October 26, 2015

A worldwide cry for rye

And yet a stupid headline, congrats, S., you’ve outdone yourself. Seriously, it seems that many distillers, all over the world, have now noticed that you can make pretty good rye fast, while malted barley needs much more ageing to become pleasant. And there’s even more and more white rye, and I find some excellent! So, well, lets try a few ryes, from America and from elsewhere. We’ll see how far we’ll manage to go, starting with, tah-dah, France!

Vulson 'Old Rhino Rye Whisky' (45%, OB, Domaine des Hautes Glaces, France, 2015)

Single estate stuff and neither just a factory, nor just a ‘sourcer’. Very high esteem. Enough said. Oh and certified organic. Colour: straw. Nose: this will be short: at a great baker’s at 5am. Fresh wholegrain bread sprinkled with the best poire williams. After five minutes, a mezcal/clairin feeling, with olives, brine, and damp dust. Old damp floor cloth, or rather hessian. Plus a smidgen of liquorice wood and perhaps dill. Mouth: exceptional. To be honest, you could really think this is wild-agave mezcal (speaking of which, we’re having quite a box of new mezcals to unload.) Or clairin. Love the salt, the olives… It’s almost liquid Provençal crackers. Finish: medium, briny, not as bready as others, with a lemony signature. Comments: same league as Glann ar Mor’s ‘Only Rye’ as far as France is concerned, or Zuidam/Millstone from that low country farther north of Belgium. Bravo! SGP:461 - 87 points.

Farther north, he said…

Kyro 'Rye Rye Verso' (46.5%, OB, rye, Finland, +/-2015)

Malted rye. Big sense of fun and self-derision at Kyro’s, since you can read ‘(matured) for a minimum of four months by the patient Rye Rye distillers’ on the label. LOL, as they say on Facebook. Colour: gold. Nose: the casks were much more active, it’s got much more oak (ginger, caraway) but the spirit’s fat and appropriately bready, and just stands it. This is a style that’s more to be seen at American craft distillers’ in my opinion, but I like these whiffs of genever quite a lot. Less easy, fresh, and complex than the French, but I’m enjoying it. Also a little parsley this time. Mouth: yeah, it’s rather more ‘WIP’ than the Vulson, so perhaps not totally ready yet, but all ingredients are well in place, the bread, the spices, the ginger… It’s also got a very creamy mouth feel, it’s almost as thick as honey. Fun! Finish: oh nice, it ends with pink grapefruits and roasted raisins! Good length. Comments: well done Finland (I’m feeling like an Eurovision judge now…) This baby’s probably ten times younger than the Vulson, if not more, so quite an achievement. SGP:461 - 82 points.

Good, it’s got a similar strength, let’s have the…

Woodford Reserve ‘Kentucky Straight Rye’ (45.2%, OB, +/-2015)

They call it straight rye, but it’s only got 53% rye inside, which is hard to understand from an European’s POV. Ha, Europeans! Colour: amber. Nose: much smooooother, sweeter, and more bourbony. There is some rye, of course, but it’s very discreet and both vanilla and jammy fruits are having the upper hand here. And coconut. But I find it nice, extremely easy, rounded, with very few asperities, as we say in advertising. Mouth: good. More ryeness this time, and a rather perfect balance between the stewed fruits (oranges) and all things from American oak, that si to say vanilla and compadres coconut and ginger. A touch of honey as well. The strength is perfect. Finish: medium, with a wee sourness that’s welcome. Can you say ‘wee’ when writing about some American whisky? Orange soup. Comments: what it may lack is complexity, as well as this pretty extreme ryeness that the Europeans can have (when 100% rye), but another than that, I think it’s faultless, easy bourb… I mean, rye. But the Vulson just kills it. SGP:541 - 82 points.

James Oliver Rye (50%, OB, Oregon, USA, +/-2015)

From Indio Spirits Distillery. Advertised as 100% rye (hurray) and said to be four years old (hurray again). And very fairly priced. And ‘probably’ Canadian according to reliable sources, so sourced. Just wondering just know, shouldn’t we taste these things within a Canadian session? But what’s sure is that it’s ‘rye’, so, no worries… Colour: gold. Nose: shy and narrow after the Woodford, with more sawdust and vanilla, then maple syrup and lemon marmalade, with a touch of clove and ginger. Getting fresher and fresher, toward artisan limoncello (perhaps). Mouth: starts soapy but that’s ‘rye-soap’, which tends to go away. Some juniper, oranges, honey, ginger, and yet again lemon marmalade. Sweets. Good easy body. Finish: medium, and the soapiness is back. Also the oranges, which is good. Ryer, spicier aftertaste. Comments: honest and loyal, but all the others are killing it. But it’s cheap! SGP:451 - 77 points.

Back to true craft that burns and smashes…

Catoctin Creek 3 yo 2011/2015 (62.4%, Single Cask Nation, rye, USA, cask #107, 251 bottles, 2015)

Some true craft from Purcellville, Virginia. Imagine that within just three years, they managed to first age it in a 1st fill white wine cask, then in new charred American oak. Isn’t it a bit as if they had done the finishing before maturing? Haha. Colour: salmony. Nose: love it. Sure it’s young, but this dual combination of tarry lavender and raspberry honey just works. Even the very high strength isn’t a problem (bragging a bit now). Plus nutmeg, speculoos, gingerbread, sweet maize bread… With water: peppered liquorice? Mouth (neat): I insist, that’s the good thing with rye, they can become great fast. Like gifted children, if you like. This is ridden with gingerbread, and more gingerbread. You could argue that you have to like gingerbread. You wouldn’t be wrong. Forgot to mention liquorice and Seville oranges. And kummel. With water: I was afraid the oak would come out and overwhelm it. Not so. So, what was that white wine? Virginian wine? What’s the grape(s)? Finish: rather long, clean, Christmassy. That’s the ginger, the clove, and the cinnamon speaking out. And yet this baby’s not an oak bomb at all. It’s only in the aftertaste that the oak becomes a little louder. Comments: a wee bit monolithic, perhaps, but water helps and, well, it’s all very good imho. SGP:551 - 82 points.

A last one for the digital road, perhaps. Let’s try to find a benchmark… Like this? That will be six ryes, that’s enough.

Van Winkle 13 yo ‘Family Reserve’ (47.8%, OB, Kentucky straight rye, Ref J0275)

Legendary stuff, probably not 100% rye, but yeah, legendary and expensive stuff. Not too sure when this baby was bottled, is there a way to find out? I remember I had tried another VW 13 quite a few years back, but I believe it was defective. Colour: amber. Nose: it’s true that it’s quite ‘ironclad’. Delicate, rounded, complex, subtle… With something like orange-flavoured praline and fudge, then rather marzipan and ‘dusty honey’. And old sauternes. Now, is there much happening? Is this what we’re expecting from rye whisky? The jury’s still out… Mouth: spicy honey liqueur and, oh, I know, some crazy folks make gingerbread liqueur over here in Alsace, and I’m finding similarities (but a bottle of Alsatian gingerbread liqueur will cost you around 12€, not 400€… Or even 1,500€, not joking). Anyway… I find it kind of good, but perhaps a little dusty and dry. Like the oranges, though, and the touches of lavender. A little less the overcooked caramel. Also a little glue and varnish, perhaps? Loses much steam, too bad. Finish: medium, rather on marmalade, with a touch of flower jelly and Schweppes-Orange. Roses? A little sour oak in the aftertaste. Comments: I must be tired, or whatever, but I just don’t understand what the fuss is all about. Sure it’s goody good bourbon, and it started well, but I believe it really lacks impact. Liked a VW (no, not Volkswagen, this is no rigged diesel whisky) 12 yo Special Reserve much, much better. But remember (again and again), only one man’s opinion! And yes I know this is a sacred cow. SGP:641 - 79 points.

Oh and one question, who’s already done some peated malted rye, who?

(Nicolas, merci encore)