I've Tasted Dozens of Whiskeys. This Cheap Bottle Is the Best Value Rye on Shelves
Rye whiskey is kind of having a moment, with the best stuff even competing with some of our favorite bourbons for space on bar shelves and in cocktails. Knob Creek, Michter’s, and E.H. Taylor have all dropped some fun, experimental ryes this year. But none of them is as affordable as the delicious Green River Kentucky Straight Rye.
Green River distillery, technically the 10th oldest licensed in Kentucky, has had an absolutely wild ride since its founding in 1885. It's been burned, evicted, shut down, abandoned, condemned as swill, and sold many times over.
Its operation in Owensboro, KY, was doing well through 1918, snagging awards and making booze for the Marines, backed by the 100-percent-medically-sound slogan “The Whiskey Without Regrets.” Then, a “mysterious” fire hit the distillery, destroying all 40,000-plus barrels and most of the surrounding buildings. On top of that, not even two years later, Prohibition started.
While the distillery was rebuilt and sold in the 1940s, Green River as a brand was shelved by the mid-1950s. The owners eventually sold to Angostura (yes, of the bitters), which shuttered the distillery after the 2008 financial crisis.
The brand was resurrected in 2014, but it's only been on shelves for two years. Since then, it has released six expressions, with half of those in 2024. That includes the Straight Rye, which has been my go-to since the release in January. It’s not often that one of these long-dead brands comes back swinging, with muscular releases and good long-term prospects, but for my money, this is that delicious, high-rye Cinderella story.
Green River Kentucky Straight Rye sits at 95 percent rye in the mash bill—well above the 51 percent required for the style. So yeah, it is a bit spicy. Not spicy marg spicy, not even spicy TikTok Goldfish cracker spicy, but it’s definitely something you taste—and darn it all if it isn’t also flavorful, balanced, and just easy-drinking. It also fits well in a classic cocktail like a Manhattan or old fashioned.
On top of that, it’s a “straight” rye, meaning that no color or flavor has been added, and it’s been aged for at least four years. The latter is obvious because ryes under four years need to have an age statement, and there’s none of that on the bottle. Speaking of the bottle: Even if physical marketing is a little bit of a gimmick, the horseshoe-shaped bottle looks cool and nods to Green River’s long history in the whiskey business. (If you end up a fanatic like me, a ton of the brand's early 1900s merch is up for grabs on eBay.)
If you’re skeptical, it won’t cost you much to give it a shot. At $35, it’s even cheaper than the in-house Kirkland brand whiskey available at Costco. Now that’s a whiskey buy without regrets.
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Related: 15 Best Rye Whiskeys to Spice Up a Sazerac or Manhattan