Liberty Pole rye, Dad’s Hat among top 100 whiskeys
It’s well documented that Fred Minnick loves whiskey, and now it’s documented that he loves a Western Pennsylvania one too.
The expert tasted some 700 whiskeys of all sorts in 2021, and revealed his Top 100 on Jan. 6 via YouTube. Coming in at No. 50 is Liberty Pole Spirits Peated Rye, which is made and bottled in Washington, Pa.
Minnick said he was “so giddy” about the small distillery that “beat a lot of big- time whiskeys” because it “did something that no one has had done before and that was absolutely add the nuance of peat without losing the character of the rye. And that is one of the most exciting things I have seen in American whiskey in a long, long time.” He encouraged viewers, “If you can find it, get it,” but acknowledged that little was made.
And in fact, the most recent batch of peated rye sold out fast for $64 for a 750-milliliter bottle and is out of stock at libertypolespirits.com.
In response, Liberty Pole Spirits tweeted, “Humbled at having Fred Minnick include our Peated Rye as one of his top 100 American Whiskeys of 2021 and say in his YouTube live that a properly peated rye whiskey could be a game changer in the rye whiskey category.”
The distillery plans to have a batch this summer or fall and make it a more regular offering. “As always, with whiskey, the barrel tells us when it’s ready!”
One other Pennsylvania rye made the cut: Dad’s Hat Bottled in Bond Pennsylvania Rye Whiskey, which is distilled and bottled by Mountain Laurel Spirits in Bristol. Mountain Laurel’s cofounder is Herman Mihalich, who grew up in an apartment over his dad’s bar in Monessen.
Mihalich also is quite pleased with being recognized for helping bring back this traditional spirit. “No doubt that Pennsylvania rye whiskey is now on Fred’s radar. It is great that he explores categories and whiskeys that are not the usual bigname brands.”
Dad’s Hat is available at state Fine Wine & Good Spirits stores and at finewineandgoodspirits.com for $65.99 for a 750-milliliter bottle, and, as Mr. Mihalish notes, it’s available in several other states as well.
See the entire 100 Best Whiskeys of 2021 list at fredminnick.com and see Minnick’s blind tasting to pick the top 10 on YouTube.