TBWC Rye Series MMXX

Independent Bottler That Boutique-y Whisky Company have switched to releasing their whiskies as series, the previous one was World Whiskies, the latest is all about Rye.

Let's see what they are all about!

What is Rye Whiskey?

For American Rye the mash bill, the cereals that go into the mash tun, must be at least 51% Rye, in some cases this can be 100% but most distillers use a combination of Rye and Corn or Barley. 

Europeans have been distilling Rye for centuries and took it over to the USA, in fact a lot of Rye used by US distilleries still comes from Europe. Prohibition all but killed the Rye industry but it is making a slow steady come back.

Rye is traditionally a more spicy dram than Scotch - perfect for winter time! I really like Rye and have reviewed a few here, here and here.

For those that don't know That Boutique-y Whisky Company (TBWC) @BoutiqueyWhisky is an indie bottler owned by Atom Brands - owners of Master Of Malt, Drinks by the Dram and a few other well know whisky companies! They specialise in small batch whiskies from around the world - including from some distilleries you might not of heard of yet!

With this second of their Series releases @BoutiqueyWhisky say :

"This carefully selected collection of Rye whiskey comes from extremely exciting and unexpected regions and producers, including the world’s first blended Empire Rye (with its fancy new classification) and some interesting Scandinavian distilleries."

Boutique-y gave me the chance to try 7 of their 9 releases - my thoughts:

Empire Rye Blend 2yo 50%

Nose: baking spices, honey, liquorice.

Palate: smooth arrival cola cubes, liquorice, brown sugar, citrus peel.

Finish: long and spicy - very nice.

Tennessee Rye (unnamed distillery) 4yo 45%

Nose: Huge tropical fruit notes - pineapples, strawberry laces, icing sugar.

Palate: smooth creamy arrival, dried pineapple, very spicy, very drying.

Finish: long dry and spicy - nice.

Peerless Rye 3yo 49.1%

Nose: Cream soda, coconut popcorn. 

Palate: smooth sweet arrival, buttery chocolate notes then spicy pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, almonds.

Finish: Medium length, fruity - very nice.

Spreewood 2yo 48.2%

Nose: More bourbon than rye, lots of vanilla

Palate: Smooth oily arrival, vanilla, icing sugar, spicy pepper, 

Finish:  Long peppery spice - nice.

Stauning 3yo 48.5% (Rum cask)

Nose: herbal, tropical fruit notes - banana and pineapple, dried fruit, toffee and a hint of smoke.

Palate: rum notes dominate, sweet brown sugar, a little citrus peel, some peppermint and a nutty chocolate.

Finish: short burning liquorice and sour citrus with milk chocolate - I didn't like this one.

Helsinki 2yo 49% (Oloroso cask)

Nose: Rich black fruit - prunes, dates, black cherries with fig roll notes and a peppery spice.

Palate: Christmas cakes notes, mulled wine spices and a sour liquorice note.

Finish: long dry sour cherries, a pepper spice and a hint of smoke - I didn't like this one either.

Millstone 3yo 55% 

Nose: menthol,  salted caramel, wine gums, licorice, coconut, almonds, stewed orchard fruit. ABV hit

Palate: sweet yet spicy arrival, cloves, ginger, honey, herby bread dough, hint of smoke.

Finish: long spice menthol notes, dry nutty hints - lovely!

A really interesting series with a big difference in flavours. For me the Ryes matured in Rum and Oloroso casks were just a little too strange masking a little of the Rye spice for extra sweetness.

Full line up:

• Empire Rye 2yo: RRP £49.95
• Coppersea 3yo: £64.95
• Tennessee 4yo: £38.95
• Peerless 3yo: £74.95
• Distillery 291 11mo: £59.95
• Spreewood 2yo: RRP £49.95
• Stauning 3yo: £74.95
• Helsinki 2yo: £56.95
• Millstone 3yo: £49.95

You can see @BoutiqueyDave's tasting session for these Rye's here: