Michter’s US☆1 Barrel Proof Rye 2024 Review

With strong ties to a distilling legacy spanning over 250 years, the Michter’s Distillery in Louisville, KY, has been producing a comprehensive range of award-winning American whiskies since the brand was resurrected by Company President Joseph Magliocco in the 1990’s. Now distilling in their own facilities since August of 2015, the Michter’s brand has seen a quick return to global recognition for the quality of both their own and their sourced whiskies under Master Distiller Dan McKee, Master Distiller Emeritus Pam Heilmann – the first woman to serve as a Master Distiller at a Kentucky Distiller’s Association distillery since prohibition, and Master of Maturation Andrea Wilson – the first woman to ever serve as Chair of the Kentucky Distillers Association and inductee to the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame®. Most recently in 2023, Michter’s was the first American distillery to be crowned the “World’s Most Admired Whiskey” in the prestigious annual list of top 50 producers published by Drinks International in 2023, beating many other premium global brands. 

The Michter’s core range of whiskies, which are bottled under their popular US☆1 line, consists of their small batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon, their single-barrel Kentucky Straight Rye, their small batch Unblended American Whiskey, their small batch Original Sour Mash American Whiskey, and several limited edition variations of these. Their age–stated whiskies, which are bottled under their 10-year-old, 20-year-old, and 25-year-old labels consist of straight Kentucky bourbon and rye whiskey which come from sourced stocks and are released on a ‘when-ready’ basis to eager fans.

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In March of this year, Michter’s delighted fans of their no-nonsense rye whiskies with the fantastic news that 2024 would see the return of their beloved barrel strength single barrel rye for the first time since 2022. Although this doesn’t seem like a very long time, a lot has happened for the brand in the past 2 years – to put it lightly. Amongst other honours, Michter’s became the first ever American distillery to be named World’s Most Admired Whiskey in 2023 by Drinks International (beating the biggest names from Scotland, Japan, Ireland, and beyond to rank first overall), Michter’s was ranked #1 brand by Drinks International in their 2022 “Top 10 Trending Brands” for American Whiskey, and, in September 2022, Michter’s Master of Maturation Andrea Wilson was inducted into the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame in recognition of her lifetime of achievements in the industry. Given all these accomplishments, many speculated that 2024 would see the release of some extra-special limited releases as the brand celebrated adding these prestigious achievements to their ever growing list of internationally recognised accolades and honours. With this release kicking off their limited releases of 2024 the excitement was palpable for whatever magic Michter’s had up their sleeves. Commenting on this release, Michter’s President Joseph J. Magliocco expressed his excitement about it, saying, “I am excited that our Master Distiller Dan McKee and our Master of Maturation Andrea Wilson felt that this whiskey is ready. This rye is really special.”

Master Distiller Dan McKee added, “It’s enormously expensive for us to barrel our distillate at the lower entry proof of 103 vs the permissible 125 entry proof, but the result, as this product shows, is a richer and more complex whiskey.”

Master of Maturation Andrea Wilson described the Barrel Strength Rye as “a smooth, beautifully balanced, and bold journey of flavor through sweet, savory, and spice characters that is a delight to the senses and a joy to drink.”

Today I’ll be taking a look at the 2024 release of Michter’s US☆1 single barrel rye bottled at barrel strength (try say that 5 times fast after having a few pours of this whiskey!). In terms of hard facts, it was released that the average proof of the chosen barrels in this 2024 release would be 110.2 proof (55.1% ABV), with Michter’s also employing their traditional production methods of sparing no expense to produce the finest whiskey possible.

Vital Stats:

Name: Michter’s US☆1 Barrel Proof Single Barrel Rye (Barrel No: 24B0961)
Age: NAS
Proof: 110.6 Proof (55.3% ABV)
Type: Single Barrel Kentucky straight rye whiskey
Mashbill: Not disclosed (minimum 51% rye grain)
Producer: Michter’s Distillery LLC, KY
Website: https://michters.com/
Glassware: Glencairn

Review

Nose: The nose greets you with unmistakable rye character, boasting a marriage of grassy rye, soft brown sugar caramels, a kick of dry toasted oak tannins and dried red fruits covered in powdered sugar for added sweetness and balance. As you nose deeper, the profile continues to develop complexity in its rich herbaceous notes, brown sugars,  peppery rye, dried red fruits, and warm toasted oak elements.

