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The Best Rye Whiskies From The 2023 San Francisco World Spirits Comp


Rye whiskey has had an incredible renaissance over the last two decades. According to the Distilled Spirits Council of the US (DISCUS), sales have increased from 88 thousand 9-liter cases in 2009 to 1.59 million cases in 2021. The number of producers has seen an equally dramatic increase, rising from just a handful in 2009 to more than 500 today.

There were 183 rye whiskeys evaluated during the San Francisco World Spirits Competition (SFWSC) in 2023. The entries were the largest number of rye whiskey submissions ever received in the competition’s history.

Four rye whiskeys are in the final round for The Best 0f Show category winner. The final results will be announced at the Top Shelf Awards Gala and Grand Tasting on June 16 and 17 at Resorts World in Las Vegas. Tickets for the event are available at the Top Shelf website or through ReserveBar.

Thirty-seven rye whiskeys won Double Gold, and 35 won Gold medals. There was only one finalist in the Best of Category Tennessee Whiskey.

Founded in 2000, the SFWSC is the oldest competition in North America and the largest spirits judging in the world. Sixty-five judges from around the world evaluated approximately 5,500 spirits over three days in April 2023.

The competition is organized by the Tasting Alliance, an organization founded by Anthony Dias Blue. In addition to the SFWSC, the Tasting Alliance also organizes spirit competitions in New York and Singapore, wine competitions in San Francisco and New York, and competitions for beer and RTDs.

The four finalists for Best of Category Rye Whiskey are Lock, Stock & Barrel, Vatted Straight Rye Whiskey, 50% ABV; ANNX Spirits Co., Collection Rye Whiskey, 57.5% ABV; Stellum Black, Fibonacci Rye #1, 57.56% ABV; and Lost Lantern, 2023 Single Cask #4, Corbin Cash California Straight Rye Whiskey.

Lock, Stock & Barrel is a brand owned by The Coopers Spirit Company. Located in Newport Beach, California, the company was founded in 2006 by Robert and Katie Cooper. It has released some of the oldest rye whiskeys ever bottled.

The term vatted describes a whiskey that blends spirits from different distilleries. The term originated in Scotland in the mid-19th century. Historically, in the US, independent bottlers would often blend whiskeys from different distilleries. The practice fell out of favor after Prohibition and has only recently been revived.

Lock, Stock & Barrel describes its vatted rye as:

A complex blend of hand-selected straight rye whiskies from Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Alberta aged 4 -18 years, with a 9-year-old heart. … The art and process of vatting create an intensely flavorful and full-bodied rye whiskey that is greater than the sum of its parts.

The SFWSC Judging Panel described the Vatted Rye as exhibiting:

Floral and spicy aromas on the nose, slightly herbal, with additional notes of stone fruits of peach and apricot. Sweet on the palate, showing a touch of maple syrup, pronounced stone fruit notes, a touch of almond pit bitterness, butterscotch, some vanilla and spice flavors of cinnamon, clove, and a touch of nutmeg. Long sweet, fruity finish with a mild but persistent pepperiness.

According to the ANNX Spirits Co., the Kansas City-based company’s spirits are distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, and bottled in Silverton, Ohio. Although the company doesn’t explicitly say so, the Lawrenceburg source presumably means that the spirit is obtained from MGP.

Collection is a series of whiskeys each, per the company, “expertly blended by James Beard award-winning Chef Celina Tio. Each bottling is intended to be a unique blend of a small number of hand-selected single barrels.”

The Collection Rye, ANNX’s initial release in the Collection series, is a blend of five- and six-year-old whiskeys from a mash bill of 95% rye/5% malted barley and a mash bill of 51% rye/49% malted barley. Both mash bills are traditional MGP products.

The SFWSC Judging Panel described the ANNX Rye as featuring:

Pronounced creamy, vanilla custard aromas along with some spice notes. On the palate, it’s creamy and slightly drying with pronounced tropical fruit notes. Long, sweet, fruity finish, with a slightly bitter note on the end.

Stellum Black Fibonacci Rye #1 Blend is crafted from dark rye flour. Typically, rye flour comes in light, medium, and dark classifications. The greater the proportion of bran and germ that the flour contains, the darker the color.

Historically, Russian Black Bread was made from dark rye flour. Technically, dark rye flour contains all of the bran and germ. However, there are no specific regulations on how rye flour is classified, so even rye flour labeled as dark can have some of the bran and germ removed.

The Stellum Black Specialty Rye is a blend of six different rye blends. The term Fibonacci was used since the number of whiskeys in the blend corresponded to the sum of the first three numbers in a Fibonacci sequence (1, 2, and 3).

The SFWSC Judging Panel described the Stellum Rye as showing:

Spicy and creamy on the nose with stone fruit aromas, vanilla, and caramel. Creamy and sweet on the palate but very drying. It exhibits notes of stone and some tropical fruit, cinnamon, a bit of clove, and a pronounced pepperiness. Long, sweet, fruity, and caramel finish with persistent pepperiness.

Lost Lantern is a specialty bottler that sources its whiskeys from various distillers. This particular rye was sourced from Corbin Cash Distillers in Merced, California. Only 217 bottles were produced, making this one of the rarest rye whiskeys available.

Corbin Cash Distillery was opened by David Souza in 2007. The Souza family has grown sweet potatoes in California’s Central Valley for over 100 years. Concurrently, they also grew rye as a cover crop in the fields earmarked for producing sweet potatoes. David Souza has been distilling that rye since founding the distillery.

The rye is a classic grain-to-glass whiskey produced from 100% locally grown estate Merced rye. According to Lost Lantern:

It was aged for seven years in a heavily charred new oak barrel in the heat of the Central Valley, making this a rye from an uncommonly hot climate. The result is a welcoming and powerful whiskey. It is fresh and minty, with notes of sweet chocolate, delicate oak, and wintergreen. It reminds us of mint, chocolate chip ice cream. Our oldest rye whiskey to date.

The SFWSC Judging Panel described the Lost Lantern, Corbin Cash Rye Whiskey as exhibiting:

Spicy notes on the nose accompanied by stone fruit aromas, a touch of tropical fruits, and a hint of milk chocolate. Sweet, smooth, and creamy but somewhat drying on the palate with a slight but persistent bitter note, along with stone fruits and a persistent pepperiness. Long, sweet, fruity finish with lingering pepperiness.

Among the Double Gold winners in the rye category are Baltimore Spirits Company, Epoch Reserve; Barber Lee Spirits, Bottled in Bond Rye Whiskey; Broad Branch Distillery, Rye Fidelity T YO, Bottled in Bond; Bushwood, Stillwater Rye; Buzzard’s Roost Sipping Whiskey, Char #1 Straight Rye Whiskey; Detroit City, Homegrown Rye Whiskey; Hard Truth Distilling Company, Master Distiller’s Reserve Malted Rye Sweet Mash Rye Whiskey; and Nelson’s Green Briar Distillery 15 YO Rye Whiskey;

Also winning Double Gold Medals are King’s Family Distillery, Ryeconic; King Family’s Distillery, Rye Whiskey; Laws Whiskey House, San Luis Valley Straight Rye; Luca Mariano, Single Barrel Rye Whiskey; New England Barrel Company, Single Barrel Select – Rye; Noble Oak, Port Wine Cask Double Oak Rye; Old Hillside, Last Rye’d Whiskey; Proof & Wood, Tumblin’ Dice Straight Rye Whiskey, Small Batch, Barrel Proof Rye; Pursuit United, Rye; Hillrock Estate Distillery, Double Cask Rye – Single Field – Wiltsie Bridge 2016 Harvest; and Journeyman Distillery, Not A King Rye, Batch 8 at 90 Proof.

The final set of Double Gold winners included Redemption Whiskey, Sur Lee; Roaming Man, Tennessee Straight Rye Whiskey; Sagamore Spirit, 8 YO Rye; Shortbarrel, Rye 101; Still & Oak, Bottled-in-Bond Rye; Still Austin Whiskey Co, The Artist Straight Rye Whiskey; Templeton Distillery, 6 Year Rye Whiskey; Templeton Distillery, 10 Year Rye Whiskey; Traverse City Whiskey Company, 626WC “Goat” Rye; Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey, Single barrel Rye Whiskey – Batch 002; Watershed Distillery, Straight Rye; and Wilwood Spirits Co, Rendition.

The sole finalist in the Best of Category Tennessee Whiskey is

Jack Daniel’s 12 YO, Tennessee Whiskey, 53.5% ABV.

The SFWSC Judging Panel described the whiskey as exhibiting:

Milk chocolate, fruity, caramel, and vanilla notes on the nose. Smooth and creamy on the palate, very drying, featuring dried fruits. A long, sweet finish with lingering, seasoned oak, fruit notes, and a touch of bitterness.

Two other Tennessee Whiskeys scored Double Gold medals at the 2023 SFWSC: Heaven’s Door, Double Barrel Whiskey, and Jack Daniel’s 10-Year-Old Batch 2.

The 2023 SFWSC judging showcased a record collection of outstanding rye whiskeys, compelling proof that the American rye whiskey revival is going strong. Indeed, rye whiskey’s appeal has transcended its American origins and is proving popular worldwide. More than 200 rye whiskeys are now being produced outside its historic North American homeland.

See previous Forbes columns for a listing of the finalist in the Single Malt Scotch Whisky Category, Blended Scotch Whisky Category, and American Single Malt Whiskey Category.

A complete listing of all the medal winners at the 2023 San Francisco World Spirits Competition is available on the Tasting Alliance website.

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