Kentucky Peerless Rye Single Barrel
51%+ Rye, ?% Corn, ?% Barley | 110.3 Proof | 3 Years | Single Barrel (Total Wine Single Barrel Selection)
peer·less · /ˈpirləs/ · unequaled; unrivaled
Peerless wasn’t always the name of this distillery; they started out in the 1880s as Worsham Distilling Company. In 1889 Henry Kraver took ownership of the distiller and in the next few decades came the name Peerless, a surge in production, and Prohibition. By 1917 Peerless whiskey production was ended to conserve grain for the war effort, and their bonded warehouses under armed guard held barrels that would be used as prescription medicinal whiskey. Nearly 100 years later, Henry Kraver's grandson and great grandson Corky and Carson Taylor began production of Peerless again in what is essentially a "craft" distillery.
Danish butter cookies - you know those ones in a blue tin that your great aunt used to have and offer to guests? Those ones that came stacked in those little paper cups? Those are the cookies that came to mind when tasting this Rye. The mash bill isn't readily disclosed, but it seems likely to be somewhere in the neighborhood of a "barely legal" rye based on its flavor profile. It's also definitely worth noting that peerless uses a sweet mash, which they say allows them to achieve a unique smooth character and brown sugar sweetness. It also means that new grains and carefully monitored fermentation are required for each batch. It's a more difficult process, but yields distillate that is less acidic and allows the character of the grain really shine.
Looking at it, Peerless Rye is bright amber in color with medium legs as it's swirled in a Glencairn. On the nose its Danish Butter Cookies from the royal blue tin. There's sweet caramel, butter, and faint herbs/mint. On the palate, Peerless is bright, balanced, plenty of sweet brown butter, and some herbs/dill and citrus as well. It has a medium body without much oak. Peerless has a long, sweet, caramel finish with minimal burn and a bit of pine and herb present towards the end.
Peerless Rye is good. It's quite good. The nose wasn’t remarkable, but the palate was very enjoyable. I imagine it would be really nice in a Manhattan, though I haven’t tried that yet. Peerless is a craft distillery and I respect the fact that they did it the hard way. Peerless built their operations, barreled distillate, and waited until it was ready to bottle and sell (they didn't source anything or try to be sneaky about what was being bottled early on in their operations). That said, I can’t personally justify this rye at this price point ($86 - it was mislabeled and should have been $96… though it's $115 SRP in some states). At a similar price, I’d prefer Wilderness Trail Rye. Less expensive ryes that are just about on par with this are Willett and Pikesville. HOWEVER, if I saw a single barrel that was 5 years old, I'd buy it again because I'm curious to see what a couple more years in a barrel would do.
7.0 - I do find myself reaching for this Rye often, but I haven’t bought a backup. It’s a solid rye and a very good sipper but cost-prohibitive. The distillery has a great story, and I’m curious if/when they will release older SiB products (and IF I’d ever be able to find one).
Glassware - Glencairn
Rested - 10 minutes
Bottle opened - 2 months ago
Setting - winding down in the evening in a dimly lit room
Watching - Money Heist
