: 47.5% ABV. Mashbill: 63% Rye, 24% Corn, and 13% Malted Barley

Nose: Cedar, cotton candy, and cinnamon.

Mouth: Cinnamon candies, cola, mint, ginger, and vanilla.

Finish: Medium length and warm. Notes of cedar, mint, cola, and ginger.

Thoughts: Not bad. It certainly isn't my favorite rye, but I wouldn't turn down a glass, either. Overall this straddles the line between "I Like it" and "I'm neutral on this." In such cases, I usually round up. And I’m doing so again here. There are definitely interesting notes in there that help bump it up. I really like how the cola notes play with the mint and the ginger. Overall, this is an interesting take on rye, a category big Kentucky distilleries rarely innovate in.

Square 6 Wheated Bourbon

Summary of the Press Release: On June 13, 2023, Heaven Hill Distillery introduced Square 6 Wheated Bourbon. This is the third product in the Square 6 line that was developed at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience in Louisville. This new bourbon is a blend of two distinct wheated mashbills, one with 74% corn, 16% wheat, and 10% malted barley, and the other with 68% corn, 20% wheat, and 12% malted barley. Bottled at 105 proof, the Square 6 Wheated Bourbon offers rich aromas of caramel, vanilla, figs, bing cherries, and oak, with a palate featuring sweet confectioners' sugar and walnuts, and a finish highlighted by walnuts, oak tannins, baking spices, cinnamon, and cola. Artisanal Distiller Jodie Filiatreau and the team at Evan Williams Bourbon Experience craft one barrel of this unique bourbon daily, constantly refining the hand-crafted pot still process for each recipe. The limited release of Square 6 Wheated Bourbon is available at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience and select Kentucky retailers for a suggested retail price of $89.99.

Purchase Info: This sample was provided at no cost by Heaven Hill for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $89.99

Price per Drink (50 mL): $6.00

Details: 52.5% ABV. Mashbill: a blend of two distinct wheated mashbills, one with 74% corn, 16% wheat, and 10% malted barley, and the other with 68% corn, 20% wheat, and 12% malted barley.

Nose: Strong oak notes, along with fruit and cinnamon.

Mouth: Cedar, mint, cinnamon, and fresh lumber.

Finish: Medium length and warm. Notes of fruit, mint, cinnamon, and chocolate.

Thoughts: First thoughts? Not bad, not great. Expanding a little on that thought: it is not objectively bad, but it's not for me. As usual, in such cases, I'm giving it a neutral rating. But, like I said, it just doesn’t align with my palate. However, it is not nearly as tasty as I would have expected from Heaven Hill.

And heck, there might be people who want to spend the money on something different and end up liking it. I wouldn’t look sideways at them for that. I’m not the type to yuck anyone’s yum. That said, I'd definitely see if someone is pouring it in a Louisville bar before heading over to the Evan Williams Experience to buy a bottle. That goes for all three, in fact. I can see the Square 6 line being polarizing. And it would be terrible to drop a hundred bucks on a bottle if it turns out you don’t like it.

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Ezra Brooks 99 Proof Straight Rye Whiskey

Before we get started, I would like to thank everyone for their well-wishes while I recovered from a mental health emergency. Knowing that I wasn’t letting people down by not publishing helped me to not worry and allowed me to get back to a stable spot a little quicker.

A few months ago, I started getting comments from readers that the standard Ezra Brooks 90 proof was disappearing from shelves. The Lux Row PR guy I talked to reassured me that it hadn’t been discontinued. But then, a few months later, the shoe dropped, and it was removed from the Ezra Brooks site. I know that a lot of folks were disappointed in that, but honestly, I almost never bought the 90-proof version. Especially once the 99-proof version became readily available.

So it wasn’t a huge surprise when I saw this bottle of 99-proof Ezra Brooks rye sitting on the shelf of a local liquor store instead of the former 90-proof version. Of course I grabbed it, thinking that it might be fun to compare it to the Rebel 100 Rye that we looked at a couple of weeks ago. Especially since they are both coming from the same producer. It was the cheapest thing I bought that day.

