Born in the USA: All new in Whiskey & Rye?

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The past few years saw a growing range of rye whiskeys and with it the exciting realisation that cocktails can change dramatically when their base alcohol is replaced by rye – as seasoned bar professionals will well remember. New brands followed with new products whose quality made people sit up and notice. Back then when the first bars started using Elijah Craig 12 Years for pouring, they raised many an eyebrow. Frankfurt then saw the arrival of the “Bookeroni” – i.e. the Negroni-inspired Boulevardier mixed with high-volume Booker’s Whiskey. After that, bottles of Michter’s started appearing in Munich in the vicinity of a famous lighting store. So to sum up: bars were given all-new, delightful possibilities and even whisk(e)y purists found a new spectrum of aromas to discover. 

Power plus Tradition

Today, we have come quite some way. Jim Beam thrills us with its Small Batch Portfolio while Jack Daniel’s recently launched a Single Malt. And Woodford constantly impresses us with its variety of cask aromas and teaches us about the various toasting and charring levels of cask treatment and how these processes impact the aroma. Speaking of casks: cask ageing is becoming increasingly important for both whisky and whiskey. Terms like finishing or second maturation are now also going mainstream in the US. Whiskeys with vermouth, wine or Amburana finishes fascinate American palates and initial products such as Angel’s Envy with its elegant Port-wine finish have already made their way across the Pond.

More and more experts are hinting the strict cask rules in the US might soon be about to change. Right now though they are still unambiguous and strict: Bourbon and Rye Whisky are required to mature in new, charred casks. After being used once, the remaining beverage world looks forward to these high-quality casks made of American white oak, which then end up in distilleries and other manufacturing sites the world over. In the USA, however, quiet resistance is now stirring against these 90-year-old rules dating back to the “New Deal” era of Prohibition and the Great Depression. There is also a growing number of new, fresh distillery projects in North America looking to instil Bourbons and Ryes with more diversity and imagination.  

Provocation and Innovation

One curiosity hails from the time-honoured Cascade Hollow Distillery in Tennessee, known for its George Dickel brand. Here they joined forces with North America’s biggest buyer of used whiskey casks, sauce manufacturer Tabasco. For their “George Dickel Tabasco Barrel Finish” the whiskey makers from Tennessee take back these barrels and fill them with whiskey (spelt whisky in the case of George Dickel, an unusual spelling for the US) for another 30 days. They then reduce the alcohol level to a low 35% to classify as a liqueur and escape the “whiskey sheriffs’” strict purity rules.  

Other brands even go one provocative step further. FEW Spirits, breathing some fresh air into the USA’s spirits landscape out of Chicago since 2011, is a case in point. Amongst others, they offer their Cold Cut Bourbon Whiskey. This is a Bourbon mixed with Cold Brew Coffee rather than water to achieve 93 Proof (i.e. 46.5% alcohol). Or their Immortal Rye using the same process but with cold extracted Oolong Tea instead of clear spring water. As we can see, the US whiskey scene is also increasingly “marrying” its strictly regulated tradition-rich products with new flavours. 

Music in the Glass

One pioneer on this young craft distillers’ scene is the Koval brand from Chicago. Robert Birnecker already started distilling whiskey based on a wide variety of cereals such as oat and millet early on. His brand Balcones lifted corn whiskey from insignificance and his “Baby Blue” shows what is possible with this stylistic approach. Add to this his Single Malts and the announcement that the Diageo Group liked this brand so much it now forms part of its brand family.

At the end of the day, though, it is often all about the collaboration between whiskey and music. Echoing the lyrics of that famous song ‘American Pie’: “Them good old boys were drinking Whiskey and Rye” we should actually almost sing “were MAKING Whiskey and Rye” today. Bob Dylan, for instance, thrills fans with his Heaven’s Door brand and announced the opening of his own distillery this year. The band Metallica markets Blackened Whiskey, which matures in excessively charred brandy casks while exposed to Metallica music. Alice in Chains joined forces with the FEW Distillery to produce a whiskey matured in Tequila barrels while famous rapper Drake turned away from his rapper’s delight Cognac to entertain us with his Virginia Black Whiskey.

So it looks as if whiskey from the USA is increasingly delighting both our palates and our ears!