RITTENHOUSE RYE BOTTLED IN BOND
Single Barrel #8244541 selected by K&L (2026)MASH BILL – 51% Rye, 37% Corn, 12% Malted Barley
PROOF – 100
AGE – 7+ years
DISTILLERY – Heaven Hill
PRICE – $38
WORTH BUYING? – Yes
The last Rittenhouse single barrel I bought was also picked by K&L. Aged around 4 years like the standard Rittenhouse, it was perfectly fine. No flash or pretense. Just a solid rye that met my expectations of Rittenhouse—nutty, chocolatey, baking spicy. I put it to use in a hybrid cocktail, an Old Fashioned Maple Brown Derby, and it served that drink very well.
That was in early 2023. Other Rittenhouse SiBs have since come and gone at a number of local shops. But I’ve not been compelled to pick them up.
Then K&L dropped this one, aged 7+ years. That’s one year more than Rittenhouse’s older sibling, Pikesville—itself basically Rittenhouse but aged 6 years and bottled at 110 proof. What the 100-proof Rittenhouse might do with some more maturity under its belt was intriguing, and the price was the same as three years ago. So here we are.
Let’s jump into a glass. These brief notes were taken three days after uncorking and two pours into the bottle, using both a simple brandy glass and traditional Glencairn.
COLOR – pale and medium dusty oranges
NOSE – dusty rye and oak spice, cherry, baked apricot, cinnamon and nutmeg, toasted vanilla, subtle chocolate
TASTE – a thin but syrupy texture, with vanilla, drippy sweet caramel verging into toffee, rye and oak spice, subtle bitter tannins
FINISH – oak and rye spice, subtle bitter tannins, coarsely ground black pepper, toasted vanilla, caramel
OVERALL – an oaky and savory rye with sweet undercurrents
With the minimum 51% rye grain in the mash bill, and coming from one of Kentucky’s legacy distilleries, this is a classic bourbon lover’s Kentucky rye. The age doesn’t render it “old.” At 7 years it’s still spritely. But the extra time above the 4-year standard does amp up the oak and tannin influence, crowding out the familiar Rittenhouse chocolate and nutty aspects just a bit.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing. It simply means this single barrel outing offers a variation on what Rittenhouse always has done. It’s a solid mixer that will serve rye or even bourbon cocktails well. And sipped neat it is flavorful and hefty without demanding much attention.
Those who enjoy drier whiskies will be happy here. Those who prefer the sweeter side of whiskey might find this lacking. The fruit notes on the nose are mostly washed away on the palate and finish, leaving it to the caramel and vanilla to provide their candy sweetness.
I anticipate I’ll be putting this mostly toward mixing. I have plenty of other more complex whiskeys on the shelf for neat sipping. The rustic oaky nature of this Rittenhouse SiB will have me playing with honey syrup versus sugar cane syrup versus maple syrup when sweetening my cocktails. I anticipate all of them will pair well with what this rye is offering. All in all, very nice to have a good mixer on the shelf that offers something just a bit different than the standard.
Cheers!
The Right Spirit 