New York, New York Whiskeys

When we usually think of whiskey, New York hardly comes up as a place thriving with a good Rye, but low and behold Distiller makes a list showing the top 10 whiskeys from none-other than the state of New York.

This is a great list that we really enjoyed, so we picked our favorite three below with a countdown to our favorite:

3. VAN BRUNT STILLHOUSE RYE WHISKEY (Brooklyn, NY)
The Van Brunt Stillhouse, located in Red Hook, Brooklyn, is a unique distillery with a great flair for original product.  They have a few different whiskeys (American, Malt, Bourbon & Rye).  The one featured on Distiller.com is the Rye.  According to the Van Brunt site, they only make a small batch and the whiskey will not return until next year.   Made of a mix of Van Brunt’s recipe experiments from last year, the rye has notes of “spiciness and dried apricots with a dry toasted finish”.  Ranked 82 on Distiller.com.

2. RAGTIME RYE AMERICAN STRAIGHT WHISKEY (Brooklyn, NY)
Another Brooklynite whiskey, the New York Distilling Company boast that their spirits are “purposely different” and we’re excited to try this one.  The Ragtime Rye American Straight Whiskey received an 86 from Distiller.com, featured on Whiskey Wash and has been popping up on different websites throughout the whiskey world.   This Rye is 72% rye, 16% corn and 12% barley mash bill and has spent over 3 years in full-sized barrels to ensure it’s robust flavors.  New York Distilling Company boasts that their Rye is “proudly grown in New York” which makes the drinking of this Rye a necessity for us at Duel.

1. HILLROCK ESTATE SEASONED OAK CASK FINISHED DOUBLE CASK RYE (Hudson Valley, NY)
The Hillrock Estate Distillery, located in Hudson Valley tops the list for Distiller.com and for that reason becomes the one we’d like to try the most.  Hillrock is one of the few “Field to Glass” producers (Although they need a Duel Glass), they’re still some pretty top producers in the NY and, quite possibly, one of the top producers in the world. With a Distiller score of 92, number of articles online for their spirits, Hillrock is working on taking top honors in the upcoming years and becoming a household name, if it isn’t one already.

Distiller.com describes it as a “whiskey with two maturations, first in new charred American Oak, then White Oak that was seasoned for 2 years before barrels were assembled and filled”.  This bottle looks great as well, so you can’t go wrong with this purchase.

Check out the complete list and let us know if you have a different top 3 you’d like to try:

WHISKEYS FROM THE EMPIRE STATE  

~Duel Drinkware