High-Rye Bourbon Whiskeys, Tasted Blind And Power Ranked

High-rye bourbon is a whole thing. The general idea is that the higher the rye content in bourbon, the more “spiciness” and depth it’ll have. That’s absurd. There are amazing bourbons that have exactly zero rye in the mash bill (recipe) and are spice bombs and deep AF. Hell, even boiling down “rye” to “spicy” is pretty absurd, in and of itself.

Rye whiskeys are certainly sharper, more floral, funkier, and grass-forward and all of that sometimes computes as “spicy” in our heads. But “spices” in whiskey generally come from yeast strains and wood aging and not the type of wheat (rye is a type of wheat) in the recipe.

So what is going on in “high-rye” bourbons? A lot of the flavor profile basically boils down to high-rye bourbons being sharper on the palate. Compared to high-corn bourbon, a high-rye bourbon will be less sweet, less cherry, and less vanilla creamy. Instead, it’ll seem sharper (apple/pear, sage, herb-heavy) and funkier (think sourdough rye bread with caraway or dill), which makes for a different (not more complex) whiskey.

Now, I love me some rye whiskey. It’s my preferred American whiskey pour and cocktail base. So it tracks that I’d lean toward high-rye bourbons, too. Surprisingly enough, I’m not that crazy about them. I like my bourbon sweet and full of vanilla cream, dark cherry, winter spice, and old leather — or “classic”, as it were. There are some rye-heavy bourbons that I do dig, however. So I figured it was high time to line up some rye-forward bourbons for a blind taste test.

Just for some sort of clarity here, I’m defining “high-rye bourbon” as any bourbon with 20% or more rye in the mash bill. That makes our lineup today the following bottles:

Woodinville Cask Strength Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Green River Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Bulleit Bourbon Barrel Strength Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Brother’s Bond Straight Bourbon Whiskey Original Cask Strength
Square 6 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey High-Rye Bourbon
Heaven’s Door Aged 10 Years Decade Series Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Bardstown Bourbon Company Origin Series Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Remus Repeal Reserve Straight Bourbon Whiskey Repeal Series VI
Four Roses Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Still Austin Cask Strength Bourbon Whiskey

My wife was kind enough to shuffle and pour these for me. I then tasted through all 10 pours and ranked them by taste alone. It turns out all of these are pretty goddamn good, though a few weren’t as balanced as they could be. That last bit actually made ranking them pretty easy. So read through, find the tasting notes that jump out at you, and then click those price links to see if you can get the bottle in your region!

Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months

Part 1 — The High-Rye Bourbon Tasting

Taste 1

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Mocha and leather mix on the nose with fresh-cut green grass and piping hot cornbread dripping with butter and caramel sauce, creating a very grain-forward/crafty vibe.

Palate: The palate starts off with a nice and subtle barrel char leading toward Almond Roca toffees, cherry-chili tobacco, and velvety vanilla cream before those sweet porridge grains kick back in, confirming this as a very crafty bourbon.

Finish: The finish leans into a stewed apple with a hint of clove and sassafras that, in turn, leads to almond tobacco and plenty of cedar wrapped in old leather.

Initial Thoughts:

Well, this is delicious, balanced, and runs deep. I like this one a lot thanks to that matrix of, well, everything. This whiskey just works.

Taste 2

Tasting Notes:

Nose: There’s a hint of dry cornmeal on the nose with clear and rich butterscotch (which feels a little young) alongside vanilla pudding cups, wet brown sugar, and a hint of an old leather jacket.

Palate: The taste holds onto that leather note as a foundation and builds layers of sticky toffee pudding with vanilla buttercream, a handful of roasted almonds, and a thick buttery toffee sauce tying it all together.

Finish: The finish is green with a big note of fresh mint that leads back to the leather with a whisper of dark fruit leather and Red Hots.

Initial Thoughts:

This has a really solid base that gives way to a balanced and lovely profile. It was a little thin on the finish but nice nonetheless.

Taste 3

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Sweet woody notes next to oily vanilla open the nose with a rush of black peppercorns, red chili pepper, and a hint of dark caramel.

Palate: The taste delivers ripe peaches next to more peppery spice and a hint of Christmas spices, with the vanilla taking a backseat and the oak really stepping in to shine.

Finish: The end is spicy, hot, oaky, and peachy, with a hint of caramel corn that fades pretty quickly.

Initial Thoughts:

This was another solid pour. Again, the finish didn’t quite land for me. Still, this was pretty classic bourbon with a good woody spice to it.

