Rye whiskey was once dominated by Maryland. You can see signs of it all over the place - tho more and more are falling victim to the wrecking ball. The best example is in Cockeysville. Just north of where the old York Rd. underpass used to be, there is a large brick building and the word "RyeBrook" Can be seen faintly on the side. The last surviving MD brand is Pikesville Rye which, like natty boh is no longer made here in MD.

As I understand it, Rye was also the preferred whiskey of the early U.S.

You can thank Mad Men and the gratuitous amount of day time drinking and old fashioneds.

"Them good ol' boys were drinking whiskey and rye,
Singing, 'This'll be the day that I die...'"

That is 100% of my knowledge about rye.

Is it good? What do you mix it with, or is it so good that you don't mix it with anything? Does it make your eyes tear up, the way good tequila does?

I don't know if it's a trend, but I can tell you that Pikesville Rye (now, alas, produced in Kentucky, where the grain is), is good value for money.

Rye was popular before Prohibition, but bourbon and imported whiskeys usurped it after that.

According to my research, rye is back on a national level, but locally it has been difficult to stock bars and liquor store shelves with good rye. Because it has to be aged a number of years before releasing, and rye producers did not anticipate the resurgence, there is a shortage.

A well-made Sazerac cocktail is a revelation.

I lived on Keyway in Dundalk, across the street from the Baltimore Pure Rye distillery. The chimney of that distillery was still standing on Sollers Point Road and serving as a cellular tower the last time I visited Baltimore in the early Nineties. Check it out.

" I would rather have a bottle in front of me...than a frontal lobotomy"

Bucky, the Saz is sweet. I also tried Russell, which is milder, less zesty. I prefer the Saz. I mix it with ice and a couple olives.
All, thanks for the rye education. I've seen Pikesville in at least one boozaporium. Tx CJim.

" I would rather have a bottle in front of me...than a frontal lobotomy"

If there's enough in that bottle, there's really not much of a distinction between the two.

jl - are you saying the Saz is "sweet" or the Saz is "suh-weeeet."

My failing memory seems to recall a rye called "Rock and Rye" from years ago that actuall had a "mother" in it...like vinegar once had??
Anyone have a clearer memory or have I turned that cemetary summitt?

Hue, Rock and Rye, in Detroit, is a flavor of Faygo pop.

Bucky, that song started running through my head, too, when I saw the headline. Then, being a geek, I started remembering seeing Weird Al doing "The Saga Beings" last summer at Pier whatever it is.

Lissa - my vote for best Weird Al - Grapefruit Diet (Zoot Suit Riot) - yours?

I got home, where I could see the You Tube for today's Shallow Thought and now I have to go download the song.

I've noticed the same - more ryes behind the bar and more in the whiskey aisle at the liquor store. I'm a fan of rye - after bourbon and Irish whiskey. i'll take a decent rye over an aged scotch any day. in my opinion, rye also creates a unique buzz (but as someone else on here says, YMMV).

Thanks for the shout out, jl. We'll be sure to have some Saz on hand for you at the wedding.

Wow, Joyce, he's done so many good songs over the years. I think my favourites change depending on my mood.

I do have a long time weakness for his "What's Love Got to Do With It?" polka...

I can't see the video at work or home - who is singing the song?

I am a huge (though underfunded) fan of rye. My favorite is Old Potrero from the folks who bring you Anchor Steam beer, Liberty Ale and several other choice libations. Alas, at $65 a bottle I can only afford it once or twice a year. Sazerac is okay in a Sazerac (which requires Peychaud's bitters, not Angostura), but with Pernod over $22 a bottle and no nips in sight lately, I am not a happy camper.

But maybe there is hope nearby. Had lunch today at the Dogfish Head brewpub in Rehoboth ("there is room") and they have set up their own micro-distillery (gotta love those Delaware tax laws). They're not into rye yet, but the "Jin" I brought home won't ever need a wiff of vermouth or an olive. Outstanding!

The version of the song that I used to sing at the Griswold Inn (Essex, CT) in the 1980's was:
Rye whiskey
Rye whiskey
Rye whiskey I cry
If I don't get rye whiskey
I surely will die

I have two words:

JACK DANIELS

Don't know if it's rye or not but I love the stuff. Mix it with some Simply Lemonade and a sprig of mint, heaven in a glass.

Bourbon Girl,

Irish whiskey? Me too. I like the Jameson over Bushmills though.

Rock and Rye as I have heard it explained, is something that is made with rye whiskey, orange slices and rock candy. It seems to have been something to take the edge off poorly made rye.

I also seem to remember a few years ago EL's colleague, Rob Kasper writing about rye whiskey.

Rob I should have said except Bushmills (yuck).

Tullamore Dew is excellent for mid-range - it's nice and smooth.

Carey - ever have one (or more) of those drinks you can't even smell now because of past reckless behavior? Jack Daniels is one such drink for me!

I'll have to try the Tullamore Dew. They sell rye down here, Jim Beam makes it.

ever have one (or more) of those drinks you can't even smell now because of past reckless behavior?

Beer.

Carey,
Jack Daniels is sour mash whiskey, not rye.

Jack Daniels is often confused with Bourbon. It is technically in a category called Tennessee Whiskey.

