Does anyone else out there just never eat at their kitchen table? I try to. But then I set the mail on it. And then an Amazon package for my wife or kid. Then I set something for the dogs on it. And this keeps going until I just have to fully commit to the fact that I don’t have a table—I have a storage space. Some people have a junk drawer to keep their odds and ends in; I have a junk table.
Well, until either my wife or I get sick of it. Then we clean it up, put everything away, and try to get a couple of meals or a jigsaw puzzle in before the cycle starts over.
So, I was cleaning off my table this weekend when I found the last two issues of Chuck Cowdery’s Bourbon County Reader. It’s one of the few bourbon-focused publications that I still read. As I’ve slowly withdrawn from being chronically online over the last few years, I’ve found that I like reading things that aren’t on a screen. It’s nice to be unconnected at times. That’s why I like Mr. Cowdery’s newsletter. Not only is it always interesting and informative, it’s paper and lands in my mailbox.
I bring that up because May’s issue was where I first heard about tonight’s whiskey: A. Overholt from Suntory Global’s Beam division. A. Overholt is a line extension in their Old Overholt line. Though, unlike previous line extensions, this isn’t just Old Overholt with a little more age or a different proof. No, for this one Beam used an entirely different mashbill. There is no corn in this whiskey. It is 80% rye and 20% malted barley. It was aged four years and bottled at a non-chill filtered 95° proof.
According to Mr. Cowdery’s article, this unusual mashbill used to be anything but. It was a fairly standard mashbill for the historical Monongahela Rye, a Pennsylvania product. However, as rye fell out of favor and the whiskey industry consolidated, rye-making moved to Kentucky. Over time, more and more corn was added to the mashbills (partly because corn is cheaper, partly because corn gives a better mouthfeel) until many rye whiskeys were just a few percentage points away from being high-rye bourbons.
At least until MGP’s 95% rye mashbill hit the market in a big way a little over a decade ago. In the intervening years, rye sales took off in ways that took some companies by surprise. Wild Turkey even took their 101 Rye off the market for a while to help stretch their supplies further. And as more and more rye whiskeys that were sourced from MGP hit the market, I decided that I actually preferred a higher rye content in my rye whiskey than the “barely legal” version that many Kentucky distilleries were putting out at the time. So, it was with great pleasure that I saw new Kentucky distilleries releasing just that. For a long time, Old Forester was one of my favorites with their 70% rye mashbill. And now Beam joins the club by leaving the corn out entirely.
So, let’s see how this thing tastes, shall we?
A. Overholt Straight Rye Whiskey
Purchase Info: $40.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Total Wine, Burnsville, MN
Price per Drink (50 mL): $2.73
Details: 47.5% ABV. 80% Rye, 20% Malted Barley. 4-years-old.
Nose: Wintergreen, cedar, and a nutty/bready note.
Mouth: Toasted grains, cedar, and nutmeg.
Finish: Medium in length and warmth. Notes of toasted grains, cedar, wintergreen, and nutmeg linger.
Thoughts: This is completely unlike any rye I've had. There are lovely bready notes throughout. Toasted whole grain notes bring a ton of warm, comforting flavors to the mouth and finish. And the wintergreen and nutmeg add top and bottom notes to the whole.
I wasn't sure what to expect here. I kind of expected something like a nuttier MGP 95/5% rye with the lack of corn. But, while this does have more nutty notes due to the increased malted barley, it doesn't present the rye in the same way. This has a nice mouthfeel but isn't sweet in the way a bourbon would be. I like it. I can't wait to spend more time with the bottle. In the short time I've already spent with it, I can attest it makes a mighty fine Sazerac cocktail and a delicious Old Fashioned.
Heading out for a week’s vacation so no posts next week. BourbonGuy.com will be back to it’s regular schedule July 30th, 2024.
If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.