Woodford Reserve Kentucky Straight Rye

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Woodford Reserve's straight rye, made from a 53% rye mashbill. Honey, cedar and tobacco leaf with prominent clove, cinnamon and black-pepper spice.

Details

Brand	Woodford Reserve
Distillery	Woodford Reserve Distillery
Origin	USA / Kentucky
Style	RyeAmerican rye whiskey is made from a mash of at least 51% rye and aged in new charred oak containers. It tends to be spicier and drier than bourbon.
Age	NAS
ABV	45.2%
Cask	New oak casks

Flavour profile

Smoky
Sweet
Fruity
Spicy
Rich

* Editorial estimate.

Tasting notes

Nose: Acacia honey, resinous cedar and tobacco leaf; cinnamon, nutmeg and black pepper with mint, marzipan, apple and pear.
Palate: Clove, cinnamon and black pepper with cedar, dry oak, toasty malt, vanilla and baked apple.
Finish: Long and woody, with clove spice.

* Editorial tasting notes.

How to enjoy it

Cocktails
On the rocks
Neat

Its assertive spice shines in cocktails such as a Manhattan or Old Fashioned. On the rocks or neat, the cedar and spice aromas come through well.

Food pairing

Pastrami sandwiches, spiced sausages and dark chocolate.

Background & production

A rye whiskey from Woodford Reserve Distillery near Versailles, Kentucky, where distilling began in 1812. A Brown-Forman brand, it was released in 2015.

The mashbill is 53% rye, 33% corn and 14% malted barley — a rye proportion said to follow pre-Prohibition Kentucky tradition.

It is bottled at 45.2% ABV (90.4 proof).