Sour mash is the name for a process in the distilling industry that uses material from an older batch of mash to start fermentation in the batch currently being made, similar to the making of sourdough bread. It was developed by either Dr. James C. Crow or Dr. Jason S. Amburgey while they were working at the Old Oscar Pepper Distillery (now the Woodford Reserve Distillery) in Woodford County, Kentucky.[1] Sour mash is not a type or flavor of whiskey, as is commonly thought.

The mash is the mixture of fermented grain and water from which the raw "beer" is made. In the sour mash process an established and active strain of live yeast is introduced into a grain & water mixture that is to be fermented. By using an established and known fermented "sour", this fermentation process controls the introduction and growth of foreign bacteria and yeasts that could damage the whiskey, and improves the consistency and quality of the liquor, so that every bottle tastes as close to the same as possible. Sour mash is popular in bourbon whiskey and Tennessee whiskey.

I seem to recall that rye was very big at Marconi's back in the day--can anyone confirm that?

Jack Daniels produces a rye. It's in the yellow labeled bottle. I think it has an unpleasant bite to it. Pikesville is my choice. In fact I think the distillery would shut down if it wasn't for me. S.O. thinks so too. Have to do my part for the economy. A hefty dose with a splash and tons of cubes. Make my day.

Use to be a scotch drinker when I lived in Canada. Switched to rye when I moved here. Rye makes great manhattans also.

methinks wiki wiki is our good friend Senor Gufo, having been influenced by Bourbon Girl. In any event, thanks for the great background info.

Hey, I have the Weather Channel on and we just got a shout out. Probably not a good thing.

Not sure why, but I always seem to prefer straight bourbon over sour mash. It just tastes better.

Kitkat, Jim Beam's rye is also a yellow label. Is this a trend? Or maybe because JB's rye label looks quite like their regular bourbon label, they want to make sure customers know the difference?

If rye is making a comeback, I wonder what the says about the overall trend of sweeter flavors gaining over bitter flavors. Perhaps there is a backlash against the wine cooler/hard lemonade/smirnoff ice contingent.

PCB Rob did you know Makers has a sour mash starter? They mix it with a lot of sweet mash, which makes it less harsh than other bourbons (such as Woodford Reserve, I just don't get that recent trendy obsession Woodford is okay, but a lot of bars are replacing Makers with Woodford - they are so not the same)

RCB Rob - Oops, I meant JB. Don't think Jack makes a rye.

Bourbon Girl,
No, I didn't know that about Makers. I know that its about the smoothest bourbon out there. I agree, Woodford is okay, but they shouldn't replace Makers with it.

Rye = bread

Rye bread = raw beef

Raw beef (red meat/hamburger) =

raw beef/onions on rye bread

Hello, Wisconsin

Any of you guys tried brennavin?

Maker's is so over-rated, kind of a chick bourbon, the trendy product of the moment. Woodford is okay/good, but not great. I prefer the boldness and depth of Baker's, Booker's or Basil Hayden. On the cheaper side Jim Beam Black is decent. Regular Beam tastes like hobo hair tonic.

I don't think Makers is overrated. And as for it being trendy, I don't know, I've been enjoying it for about 10 years now at least.

Overrated=Jack Daniels and Gentlemen Jack. THAT stuff is not very good.

Have you tried Rebel Yell? That isn't bad at all.

hobo hair tonic. Thanks for the laugh!

Piano Rob,
they used to have that at all the bull roasts years ago. Didn't it go by the name Steak Tartare? And you put it on little cocktail rye bread slices?

OMG wrote: Maker's is so over-rated...

Whoaaaa...this should be interesting.

OMG wrote: "Maker's is so over-rated..."

Owl - I will remember that the next time (per usual) you run through all of your Hypnotiq early in the night and start eyeing my booze...

Those are gonna be some thirsty feathers..

How the devil did I miss a conversation about my poison of choice? Sheesh.

Tully is good, as is Bushmills. For whatever reason, Jameson's seems to leave a slightly oily aftertaste that I don't entirely care for.

My personal standby though is Powers. It's got a nice spice to it that I enjoy.

I'll take any of the above most scotches (though I am partial to a good speyside).

Hypnotiq???

talk about being trendy...

hmph.

Maker's Mark is smooth because it is made of barley and wheat (in addition to the required minimum of at least 51% corn), with no rye in the recipe.

It may be trendy (or formerly trendy, prior to Woodford), but it's actually been around for about 50 years now.

you run through all of your Hypnotiq early in the night

Come on baby, why you gotta be like that? After I just went down the Koreens for a carton of Newport Menthols and some orange soda for you. I seen you refill that old Maker's bottle from a handle of Old Crow. You aint't fooling nobody.

Bourbon Girl,
Perhaps you could keep a bottle of Beam (Black, if you're feeling charitable) around for when the night is still young and he's parched.

PCB, thanks for having my back broham. Now feed the chicken. Go ahead. That's right.

OMG,

You remind me of Omar, from the Wire. He liked Newpo'ts, though.

thanks for the laughs!

owl meat wrote: PCB, thanks for having my back broham. Now feed the chicken. Go ahead. That's right.

Its all good buddy. Chillax.

And like Omar, I roll down to the corner store wearing just my silk pyjama bottoms and my gun.