Palate: The palate is viscous and bursting with rich caramels and herbaceous rye front and centre, a hint of dark chocolate barrel smoke, earthy baking spices, and succulent red fruits. The intensity builds sharply once the viscosity gives way to more pronounced tart red fruits, a deeply herbaceous edge, earthy baking spices, and warm peppery rye and tannic spice sending heat down the sides of your tongue. As the spice fades back, the herbaceous note and red and black fruit notes linger, complemented by dark chocolate and white pepper rye.

Finish: The finish begins with a long and warming Kentucky hug delivered by lingering peppery rye spice. As soon as you lift your tongue from the bottom of your palate notes of tart red fruits, dark chocolate, warm toasted oak, and rich caramels all rush across your palate, leading into a long aftertaste of deep herbaceous rye, dark caramels, dried red fruits, a touch of black pepper, faint earthy baking spices, and toasted oak tannins which glaze the palate.

Overall

This whiskey is as exquisite as it reads and delivers a premium barrel-strength rye experience in every drop. Nearly as soon as you pull the cork from the bottle you are enveloped in the rich and complex flavours of a decadent rye whiskey washing across your senses. This whiskey not only delivers a classic Michter’s barrel-strength rye experience but also a quintessential Michter’s Barrel strength rye experience that is simply unmatched in complexity and overall balance by a single competing brand from those I’ve yet tasted. In fact, to prove this point to myself I put this release against some of the most sought after barrel proof rye whiskies on the market and it easily emerged the victor each time even when the opponent carried a double-digit age statement or hailed from a sought after annual collection of noteworthy whiskies.

I am also conscious that while writing the notes for this whiskey, I was using the word ‘rich’ a lot. This really bugged me, however, I found it very difficult to find another word which could as accurately capture the depth and complexity of the flavours. I don’t know where Michter’s are finding or ageing these rye stocks but at this point, I have concluded that these releases serve the dual purpose of rewarding loyal fans whilst also firmly reminding everyone who the top dog is when it comes to Kentucky-style straight rye whiskey.

As with most barrel-strength whiskies, adding a few drops of water here makes a significant difference to the overall drinking experience, and allows the flavours to unfold more gently whilst the spicy elements are dialled down a touch. I found this whiskey to remain quite consistent albeit with added toasted oak notes shining through and less heat and tart fruit notes on the palate. Compared to the previous 2022 release this bottling was quite consistent in its profile even if you could easily convince yourself that Michter’s have only released prize barrel to celebrate their leaning tower of accolades and ‘World First’ designations within American whiskies.

For those who are new to barrel-proof rye whiskies, I would highly recommend adding a few drops of water and working towards full strength as the flavours are more approachable and enjoyable, giving the nuances a chance to emerge. Another interesting effect I have observed from modern Michter’s whiskies is that the barrels used to age this whiskey has imparted toasted oak heavily.

Fortunately for us, Michter’s have perfected the art over the past decade, ensuring challenges are appropriately managed and risks properly mitigated through a combination of expertise and proprietary production processes. In fact, Michter’s high production standards and proud reputation of only releasing a whiskey once they agree that it has met their desired standards is the reason we don’t have more regular releases of this whiskey. Thankfully, however, when we do get a release it hits the mark by design and reminds the cynics why they were the first American distillery to be crowned the “World’s Most Admired Whiskey” in the prestigious annual list of top 50 producers published by Drinks International in 2023.  

Try or Buy?

With a recommended price of $110 a bottle the days of finding one of these at under $100 appear to be over. As such, I highly recommend you seek out a dram of this whiskey if you’re not sure if it will be for you. However, if you’ve tried this before, you know the deal, and if I find this on a shelf at $110, I’m not leaving it there!