There you are, backed into a corner by three vividly scowling ruffians, the tips of their sharp implements pressed into the fabric covering your chest, asking the question you desperately hoped no one would ever ask: WHAT IS THE BEST RYE FOR AN OLD FASHIONED, SIR!?
This is how it always is with rye whiskeys and old fashioneds
Nobody knows which one works. They start with Old Overholt, which is classic and quite good, but then they doubt themselves. They listen to the whisper of the imp of the perverse perched on their shoulder, hissing into their ear: “No, not that one, you poseur!” Shortly after, they’re slumped to their knees in the whiskey aisle in Binny’s talking nonsense with a bottle of Sazerac in their hands, its label stained with tears.
Stop freaking out about the best rye whiskey for an old fashioned
Rye whiskey is still surfing the high crest of a comeback. The swayback shelves burst with small-batch labels that will kick your taste buds’ ass. Here at All American Whiskey, we promote the black pepper joys of rye whiskey and often find ourselves at Longman & Eagle with four or five empty glasses in front of us, slipping off the barstool and hanging on for dear life. Rye is good. Rye is delicious. And so are Old Fashioneds, and here’s the thing: there is a right answer to this question. But it’s multifaceted and requires you to go through this entire website line by line until you find the perfect rye for your old-fashioned based on our sage advice. In the meantime, this is our opinion. Dig it.
STRAIGHT RYE WHISKEY
Peerless is a 4th generation distiller. Their whiskies are grain to glass, all produced under one roof in Louisville, KY. They double distill each batch in their hand-made 26-foot unicorn of a pot still, which, frankly, you need to see to believe. There’s no way to pinpoint where in the Peerless process, the deft digits of the divine step in and twirl their magic into the mash. But it happens. Maybe it’s because they are a small distillery with no expansion plans (God bless them). Maybe it’s because they are resolute and steadfast in protecting their methods and never compromising for scale.
Peerless Rye is weird because it’s smooth enough for a sipping whiskey but still carries that signature peppery snap of a strong rye whiskey. Myriad flavors are swishing around in the bottle and the bouquet, but the prominence of citrus and maple is what makes Peerless the perfect rye whiskey for an old-fashioned.
