Taste Test: This Small Kansas Distillery’s New Bourbon Is on Par With Kentucky’s Best

Welcome to Taste Test, where every week our critic Jonah Flicker explores the most buzzworthy and interesting whiskeys in the world. Check back each Sunday for his latest whiskey review.

Here’s a question for craft distilleries: Is your ultimate goal to exist in your own micro-whiskey sphere, or is it to compete with the big legacy brands? Many seem to operate in the former realm, but one distillery that, by its own admission, thinks it can go head-to-head with Kentucky’s best is Kansas City’s J. Rieger & Co. As it turns out, the latest bourbon from this indie distillery is up for the challenge.

J. Rieger & Co.’s history dates back to 1887, when the original distillery produced a wide range of spirits that were available around the country. That all ended when Prohibition began and the distillery closed for good. The Rieger name was resurrected in 2014 when Andy Rieger, a descendant of the original’s founder, reopened the distillery. Since then it has been both sourcing and distilling its own whiskey, and the core product is an interesting and unusual one. Kansas City Whiskey is a blend of bourbon, rye, and light corn whiskey with a bit of Oloroso sherry in the mix to add some flavor (there’s a limited-edition version of this whiskey as well called Monogram). The whiskey in question, however, is a straight bourbon that is produced entirely in-house, and it’s an affordable and approachable sipper that does not lack in complexity.

This new bourbon actually launched a few months ago, but it’s worth diving into the details now. The mashbill is truly high-rye in a world of lower-rye “high-rye” bourbons: 56 percent corn, 30 percent rye, and 14 percent malted barley. That puts it closer to the “barely legal” style of rye that Kentucky distilleries often make with just over 51 percent rye, but flipped for bourbon (remember, there must be at least 51 percent corn in this category). The whiskey is distilled on two different stills—a 27-foot column still and a custom-designed 750-gallon Vendome pot still—and aged for a minimum of four years in the distillery’s own rickhouse in new charred oak barrels.

Despite that high percentage of rye, this bourbon reads as quite sweet on the palate—never saccharine, to be clear, but pleasantly so with notes of vanilla, flamed custard, maple, brown sugar, and milk and dark chocolate. That’s followed by flavors like dried fruit, nutmeg, cinnamon, and a bit of fresh cherry juice, along with some black pepper on the finish. At 90 proof, and because of that high amount of rye in the recipe, this is a great sipper that also works quite well in a Manhattan cocktail (I tried it several times this way to be sure).

I can safely say that I’d rather drink J. Rieger’s straight bourbon than Kentucky classics like Jim Beam Original, Evan Williams Black Label, or Four Roses‘ core expression—and I like to drink all of those (Jim Beam, maybe not so much anymore). This is a really solid whiskey, and it’s also a great deal at around $30 to $35 per bottle. There are nearly 3,000 craft or independent distilleries currently operating in the U.S., and while I’m glad they all exist, there are a few that really stand out—and J. Rieger is proving itself to be one of those.

Score: 94