One of the glossed over elements necessary in the production of traditional Pennsylvania rye was the nearly universal use of heated warehouses. The steam-heating of warehouses is mentioned occasionally, but […]
Rye Malt or Barley Malt? Which Was Being Used in PA Rye?
In historic Pennsylvania rye whiskey mashbills, when a rye whiskey was described as being made of “rye and malt”, the assumption has always been that the “malt” in question always […]
An Examination of Barrel Entry Proof
As I continue to dig into the origins of aged American whiskeys and into how far back their production goes, I continue to discover very interesting practices and find hints […]
What happened to Maryland’s Hunter Rye?
Once one of the most popular brands of rye whiskey in the country, if not the world, Hunter Rye Whiskey, was a product of Maryland. The brand was first introduced […]
What the Pre-Pro Master Distillers Still Have Teach Us…is a Lot.
I was talking with a distiller the other day about how little is known about pre-Prohibition rye whiskey distillers. It’s sad to think that about 200 years of generational knowledge […]
A Much Needed Discussion About Rectifiers
One of the more confused topics when we talk about the history of the American whiskey world is the topic of rectifiers. I really wish there was a way to […]
What Should a “Pennsylvania Rye Whiskey” Category Look Like Today?
This has been an ongoing debate for a while now…even if the debate should have taken place in the 1930s. (Hindsight is 20/20, they say…) Disclaimer: The following information and […]
When Bottled in Bond Was Not Actually “Bottled in Bond”
The Bottled in Bond Act is something that most whiskey enthusiasts can recite the basics on fairly easily. A whiskey that’s bottled-in-bond is a 100 proof, four-year-old whiskey that’s been […]
From 1925 to Repeal: How the Medicinal Whiskey Makers Changed Everything
We’ve discussed the early 1920s in the previous blog post, so let’s address what came next. We tend to think of Prohibition as the heyday of bootlegging and speakeasies…a vague, […]
What is Rye Whiskey & Why Is It So Different Today?
Rye whiskey is very popular these days. We can clearly see the growth in market share. People talk about how unique it is, but then the occasional article surfaces that […]