Woodford Reserve Rye Whiskey
Woodford Reserve Rye Whiskey is a 750mL Kentucky straight rye whiskey bottled at 90.4 proof (45.2% ABV) at the Woodford Reserve Distillery in Versailles, Kentucky. Built on a pre-Prohibition-style mash of 53% rye, it is the Kentucky tradition of rye — balanced and sweetly spiced rather than lean and sharp. It is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor.
- ABV: 45.2% (90.4 proof)
- Size: 750mL
- Mash bill: 53% rye, 33% corn, 14% malted barley
- Style: Kentucky straight rye whiskey
- Distillery: Versailles, Kentucky — National Historic Landmark site; spirit triple-distilled in copper pot stills
- Origin: Kentucky
A Pre-Prohibition-Style Kentucky Rye
When Woodford Reserve added this rye in January 2015 — the third permanent expression in the portfolio — it deliberately looked backward: historic Kentucky ryes were built on a bare-majority rye mash, not the 95%-rye style, and the 53% rye ratio here is the brand's homage to that era, balanced by corn and malted barley. At the Versailles distillery, a National Historic Landmark where whiskey-making history on the site runs back to 1812, the spirit is triple-distilled in copper pot stills and matured in new charred American oak. Compare it with its sibling from Batch 487, the Woodford Reserve Malt Whiskey, or browse the range on the Woodford Reserve vendor page.
Tasting Notes
Per the producer: a rich honey colour; a nose of rye spice and black pepper with cedar and cassia bark, sweetened by marzipan, with pear, apple and almond underneath; a palate of clove and rye with mint, molasses, sorghum and honey, supported by apple and malt; and a long, sweetly spiced finish.
How to Enjoy
Made for a Manhattan that tastes of rye without shouting — the pepper and clove carry the vermouth. It also pours beautifully neat, where the marzipan and honey show. More Kentucky rye is in our rye whiskey collection.
Frequently Asked Questions
How strong is Woodford Reserve Rye?
90.4 proof — 45.2% ABV — the bottling strength since its 2015 launch.
Is Woodford Reserve Rye a high-rye whiskey?
Not in the modern 95%-rye sense. Its mash is 53% rye — a pre-Prohibition-style Kentucky ratio the brand chose on purpose, giving a rounder, sweeter rye balanced by corn.
Where is Woodford Reserve Rye made?
At the Woodford Reserve Distillery in Versailles, Woodford County, Kentucky — a National Historic Landmark site framed by the brand around five sources of flavour: grain, water, fermentation, distillation and maturation.
Kentucky rye the old way — balanced, spiced and honeyed — order Woodford Reserve Rye online from Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA.