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A Review of the Good Stuff, Templeton Rye Whiskey
Allow me to state from the start, I may be more than a little biased on the product that I’ll be reviewing today. Templeton Rye Whiskey, or the Good Stuff, was first started by the bootleggers in and around Templeton, IA during the Prohibition era. One of the most prolific producers was Alphons Kerkhoff. The recipe they developed was soon a personal favorite of Al Capone and the demand for Templeton Rye was everywhere, being popular in Chicago, Omaha, and Kansas City. My bias comes from the fact that my grandfather was one of those bootleggers. As a young man growing up in the area, he was given a challenge by the distillers. He got fifty cents just for looking for the still, and if he found it, five dollars. For us, that doesn’t seem like much. Back then, well, even fifty cents helped put food on the family table. For me, when I enjoy any of the choices available from Templeton, it makes me think of my grandad, and I can think back to all the fun times I had with him.
After Prohibition, as can be expected, the demand or possibly the need for the Good Stuff dried up as the legitimate distilleries started production again. It was still made and enjoyed in the area, but it kind of became the stuff of legend. That was until 2006 and when Meryl Kerkhoff (son of Alphons Kerkhoff), and business partner Scott Bush released the first batch of bottled Templeton Rye to the shelves in Iowa. Using a distilling company in Indiana, they worked Alphons’ recipe as close as they could to his original flavor while adhering to government standards and it took off. I remember having to get it muled into Kansas City by anyone going into Iowa as that was the only place you could buy it. Frequently out of stock, the guys at Templeton worked up production and today I’m happy to say, it is quite readily available across the country.
One quick addition, as you start enjoying the Good Stuff, you will inevitably hear about a lawsuit against Templeton Rye Distillery. On the first bottles they released, the wording on the label said, “Made in Iowa.” This was not exactly true, as I mentioned above, it was distilled in Indiana and bottled in Templeton, IA. As a result, Templeton agreed to change the wording on the label to say distilled in Indiana and offered a refund to those who felt they were misled.
I am happy to report that as of August 2018, a $26 million dollar expansion of the distillery in Templeton was completed and distilling of Templeton Rye in Iowa has commenced. Those barrels, which will be the first in a century made in Iowa, will be ready in 2022, and I’m fairly sure they will say, “Made in Iowa.”
Options
Now that you have brief history of Templeton, and my personal attachment to it, let’s go over the options that are available from those loveable Iowans.
The original, Templeton Rye Aged 4 years:
This was the only option available for the longest time, and there is nothing wrong with that. Those first bottles were all labeled by hand with information of the barrel and bottling date by someone with impeccable penmanship. I can tell you, what you get today, is just the same as back then. In general, rye whiskey is a bit more spicy than your regular bourbon, and in some cases can be really harsh on the taste buds. In Templeton, you don’t get that harshness. What you get is a warm, buttery flavor, followed by slight coffee hit. The finish is smooth, and unlike some other whiskeys, you don’t get the after hit with the usual whiskey blanch. The four year old is a great way to get started and in most cases, it’s available for less than $35, occasionally about $38. When I make cocktails, specifically old fashioneds or manhattans, this is what I will use. As we all know, when you use good ingredients, you get better taste.
Templeton Rye, Aged 6 years:
In 2010, the folks in Templeton pulled some select barrels off to the side and decided to let them age two years longer than their standard product. In 2016, the distillery released the six year old version of their rye, and boy howdy, you can taste the difference. In case some of you might not know, when bourbons or other whiskeys are aged, they are allowed to rest in new American oak barrels for whatever duration the master distiller deems appropriate. During that aging, the barrels are kept in buildings known as rickhouses and there is no climate control. This allows the spirit in the barrel to pass through the fibers of the wood as it expands and contracts with the weather. This is where your bourbons, whiskeys, scotches, and some rums get their darker color. Scotches use the old barrels left over from aging bourbon in the US, but American law mandates new barrels for every batch of bourbon or whiskey. With less time aging, the result is not so dark and tending to be a little less smooth on the back side. The longer the delicious nectar is allowed to age, the more it picks up more subtleties and different flavors, not to mention a softer smell that doesn’t burn the nose. Spirits that are aged longer tend to be more expensive, as the barrel inevitably loses more of the spirit inside. This is called the angels share and gives rickhouses an incredible aroma.