Now you might be asking yourself: ok, so what is the difference between Ezra Brooks 99 Rye and Rebel 100 Rye? And to that, I can confirm…one proof point. Beyond that is just speculation on my part. There isn’t a lot of info out there other than the website. I’m guessing they didn't do a big rollout of this one since they just did the Rebel 100 rollout. The one thing that I would love a little clarification on is the mash bill. The website contradicts itself. It says that the mash bill is 51% rye, 45% corn, and 4% malted barley. It also says that the ingredients are rye and barley. No corn was mentioned. Since this comes from their corporate cousins at MGP, I’m not sure which is the typo, as MGP makes both kinds of rye. So, for the time being, let’s just look at the juice in the jug, and I’ll update the post if I hear back from the PR folks. I had a huge email outage over the last few days, so who knows what got lost.

(UPDATE 05/15/23: I just got the press release for Ezra Brooks 99 Rye and the juice is the 51% rye mashbill. Their website has also been updated.)

Ezra Brooks 99 Straight Rye Whiskey

Purchase Info: $26.99 for a 750 mL bottle at South Lyndale Liquors, Minneapolis, MN

Price per Drink (50 ml): $1.80

Details: 2 years old. 49.5% ABV. Distilled in Indiana.

Nose: Mint, cedar, honey, and coriander.

Mouth: Cinnamon, mint, honey, and cedar.

Finish: On the longer side of medium. Herbal with additional notes of baking spice and black tea.

Thoughts: Though all signs point to this being pretty much the same as the Rebel 100 Rye that we looked at a couple of weeks ago, there are subtle differences. However, it is hard to know if that is due to Rebel 100 being from the bottom of the bottle versus the Ezra Brooks 99 Rye being from the top, if it is in my imagination, or if there is an actual difference in the barrels that are chosen for each. As I said, the differences are subtle, with the Rebel 100 Rye being sweeter when I taste them side-by-side.

That said, though, this is a tasty rye. I'm digging the herbal notes I'm getting throughout. I even had to raid my spice rack to find the Corriander on the nose. Works well in cocktails too. This one gets a smile from me.

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Rebel 100 Rye

I’d like to thank ByrnePR and Lux Row for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

Hello everybody and Happy 4:20 to those who celebrate where it is legal (and to those who allegedly do so where it is not). Tonight we have something to talk about that I really love: a new and inexpensive rye whiskey. You know that I love exploring new whiskeys. Especially those that come in with a price point where I don’t reflexively feel the need to apologize when I cover them.

Rebel 100 Rye is the latest offering from Lux Row Distillers. It complements the 100 proof offering of the Rebel 100 bourbon, one of my favorites in the Rebel Whiskey line-up. As an aside, I find it a little odd that the Rebel line is made up of a wheated bourbon and a rye whiskey, but no bourbon with rye in it. That said, I guess if the whiskey is good I guess I don’t really care how the combine the constituents of the brand. This is distilled and aged in Indiana at Lux Row’s sister distillery, MGP/Ross & Squibb using their 51% Rye Mash Bill of 51% rye grain, 45% corn, and 4% malted barely. It is two years old and will sell for a suggested retail price of $19.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

“Based on the continued success of both Rebel 100 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, we’ve elevated the proof of its rye counterpart,” said Eric Winter, brand manager for Rebel. “Rebel 100 Rye drinkers still will enjoy the award-winning smooth, spicy rye flavor of Rebel Rye at a proof level that amplifies its taste profile and stands out even better in classic cocktails.”

Let’s see how it tastes.

Rebel 100 Rye

Purchase Info: This sample was provided by the producer for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $19.99.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $1.33

Details: Two years old. 50% ABV. Mash bill: 51% Rye, 45% Corn, 4% malted barley.

Nose: Toffee, mint, and a touch of black tea and citrus.

Mouth: Cinnamon, dried grains, dill, mint and honey.

Finish: Warm and of medium length. Notes of cinnamon, mint, bubblegum, dill and honey.

