Either you like Rye, or you don’t stand it. I happen to like that stuff, and though it’s not easy getting them here or for the matter in Europe, I do take pleasure in trying new expressions from time to time. When I visited Whisky Live last week I was given a wee sample of this one by a good whisky friend (let’s just say his name is made up of two very different animals). I Was looking forward to trying this , having heard very good things about it from two whisky friends from two continents (Europe, and Africa!) ,they seemed to really like this version. Rittenhouse is a brand now owned by Heaven Hill distilleries, and is made in the tradition of the classic Pennsylvania or “Monongahela” rye whiskeys. This specific one was bottled from a single cask for the Whisky Exchange, and is available Exclusively from their shop / site.
Rittenhouse 100 Proof Rye / Single Cask for TWE , 50% , £32
Nose: Big rye (ok, we were expecting this, right?) . Lots if maple, sour wood, nuts , balsamic vinegar . A few notes of Crème de Menthe with touches of Vanilla, quite a bit of Wet oak and sun dried bananas… (Thank you for pointing this out, Steffen) What a great nose.
Palate: Rich, bitter sweet with burnt sugar,creamy coconut milk,apple and vinegar.Continues with Demerara sugar spices, cinnamon galore and some cloves.
Finish : Long, spice and sugary butter.
A lovely dram, a good example of the genre. And very drinkable,straight, or in a mixer. I prefer it neat.
Sounds wonderful and quite different from the regular vatted edition I drink regularly.
This is a good representative US straight rye whiskey. I would be interested to taste and compare the TWE private bottling with the standard distillery bottlings.
I’d like to try the “regular” version
Gal, if you read Jim Murray, you may be aware that there are a number of single barrels of 21 yo and 25 yo Rittenhouse Ryes, as well. Though Mr. Murray does not review them, there are also some 23 yo Rittenhouse Ryes apparently available mostly in Europe. All of these older Rittenhouse Ryes are pretty hard to find, even in the USA. If you get a chance, try a sample of some of them. They are quite intense. Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible comments are useful in understanding them before you get a chance to try some of them yourself.