Taste 4

Tasting Notes:

Nose: This opens with a balance of old leather boots and freshly cracked black pepper next to a hint of walnut shell, vanilla pod, and orange zest.

Palate: The palate leans into what feels like star fruit as orange marmalade, salted butter, and fresh honey drip over rye bread crusts.

Finish: The end comes with a good dose of peppery spice and old leather as those walnuts and orange combine with a handful of dried fruit and a dusting of winter spices on the finish.

Initial Thoughts:

This has a nicely balanced profile that goes above and beyond. It nails the finish too with a great warming depth. This is a nice one.

Taste 5

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Huge sweet grain porridge notes attach to old figs dipped in pine-y honey as rich (almost wet) pipe tobacco drives the nose with hints of old winter spices that lean sharp and woody.

Palate: Those spices really amp up on the palate with cinnamon sticks, clove buds, and allspice berries leading to a soft eggnog nutmeg creaminess with a hint of vanilla pods and dry cacao nibs all swimming in a bowl of white grits.

Finish: The dryness of the vanilla and winter spices take over the finish as the sip fades, leaving you with powdery cinnamon, dark chocolate, and vanilla with a whisper of apple chips/bark in there too.

Initial Thoughts:

This is a grain bomb that balances out really well toward complex and rewarding whiskey. It’s crafty, sure, but has a deeply rendered bourbon vibe that’s almost fresh.

Taste 6

Tasting Notes:

Nose: There’s a tannic old oakiness on the nose (this is older) with hints of pecan waffles covered in maple syrup with vanilla butter.

Palate: The taste is pure silk with salted caramel, vanilla cream, black licorice, marzipan, and a hint of cinnamon-pecan ice cream with a dusting of powdery chocolate in malt.

Finish: The end has a moment of warmth thanks to that cinnamon before lunging toward old porch wicker, cinnamon bark, star anise, pear tobacco, and old leather with a hint of potting soil.

Initial Thoughts:

This is like sampling silk in a glass. It’s luscious. It’s also delicious.

Taste 7

Tasting Notes:

Nose: There’s a nice sense of toffee, corn husks, and apricot jam on the nose with a hint of eggnog just kissed with spearmint.

Palate: The creamy eggnog — vanilla and nutmeg heavy — drives the palate toward a whisper of cedar and mint chocolate chip with a touch of cedar bark.

Finish: The end is short and dry with a hint of vanilla pod, old cherry syrup, and dank tobacco in a cedar box with a touch of red chili and dry black tea leaves.

Initial Thoughts:

This is good, classic bourbon. It’s a tad on the thin side at the end but there’s enough leading up to that to forgive it. I can see this making a killer cocktail base.

Taste 8

Tasting Notes:

Nose: The nose on this one is complex and meaders through mint fields and caramel apple stands as hints of old boot leather, plum jam, winter spice, and a hint of sweet oak round things out.

Palate: The palate opens with a rich toffee before a warmth takes over with a soft spice (nutmeg and allspice) before woody vanilla and creamed honey take over.

Finish: The end feels like a handful of candied fruits wrapped up in leathery tobacco leaves with a hint of cedar bark and dried mint in the background.

Initial Thoughts:

This is classic bourbon that feels like it has a good dose of rye in it — that mint and apple really stands out. This is also a lush bomb and almost impossible not to love.

Taste 9

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Soft and sweet apple and cherry woods greet with a good dose of sour red berries dusted with brown winter spices, especially clove and nutmeg.

Palate: The palate leans into soft and salted caramel with a hint of those berries underneath while the spices get woodier and a thin line of green sweetgrass sneaks in.

Finish: The finish is silky and boils down to blackberry jam with a good dose of winter spice, old wood, and a hint of vanilla tobacco.

Initial Thoughts:

This is amazingly well-balanced and has a good sense of rye and bourbon that works in all the right ways. It was on the thinner side, but not overly so.

Taste 10

Tasting Notes:

Nose: This is really fruity. Think a tropical, hazy IPA with clear notes of pineapple, lemon-lime, and maybe a slight hint of savory papaya next to more a-typical bourbon notes of vanilla, holiday spices, and caramel.

Palate: There’s a clear sense of those spices on the palate with a hint of dark chocolate leading back to all that fruit, a touch of marzipan, and a dash of vanilla cream pie.

Finish: The end warms a bit with the fruitiness waning towards a spicy, choco-tobacco end.

Initial Thoughts:

This is great but really blows out the ABVs in the end. It’s hot, hot, hot and a little of the profile gets lost. Still, this is a pretty tasty whiskey overall.