Thoughts: If you are a fan of the Kentucky-style "barely legal" rye. This is a tasty, and inexpensive, example of that. I probably won't buy it too often because usually when I'm looking for rye, I go with one that has a higher percentage of rye in the mashbill. If I'm looking for something with less "rye" flavor, I go with a high-rye bourbon. This flavor profile sits in that no-man's-land for me. That said its still very good, even at only two years old, and I will happily finish the bottle. I also quite enjoy it in an old fashioned using orange or cherry bitters.

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Jefferson's Ocean New York Edition and Jefferson's Ocean Rye

I’d like to thank Jefferson’s Bourbon and their PR team for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

IMAGE: Jefferson's Ocean New York Edition along with a sample bottle of Jefferson's Ocean Rye

Last week, I got myself a shipment of whiskey from the PR agency that represents Jefferson’s Bourbon. I’ve enjoyed Jefferson’s in the past but as I was often critical of the cost of the bourbon, I was a bit surprised when they offered me a sample of their new releases. But since “too expensive” is relative, I try to not let that stop me from exploring a new bourbon. Especially when they are providing the sample for review.

Tonight’s two whiskeys are again from the Jefferson’s Ocean lineup. Because we have a lot to cover, let’s just let Jefferson’s tell you what they want you to know about each whiskey and then we can discuss what they taste like.

First, Jefferson’s Ocean Rye:

Welcome aboard rye’s first voyage, joining our Jefferson’s Ocean Aged at Sea family as our 26th voyage. This double-barreled rye whiskey travels the world on ships at sea, blending the bold flavor of Rye with the rich caramelization that comes from the unique sea aging process.

And now Jefferson’s Ocean New York Edition

Prior to landing in New York, the barrels of bourbon traveled around the world sailing through rough and smooth seas while experiencing a wide range of temperatures. When they finished their voyage, they arrived at Manhattan’s first distillery since prohibition. From here, New York’s famous water was used to cut the bourbon to a 98 proof and it is non chill filtered creating a bigger and bolder liquid.

Ok, now that that’s behind us, Let’s see how they taste.

Jefferson's Ocean Rye

Purchase Info: This sample bottle was provided at no cost for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $79.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $5.33

Details: 48% ABV.

Nose: Wintergreen, cinnamon, bubblegum.

Mouth: Cinnamon spice, nutmeg, bubblegum, and cardboard.

Finish: Medium in warmth and length. Notes of bubble gum, spearmint, and baking spice.

Thoughts: Lots of bubble gum on this one. At least to my palate. This isn't a world-beater by any means, but it isn't bad. It just doesn't align with my palate. I prefer my rye whiskies to have a little more ' 'rye" flavor to them. So I'm neutral on this one. I'd drink it if you were pouring, but probably wouldn't choose it off the shelf if I was pouring

Jefferson's Ocean: New York Edition

Purchase Info: This sample bottle was provided at no cost for review purposes. They did not provided a suggested retail price but the Bourbon Review is reporting it as $99 for a 750 mL.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $6.67

Details: 49% ABV. Cut to proof with New York water.

Nose: Cinnamon, vanilla, red berries, and hints of oak and wintergreen.

Mouth: Spicy cinnamon, red fruit, brown sugar, wintergreen, dried grain, and raw almond.

Finish: On the longer side of medium length. Notes of nutmeg, wintergreen, vanilla, and cinnamon.

Thoughts: I'm very pleasantly surprised by this one. I'm not usually a huge fan of Jefferson's Bourbon, but this one is pretty good. It has a nice spiciness. Unlike the other Jefferson's Bourbons I've had recently, this doesn't stray too far away from the stereotypical "Bourbon" flavor profile. I usually describe Jefferson's as a "change of pace" bourbon because it is a bit different than the other bourbons on the market. This needs no such disclaimer. I'm a fan. Though the $100 price point of the Jefferson's Ocean New York Edition release does leave a bit to be desired. Especially if you are on a dogsitter’s budget like I am.

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