Review: Uncle Nearest Rye
Uncle Nearest Rye was introduced November 2022. The Uncle Nearest story starts with Nathan Nearest Green, a former slave and the first African American Master Distiller. Nearest Green worked as a slave on Reverend Dan Call’s Farm. While there he distilled whiskey and developed the Lincoln County process of filtering the spirit through charcoal made from sugar maple trees. Years later a young boy named Jack Daniels came to live and work on the farm. Nearest taught the boy how to distill whiskey. After the Civil war Reverend Call sold the still to Jack Daniels and Jack opened his own distillery making Nearest now a free man, his first Master Distillery. From that day on a member of the Nearest family has worked for Jack Daniels. Uncle Nearest Rye is made from 100% rye grown and distilled in Canada. Following exact American specifications require to be a straight rye whiskey the spirit is aged in New York for a minimum 4 years. The Rye whiskey is transported to Tennessee where it is rested in used Uncle Nearest barrels for an additional maturation. Each barrel is tasted and blended by fifth generation Master Blender Victoria Eady Butler. The aroma leads with banana, toasted rye bread, almond pulp, and oak. Additional time brings out cinnamon, leather, honey, vanilla, grapefruit, and apricot. The sweet cinnamon and orange entry has a chewy mouth feel. Honey arrives building to a honey, rye bread, spiced orange, and vanilla peak. It fades with toasted almond, oak, orange, and creamy vanilla, and finishes with orange peel, nutmeg, spicy rye, vanilla, and oak.
Distilled in Canada
Barrel Aged in Canada, New York and Tennessee
50% Alcohol
Score: 91
Award: Gold Medal