A Rye Tasting of Sorts

This past weekend I held an informal rye tasting at my house with a few friends. The rye was kind of a side note to the companionship and food, but it took place anyway. And, I am here to report the results. The intoxicated panelists included myself, two other bartenders, and two chefs, so I think we had some type of credentials for rating rye, though our exercise may have lacked the attention to detail required for a more accurate assessment of the rye whiskeys before us. If you’d like a to look at a precisely educated rye tasting with a larger number of ryes, I would suggest heading over to The Cocktail Chronicles and checking out Paul’s series on rye, as it is definitely the most educational read on rye out there. But, if you want to hear what five intoxicated companions felt about rye on their day off, well this is your place!

To begin, we each had been consuming food, wine, and beer for some time before getting into the rye, so take this ranking with whatever grain of salt you will assess to our circumstances. Additionally, some of the participants had never had rye…never. So, this was by no means a committee of focused experts. However, the guy who had never knowingly had rye definitely had the most experienced palate and ranked the ryes most accurately when compared to the rest of the group. Additionally, should you choose to host a tasting of any sort, one thing to consider is glassware. I have been to many tastings, but I guess I just underestimated the setup for conducting my own. We were tasting ryes out of everything from champagne flutes to pint glass, from wine glasses to shot glasses. Anything that held liquid was fair game. Glassware can definitely impact one’s perceptions of the elixir before them, so again, the rankings may have been influenced a bit. So, there, now you know where we coming from, let’s move on to what we were drinking.

We scrapped together as many ryes as we could get on our hands on in a twenty-four hour period without spending too much money and came up with the following collection for review, listed by price here:

Rittenhouse Bonded - $11
Old Overholt - $13
Wild Turkey - $18
Russell’s Reserve - $22
Sazerac’s 6 Year - $25
Sazerac’s Thomas Handy - $52
Sazerac’s 18 Year - $54

I list these by prices because, as with many of spirits, it is interesting to note the disparity between prices and assessment when people are unaware of the labels. Our combined rankings firmly demonstrated this phenomenon. Moreover, I was surprised, considering the circumstances, at how well our rankings reflected the consensus of critics that I have read other places, like The Cocktail Chronicles, eGullet, and others. While there were some obvious differences, overall the similarities were apparent. Most surprising was the difference between the lower ranking bottles and the best. We combined each participant’s rank for each brand to find a rough score, which we ranked to identify our group’s preferences. Here’s a run-down of the rankings in reverse order with notes that the panel managed to jot down between ongoing consumption:

7. Russell’s Reserve Rye - Combined Score: 27 (7,7,6,5,&2)
Only one person liked this rye, and we made sure to criticize him rather relentlessly for his preference. We even convinced him to buy the bottle and take it home for market value! He thought the whiskey had an outstanding rye quality and “got so much out of it”. The rest of us didn’t think so. We thought this rye was bland and offered very little other than an unpleasant alcohol burn. There was some spiciness to the rye, but generally, we felt the rye had little diversity and minimal rye characteristics compared to the others. Even with the high rank of 2 from one member, the Russell’s Reserve was by far the poorest performer, ranking 16 points behind the first place rye. This occurred despite its fourth highest price tag.

6. Old Overholt Rye - Combined Score: 25 (7,6,4,4,&4)
Bland, bland, bland. We all agreed that this rye had nothing to offer at all. A few people mentioned that this rye might work well in some cocktails where a more mellow whiskey was desired, but these statements were really just made to try and find something positive to say about Old Overholt. The rye’s inability to make an impression may result from its low proof, a consequence of cutting the rye too much at the distillery. As some at eGullet have suggested, perhaps this rye would have performed better had it been allowed to appear in its more natural state.

5. Sazerac’s 18 Year Rye - Combined Score: 24 (7,5,5,5,&2)
This one was kind of the shocker. The most expensive rye in the group got a nod of disapproval from the panel. People felt that the caramel nose was so overpowering that it almost seemed artificial. Additionally, the rye, according to the panel, lacked the spiciness of the other ryes upon tasting. This may suggest that ryes benefit from lesser aging than traditional whiskeys. However, one participant felt the rye was outstanding and expressed how the effects of the barrel found in the best whiskeys carefully aged for extended periods of time were exhibited so well in this bottling. He understood the arguments of the others, but still felt that the bottle, fundamentally, as a whiskey, was amazing, though it might have not been the typical rye. This difference had not occurred to me until the tasting, and I thought about it for some time after everyone had left. By the way, I was the rebel…

