Michter’s US*1 Kentucky Straight Rye
May 19, 2024
TL;DR: Michter’s US*1 Straight Rye is a must-have on your back bar or home bar. For those who don’t like rye, this might just convert you.
Quality over everything. Michter’s Distillery is focused on creating the best quality spirits, cost be damned which could precisely be why the Michter’s US*1 Straight Rye Whiskey is so balanced and ‘crushable’.
As a single barrel release, each cask is carefully selected, offering a unique and robust flavour profile.
Review: Flavor Camp Team
Photo: Andy Chan | @andychanmedia
Flavor Camp Taste Profile
Overall Rating
Total Score: 44/50
Aroma: 8/9
Taste: 9/9
Finish: 3.5/5
Distinctiveness: 4/5
Overall Drinkability/Balance: 9/9
Value for Price: 6.5/8
Appearance: 3.5/5
Tasting Notes
- Appearance: Mahogany; The Bottle itself would stand out on a shelf.
- Aroma: Great balance on the nose. Toffee and baking spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, hazelnuts) a touch of florals (violets), hubba bubba.
- Taste & Mouthfeel: Rye spice, pumpernickel, charred cedar, cherries, burnt brown sugar and almonds.
- Finish: Long, spicy and sweet
- Distinctiveness: Because it's balanced, it sacrifices distinctiveness (which isn't a bad thing)
- Overall Drinkability & Balance: This is something you could sip a bottle of all night - the integration is exceptional.
Product Details
- Distiller: Michter's Distillery
- Type: American Rye Whiskey
- Age: No Age Statement
- Still Type: Column then Copper Pot Doubler
- Cask Type(s): New charred American Oak (toasted first; then charred)
- Origin: Louisville, Kentucky, USA
- Composition: Not disclosed (51%+ rye)
- ABV: 42.4%
- # of Distillations: 2
- Price: $95-100ish CAD
Comments / Conclusions:
A few notes on their whisky making processes:
1. All the barrels they use are American White Oak that has been dried then seasoned anywhere from three months to three years to remove tannic notes that you’d associate with fresher wood.
2. Barrels are toasted first and then charred to draw sugars closer to the surface
3. Typically the distillate is proofed down before entering barrels, so it will be placed in barrels at 51.5% ABV (103 proof); polyphenols that create the ‘alcohol burn’ are soluble in water which results in a smoother spirit at the end (but inefficient as you get less yield out of each barrel).
4. Barrels are steam heated in the winter; there are six maturation ‘cycles’ per year based on season and temperature control.
- Crushable / Daily Drinker
- Cocktail Worthy
- Special Occasion Sipper Only
- Weird & Wonderful
- Skip It
Food Pairing Recommendations: Apple Fritter, Ribs
Cocktail Recommendation: Sazerac
