Rye whiskey Rye whiskey Rye whiskey can refer to two different, but related, types of whiskey: In the United States, "rye whiskey" is, by law, made from a mash of at least 51 percent rye. (The other ingredients in the mash are usually corn and malted barley.) It is distilled to no more than 160 U.S. proof (80% abv) and aged in charred, new oak barrels. The whiskey must be put in the barrels at no more than 125 proof (62.5% abv). Rye whiskey that has been aged for at least two years and has not been blended with other spirits may
Rye whiskey be further designated as "straight", as in "straight rye whiskey". Rye whiskey was historically the prevalent whiskey in the northeastern states, especially Pennsylvania and Maryland. Pittsburgh was the center of rye whiskey production in the late 1700s and early 1800s. By 1808, Allegheny County farmers were selling one half barrel for each man, woman and child in the country. By the 1880s, Joseph F. Sinnott's distillery, Moore and Sinnott, located in Monongahela was the single largest producer of rye whiskey, with a capacity of 30,000 barrels a year. Rye whiskey largely disappeared after Prohibition. A few brands, such as Old