Old Potrero California Cellar Series #04 Rye Whiskey Finished in Almanac Beer Barrels
Old Potrero California Cellar Series #04 Rye Whiskey is cask-strength, pot-still, 100% malted rye with a San Francisco twist: finished 5 months in barrels that held a custom imperial stout from Almanac Beer Co., 115 proof (57.5% ABV) in this 700mL bottle — and it is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.
Distilled by Hotaling & Co. in San Francisco, the Cellar Series is Old Potrero's experimental playground. For #04 — released 2025 — a 6-year-11-month-old rye (6 years 6 months in new charred American oak, plus a 5-month finish) went into Old Potrero barrels that had previously aged a malt-forward imperial stout Almanac brewed specifically for the collaboration for 8 months. A true "Farm to Barrel" California story: 100% malted rye, copper pot-distilled, cask strength, uncut.
Tasting notes (brand/press): deep malt, dark cocoa, espresso, and roasted barley from the stout-barrel finish layered over rye spice, vanilla, toasted oak, and dried fruit; long, warming, and powerful at full proof.
Why buy Cellar Series #04? Because this is the bottle for the rye nerd who thinks they've tried everything — imperial-stout-finished, cask-strength, California pot-still rye with a 2025 Gold Medal from the Las Vegas Global Spirits Awards. Explore the rye whiskey collection, the Old Potrero brand collection, and the High West brand collection for another finished-rye benchmark.
Serving note: neat with a drop of water to open it — or over a single large cube if you prefer it gentler.
What is the proof? 115 proof (57.5% ABV), cask strength.
How old is it? 6 years 11 months total: 6y6m in new charred American oak plus a 5-month beer-barrel finish.
What beer barrels were used? Old Potrero rye barrels that previously aged a custom imperial stout from Almanac Beer Co. for 8 months.
What mash bill? 100% malted rye, pot-distilled in San Francisco.