Hochstadter's Vatted Straight Rye Whiskey
Hochstadter's Vatted Straight Rye Whiskey is a 750mL straight rye bottled at 100 proof (50% ABV) by The Cooper Spirits Co. of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — a vatting of five straight rye whiskies hand-selected by founder Robert Cooper, married in vats, further aged until harmonised, and bottled non-chill-filtered. It is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor.
- ABV: 50% (100 proof)
- Size: 750mL
- Composition: Five straight rye whiskies, hand-selected from a library of 50+ ryes
- Origins (original bottling): Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Alberta, Canada
- Age (original bottling): Ryes aged 4–15 years, including a significant portion of 8-year-old rye
- Filtration: Non-chill-filtered
- Bottled: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, by The Cooper Spirits Co.
- Origin: Pennsylvania (bottler) / multi-origin components
The First Vatted Rye
Launched in fall 2015 by Robert Cooper — a third-generation distiller and the creator behind St-Germain — Hochstadter's was billed by the brand as the first rye whiskey to officially carry the "vatted" designation, a term borrowed from Scotch vatted malts. Cooper hand-selected five straight ryes from a library of more than fifty, married them in vats and let the blend rest until the components harmonised — the original bottling drew on ryes from Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Alberta. A third bottling followed in 2020, drawn from the library Cooper curated. Browse the brand on the Hochstadter's vendor page, or explore our rye whiskey collection.
Tasting Notes
Per the brand's launch announcement: round and concentrated, with blackstrap molasses, nutmeg, mace, clove, German-style rye bread and sour cherry.
How to Enjoy
Pour it neat to taste five ryes acting as one, or give it a Sazerac — at 100 proof and non-chill-filtered it keeps its weight through dilution and a rinse. More vatted and blended rye is in our rye whiskey collection.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does "vatted" mean?
A vatting marries multiple straight whiskeys together in a vat — here, five straight ryes from different distilleries and regions, further aged together after blending until they harmonise. The term is borrowed from Scotch vatted malts.
Where do the ryes come from?
For the original bottling, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Alberta, Canada, per the brand's launch announcement; the blend is bottled in Philadelphia by The Cooper Spirits Co.
Who was Robert Cooper?
The third-generation distiller who founded The Cooper Spirits Co. and hand-selected the ryes for Hochstadter's from a library of more than fifty straight ryes.
Five ryes, one vat, full proof — order Hochstadter's Vatted Straight Rye online from Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA.