i’ve been on a big rye whiskey kick recently. it’s become fairly popular over the last few years. liquor store shelves are now loaded with small batch options in atlanta. i’m by no means a connoisseur, but i do enjoy drinking some rye on the rocks with a little lime, and i also appreciate a well designed bottle for the full experience.

the first rye i remember trying was from bulleit, which is actually still one of my go-to brands. i was working at a food & wine festival and bulleit had a booth giving away samples of their new rye. they were promoting that it was made from 95% rye-mash, which was the highest on the market at the time. i was told to picture rye bread while drinking it and then to picture corn bread while sampling their bourbon. i was definitely able to taste the spicy versus sweet distinction.

to some, bulleit rye is not aged long enough and lacks some bite, but i really enjoy it. it’s very smooth (90 proof), comes in a classy bottle, but most importantly, it’s also affordable. you can find it for $24.99 at green’s beverage in atlanta, which makes it an easy bottle to restock.

in general, american whiskeys are classified by the type of grain being distilled. rye is distilled from at least 51% rye grain, while bourbon is distilled from at least 51% corn. check out my post from a few years ago for more information on bourbons.

– ryan