4. Sazerac’s 6 Year Rye - Combined Score: 23 (7,7,4,3,&2)
Before this tasting, I considered the Sazerac 6 to be one of my favorites, but this rye was determined by the group to be rather tasteless as well. While it had a definite rye flavor, the whiskey offered very little diversity and did not hide its burn very well. Compared to the Sazerac 18, however, it seemed to be a more typical rye and met the expectations of this genre of whiskey better than the older brother. Perhaps, a middle ground between the two would reveal a more ideal rye, but more on that later…

3. Rittenhouse Bonded Rye - Score: 20 (6,6,4,2,&2)
This rye was the most controversial, and for the most part, people either loved or hated it. Those that liked the Rittenhouse thought that it had a very diverse profile, including characteristics of earth, sweetness, and spice. The traditional rye spice was prototypical to 3 of the members. The two members who ranked it sixth, if I remember correctly, felt the presence of the alcohol and the spiciness covered up too much of the rye’s other attributes. Despite their thoughts, it is easy to see why this rye is a favored brand for mixing as it rye qualities will definitely stand out in a cocktail and make a dramatic and pleasing difference.

2. Sazerac’s Thomas Handy Rye - Score: 12 (6,3,1,1,&1)
Had it not been for one member, no, not the same guy who liked the Russell’s Reserve, the Thomas Handy would have nearly cleared the boards. Three number one’s, more than any other rye made this one a favorite. Perhaps, a different scoring method should have been used. Some competitions use a “majority of one’s” method for ranking, but retrospectively thinking about methods for analysis seems rather pointless for such an unofficial exercise. Maybe I am just trying to push the Handy into first because it is so good. The difference in points between third and second place is enormous, a full eight points, more than the difference between seventh and third. The was such a separation between third and second that it showed our group really felt there was a dramatic separation in quality between the lower ranking group (seventh-third) and the higher ranking group (second and first). The Thomas Handy seemed to be the ideal Sazerac rye I spoke of earlier, having definite rye elements (like the Sazerac 6) with the improved impacts of aging (like the Sazerac 18). If you find a bottle of this in your local store, do not hesitate to pick it up, it is worth its price and more.

And the winner is…

1. Wild Turkey Rye - Combined Score: 11 (3,3,3,1, &1)
For most, it was this or the Thomas Handy. The Turkey surprised us all. We felt that it had a very unique taste and, while the rye shone through, offered a very diverse profile. Everyone agreed that it would work well in cocktails and stand magnificently alone, a multi-purpose label that was not given to any other rye. Also, everyone liked this rye, which could not be said for any other, as they each had at least one person who was not a fan. I have never been a huge fan of the Turkey myself, seeking out other brands instead, but even I liked the rye in a blind tasting. With a price tag of eighteen dollars, it is hard to find anything better, even when compared to the Handy. I will absolutely be treating this rye with more respect in the future. Everyone talks about the Rittenhouse Bonded being such an exceptional rye for mixing and budgeted, which it is, but for eight dollars more the Turkey is making a similar case. Most exciting, the Turkey is one of the most accessible ryes produced today, available in nearly every American market. So, if you have been struggling to find some of the rarer ryes, you might want to just relax and realize that there is something wonderful sitting on the shelf that might be dismissed because of its common appearance and the bad collegiate memories the brand conjures. Nevertheless, the Turkey can now list this committee’s ranking with other awards it has won. I might even need to send them an award - First Place: The Unofficial Inebriated Houston Rye Tasting Dayoffers Council.

Well, there you have it a rundown of our activities and an all around great time. We had so much fun we are going to try and do more tastings in the future and will report back with our intoxicated champagne flute results for your unreliable shopping needs. Rye is definitely the new hit spirit because of its wonderful character and tremendous use in cocktails. Few people realize that cocktail staples, such as the Old-Fashioned and the Manhattan were traditionally conceived with rye and just don’t taste the same without it. It was the whiskey of the Whiskey Rebellion and carries more history with it than any other American spirit. Its reappearance in markets today is a testimony to the improving palate of imbibers everywhere and should encourage more people to try new products, especially those that come from a past time or method. It is an affordable and outstanding spirit, so go to your store right now if don’t have one and pick up some. Maybe even get seven bottles, a few friends, and figure out which ones you like best. The rye and the event will not disappoint.