Hard Truth Distilling Company is located in Nashville, Indiana. They are making some excellent 100% rye whiskeys. This is a mash bill using malted rye. It has a two year old age statement but tastes older. I suspect that there is older whiskey in the bottle, but since they are using two year old whiskey in the bottle, that is the age statement. It is a small batch whiskey of ten barrels and bottled unfiltered at barrel proof. Matt and I sat down and tasted it and here are our tasting notes.

Hard Truth Master Distiller’s Reserve Malted Rye Mash Bill Rye Whiskey

Proof: 112.2

Age: Two Years Old

Nose:

  • Mike: Rye grass, vanilla, citrus – maybe tangerine, baking spices, oak wood.
  • Matt: Rye grass, vanilla, wild berries and oak wood.

Taste:

  • Mike: Rye grass, vanilla, citrus, tangerine or orange zest, cinnamon and oak wood. Tasted with a dried cranberry and a cherry note comes out to join the party. Tasted with a pecan and a chocolate comes out and the spice becomes more of a cardamom.
  • Matt: Vanilla latte coffee, oranges and oak wood. The dried cranberry brings out a cherry note. The pecan gives it a cocoa, buttered toffee and cherry flavor. 

Finish:

  • Mike: Medium long with oak and cinnamon spice. The dried cranberry added some lingering cherry flavor. The pecan made the finish very long with lingering chocolate.
  • Matt: Medium long with tobacco, oak and lingering vanilla. The dried cranberry added some lingering cherry. The pecan added some lingering buttered toffee.

I would pair this fine Rye Whiskey with a Padron cigar. The vanilla and cedar spice of the smoke would pair well with the vanilla and spice of the whiskey.

Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller