I recently received word that local craft distiller, 45th Parallel Spirits, would soon be coming out with a new rye whiskey. They are planning to release New Richmond Rye to the public at the distillery Sunday, February 10, from noon to 5 pm.

I reached out to Co-founder Paul Werni to answer a few questions regarding the upcoming release.

So tell me, why did you decide do a rye whiskey?
Historically it is a true American whiskey dating to colonial times, there are comparatively few rye options on the shelves, and a good rye whiskey is enjoyable to drink.

What's the age of the whiskey?
The first release is 2 1/2 years. We will stagger the release to allow for 3 and 4 year aging.

What is the proof it will be bottled at?
92 proof

What is the approximate price?
$40 to $45 pre-tax. $45 tax included at our distillery

Will this be available any where other than the distillery?
This spring it will be available in Northwestern WI and the Minneapolis Metro.

How many bottles do you anticipate the first batch will yield? When are you anticipating the next batch to be ready?
600 initially then 300 bottles per month until 2014 when the monthly number will double.

Catch all question here: Is there anything special that might interest a whiskey enthusiast to try your take on rye whiskey?
It is not 100% rye. Some corn is included.
All grain comes from local farms within minutes of our building.
Aged in traditional 53 gallon barrels. No small barrels.
All mashing, distilling, aging, and bottling takes place at our distillery.
This is a Straight Rye Whiskey.

I'd like to thank Paul for taking the time to answer my questions. 45th Parallel Spirits, LLC is located at: 1570 Madison Avenue, New Richmond, WI 54017. They produce 45th Parallel Vodka, Midwest Vodka, Midwest Gin, Border Bourbon and other distilled spirits. If you'd like to learn more about their bourbon, I did a post about the launch party and a review of it here. They make good stuff. For what it's worth, their vodka is the vodka I keep in the house. I hope to pick up a bottle of the rye and I'll review it here when I do.

Since I owe my love of whiskey to these guys, I thought it only appropriate that my first review is of one of their products. One of the things I like about Paul (@MBRDISTILLERY on twitter) is that he is honest. He's not going to give you some bullshit story about how wonderful an experimental product is. In fact when he poured me a tasting of this at the distillery's tasting room. He warned me it wasn't his favorite. But he got a look on his face as he tried it with us that said he was maybe rethinking that statement. And then he told me that a little time oxidizing in an open bottle had done it some good. This is why I've put off reviewing this (yes, I have plenty of notes even if I haven't shared them with anyone yet). I tried it right away and it wasn't very good. I've left it on the shelf only taking a little here and there to see if it has improved. It's been 6 months or so and I'd say it's as ready to drink as it will be.

So here's how Paul explained this product to me. He lives in tobacco country so he took some of the corn he was going to turn into distillate and put it in a tobacco barn to fire it along with the tobacco. (He sold the resulting new make as Black Dog Corn Whiskey.) And, boy, the smoke comes along to the party. If you drink it neat, it's a bit like licking an ashtray on the finish. That's why I don't drink it neat. I like to use a splash of it in an Old Fashioned.

Alright so I'd experienced this Black Dog as new make, I'd found a use for it and I'd liked it in that one use. So, when I got the opportunity to try an aged version, I was stoked. Not because I particularly liked the non-aged version, but because it was new and completely interesting. And it is interesting. But only for folks who are really interested in something different.

Nose: a smokey honey BBQ sauce

Taste: Chipotle, even more bbq sauce. The sweet and zesty kind, not the vinegar kind

Finish: Wood smoked honey with just a hint of sea air. I have a feeling I'll be burping this one up later.

Notes: This product is all about smoke. Not very balanced, just sweet and smokey. I'd like to try this with a burger to see how it holds up. I have a feeling it would complement it very well.

Rating: I like this just because it is so different, but for general audiences:

meh.

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