So is true of the six year old. Typically running about $10-$15 more a bottle, its still fairly easy to obtain. The six year is slightly stronger in proof (91.5) vs. the four year (80) so I tend to keep this one neat. Maybe a small chunk of ice to cool it off but I can’t bring myself to make cocktails with it; it’s too good. The smoothness of the four year old is made even more so, where you don’t get that warming sensation until it’s just about all the way down. It’s also lost some of the peppery flair that the four has, thanks to those extra two years. If it’s been a particularly hard day at work, or I just need a reset in the head, the six year old is the one I will normally go for. If I know you, and I know you can appreciate the differences in good spirits, you’ll most likely get a couple of fingers of this as well. Otherwise, you’re getting your education started with the original four year.
Templeton Rye, Aged 10 years:
And now we come to the mack daddy of them all, the pièce de résistance, the ten year old. When Meryl and Scott got those first barrels in 2006, they pulled off a select batch of what they considered the best available and let them sit for ten years. In October of 2016, they released a limited run of 6,080 bottles that were hand numbered to honor those ten years of hard work and the folks in the town of Templeton for supporting them. Templeton, IA is not a large town, nor are any of the surroundings towns. They are hard working farming folk and life moves at a different pace there. So to the glorious ten year old from the distillery. Where the six year is smooth, the ten year is like buttered glass. The four year has some initial fire and heat, while the year mellows the fire and heat with hints of caramel and vanilla, with a smell that slightly reminds you of fresh baked apple pie. This is not your average or above average rye whiskey. This is your “oh my God what ambrosia have I just tasted” rye whiskey. This really is the Good Stuff, with a price tag to boot. When it was released, the wood-boxed bottle would have run you about $149. Now, if you are lucky, you might come across one on the top shelf behind the guy at the register at the liquor store. I received one as a christmas gift and I couldn’t bring myself to open it for the longest time. I mean, once you open it, there’s no turning back. I’ve seen some bottles available on the secondary market going for $400 or so. I have sparingly enjoyed this bottle, only for the rarest of occasions, some for celebrations, while standing in Templeton in front of their barrel tree, or to say goodbye to a loved one and making sure she got some too. If you are lucky enough to get some of this, and you have some discretionary funding to do so, do it. No, you won’t be getting any of mine, so don’t ask.
Final Thoughts
Templeton Rye whiskey is something that will always be in my liquor cabinet. Ask my riding buddies; I’ll take some with me everywhere in my flask. My father enjoys it too, so much that at my wedding while everyone was enjoying cake, he went to each table with Dixie cups and some four year old, offering everyone some of the Good Stuff. I have introduced many people to it, traded whiskies with a Canuck who just had to have it, and enjoyed many campfires and starry nights in its warmth. Every time I have some, I think of my grandad, and that just helps the feeling spread. If you are looking for a solid choice to start enjoying an American original spirit, Templeton Rye won’t steer you wrong. Value for money, it’s really hard to beat. To borrow a quote from a movie about Capone and bootlegging…
Here endeth the lesson…
Here are some recipes from the good folk at Templeton Rye on how to enjoy the Good Stuff…
Midwest Old Fashioned
Ingredients
2 oz. 4 year old Templeton Rye
¼ oz. simple syrup
¼ oz. angostura bitters
Instructions
In a short old fashioned glass, add a slice of orange and cherry, mash with a muddler, then add the biiters and the simple syrup. Fill glass with ice and add the Templeton Rye. Stir to incorporate the mash and the ice. Enjoy!
Templeton Manhattan
Ingredients
2 oz. 4 year old Templeton Rye
¾ oz sweet vermouth
Couple dashes of angostura bitters
Instructions
Fill a cocktail shaker half full with ice and add the Templeton, vermouth, and bitters. Gently stir and strain into a martini glass. Kiss the edge with a cherry.
And lastly, the Capone
Ingredients
2 oz. 4 year old Templeton Rye
¾ oz. Grand Mariner
1 oz. Champagne
Dash of angostura bitters
Instructions
Place ice, Templeton, Grand Mariner, and bitters in a cocktail shaker. Stir gently. Strain into a martini glass and add champagne. Give it a little flair with a lemon twist.