This rye whiskey was made with the influence of Becca Neeley. It is a sweet mash rye whiskey with a 65% rye content in the mash bill. It is just short of five years old at 59 months old. It is an excellent rye whiskey. They made this whiskey using a thumper instead of a pot still doubler. A thumper is an old moonshining method of making whiskey, but several other distilleries use it, including Stitzel-Weller back when they were making whiskey. They sent me a bottle last April but I am just now getting to it for review. We have had a lot of new whiskeys sent to me this year and it kept being put on the back burner, but I wish I had reviewed it sooner. It is an excellent rye whiskey. Matt and I sat down to taste it the other day and here are our tasting notes.
RDR Neeley Sweet Thumped Rye Whiskey
Proof: 115.8
Age: Fifty-nine Months Old
Nose:
- Mike: Rye grass, caramel, dried fruit, baking spices and oak wood.
- Matt: Vanilla, peaches and cream, citrus, red pepper flakes and oak wood.
Taste:
- Mike: Rye grass, caramel, peach jolly rancher candy, allspice and oak wood. Tasted with a dried cranberry and the peach comes forward in the flavor. Tasted with a pecan and the caramel is enhanced and a note of milk chocolate comes out to join the party.
- Matt: Vanilla, peaches, red pepper flakes and oak wood. The dried cranberry gave it a creamy flavor of red pepper jelly and peaches. The pecan brought out the rye grass, caramel and ginger spice.
Finish:
- Mike: Medium long with oak wood, allspice and lingering peach. The dried cranberry made the finish longer with oak and peach. The pecan made the finish long and spicy with oak wood, cinnamon spice and lingering caramel.
- Matt: Medium long with oak wood and red pepper flakes. The dried cranberry made the finish longer with oak wood and peaches. The pecan made the finish long and dry with oak wood, rye grass and red pepper flakes.
I would pair this fine rye whiskey with a NUB Maduro cigar. The vanilla and dried fruit flavors in the smoke would pair well with the caramel and peaches in the rye whiskey.
Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller