Blue Run High Rye Bourbon Review
111 Proof
I hope you enjoy my Blue Run High Rye Bourbon Review!
This is a very exciting bourbon for Blue Run Spirits. Blue Run High Rye Bourbon was contract distilled at Castle & Key Distillery, with Jim Rutledge as the contracted Master Distiller. For their previous sourced bourbons, Jim Rutledge served as the Liquid Advisor, and approved the barrels which were selected and used. This time, he was actually in charge of the distillation. For anyone who may not be familiar with Jim Rutledge, he was a former Master Distiller at Four Roses and a member of the inaugural class of the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame. Of course, Four Roses is known for their high rye mash bills and this mash bill is certainly high rye. Its 65% corn, 30% rye and 5% malted barley, something Jim Rutledge is certainly accustomed to working with. So whats it like?
Tasting Notes
Lets taste it:
Rested for 15 minutes in a Glencairn
Nose: Baking spices with nutmeg noticeable, rich caramel, light honey, some Graham cracker, stone fruits like black cherries and dark plums, hint of anise and maybe a touch of ginger, light oak light medium alcoholTaste: Black tea, simple syrup sweetness, soft caramel, hint of light toast and ginger towards the endFinish: The flavors continue, some black pepper and char build black tea and sweetness lingers. Fairly long finish. Moderate burn
Summary
Jim Rutledge Liquid Advisor
The iconic Jim Rutledge expertly approves Blue Runâs Bourbon selections and distills our new make Bourbon.Rutledge, a 50-year veteran of the industry, is the former Master Distiller of Four Roses Bourbon. Enshrined in the inaugural class of the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame in 2001, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007 from Malt Advocate, and was named Ambassador of the Year by Whisky Magazine in 2008. Rutledge was also the 13th inductee into Whisky Magazineâs global hall of fame in 2013.
THE SHOP
About Blue Run Bourbon
Blue Run is a complex, layered whiskey with soft oak and nutty flavors. This small-batch bourbon is aged for 13 years in new charred oak casks and bottled at 113 proof .
This bottle is Blue Runs first release in the bourbon market. This precious spirit features all the hallmarks of being a Rutledge whiskey, from the exceptionally smooth and mellow flavor profile to a long, dry yet slightly sweet finish. Despite the high proof, it almost has no palpable burn . According to brand CEO Mike Montgomery, Rutledge had the best palate in the world.
Blue Runs signature weighty, hand-numbered bottle was designed by Devon McKinney, the creative mind behind some of the Nike sneakers you probably own. It features the brands gold butterfly medallion, which symbolizes the metamorphosis the whiskey industry is going through as it reaches a broader audience.
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Review: Blue Run Reflection I Bourbon
Blue Runs second release of the year is another contract-distilled product with Jim Rutledge as liquid advisor on the project.
Blue Run Reflection I Kentucky Straight Bourbon is a small-batch whiskey which Rutledge distilled at Castle & Key Distillery in 2018. Just 200 carefully selected barrels were chosen for this bottling, each toasted to a #3 or #4 char and aged in Frankfort and Bardstown, KY.
The whiskey hits the nose a bit on the hot side, a big barrel char punch backed up with lots of roasted peanut and a smattering of spice box. Theres youth here, masked to some degree by the slightly raw alcohol character. No major changes arrive on the palate: Peanut is even more dominant here, though brighter notes of cherry and a pastry dough element give the bourbon a kind of cherry pie character later in the game. Its a mild effect, however, as the youth of peanut butter and caramel corn ultimately steal the show, lingering for ages on the long, warming finish.
Quite pricey for its complexion.
95 proof.
Who Is Jim Rutledge
Jim Rutledge is the liquor advisor of Blue Run Spirits, in charge of sampling barrels to determine which ones are good for selling. The company also notes that all of Blue Runs future releases will be personally selected and distilled by Rutledge himself.
Rutledge is a Bourbon Hall of Famer with over 50 years of experience in the bourbon industry. He is the former Master Distiller of Four Roses Bourbon and is, quite frankly, the reason why this iconic bourbon is what it is today.
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Reflection I Tasting Notes
Reflection I tasting notes include Rainier cherries and creamy butterscotch on the nose, followed by fluffy pancakes and maple syrup on the front end, fresh rosemary on the mid-palate, and an invigorating nutmeg finish.
The bottle also features precious metal sliver ink and a sterling silver coating on the brands signature butterfly medallion.
Blue Run Reflection I Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey is available for $89.99.
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Blue Run Kentucky Straight Bourbonflight Series
Blue Run Flight Series is a collection âmicro batchesâ of Blue Runâs lauded Kentucky Straight High Rye Bourbon Whiskey. Each of the six âFlightsâ consists of between two to five barrels contract distilled by Blue Runâs Liquid Advisor Jim Rutledge at Castle & Key Distillery.The barrels were hand-selected and expertly blended by Whiskey Director Shaylyn Gammon, making Flight the first Blue Run whiskey release blended by Gammon since she joined the company earlier this year. The small number of barrels used in Blue Runâs micro batching allows Gammonâs award-winning blending artistry to shine through on each bourbon, creating exceptional flavor experiences in each Flight.
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How To Drink Blue Run Bourbon
The best way to enjoy Blue Run Bourbon is to drink it neat, so you know exactly the kind of quality bourbon Rutledge puts out. Make sure that you use the proper glassware, such as a Glencairn glass, for the best experience in both aroma and flavor.
You can put a pipette of water or have it with ice, as both will open up the aroma and flavors of the whiskey even more. Allow the bourbon to acclimate to the ice before you sip to get the full experience.
You can also put this in cocktails if you wish, but we advise not to the mixers will not allow for the bourbons complexities to shine through. But hey, if you shelled out $170 for this whiskey, you can have it any way you wish.
Blue Runs Fulfillment Partner Seelbachs Ships To The Following States: Arizona California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Washington Dc Florida Georgia Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Missouri New Jersey New Mexico Rhode Island South Carolina Virginia And Wyoming
Blue Run Flight Series is a collection âmicro batchesâ of Blue Runâs lauded Kentucky Straight High Rye Bourbon Whiskey. Each of the six âFlightsâ consists of between two to five barrels contract distilled by Blue Runâs Liquid Advisor Jim Rutledge at Castle & Key Distillery.The barrels were hand-selected and expertly blended by Whiskey Director Shaylyn Gammon, making Flight the first Blue Run whiskey release blended by Gammon since she joined the company earlier this year. The small number of barrels used in Blue Runâs micro batching allows Gammonâs award-winning blending artistry to shine through on each bourbon, creating exceptional flavor experiences in each Flight.â
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Blue Run Kentucky Rye Bourbon
The Blue Run team has selected 12 different single barrels of their Blue Run Kentucky Rye Bourbon, which was contract distilled at Castle & Key Distillery.
Each barrel, which featured a #4 alligator char and was aged in Frankfort and Bardstown, KY, will have its own unique personality based on where it was in the rickhouse and how the whiskey reacted to the wood. They range from 115-117 proof and the color of the butterflies vary based upon the distinct flavor profile.
Blue Run Spirits Is Sneakerizing The Bourbon Industry
Just one of the many ways that Blue Run Spirits has successfully emulated the sneaker industry. It’s … 12 Days of Bourbon offered a different barrel version of its High Rye Bourbon, each one with a different label to make each one unique.
Blue Run Spirits
Since its launch less than two years ago, Blue Run Spirits has stood out like a fresh pair of vintage Air Jordans IIIs on a crowded street. You can’t help but notice them amongst the other bottles, and their ability to capture bourbon drinkers’ attention is paying dividends. They are on pace to sell 50,000 cases this year and hit $15 million in sales, both mind-boggling numbers for a company launched during the pandemic by an unlikely group of bourbon lovers.
The key to their success is that none of the founders had any experience in the alcohol industry. That allowed them to look beyond the traditional framework surrounding bourbon and instead model their business after an industry that knows how to capture the public’s attention, high-end sneakers.
Mike Montgomery, the CEO and co-founder of Blue Run Spirits.
Blue Run Spirits
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To make their bottles pop, they reached out to Devon McKinney, another co-founder and one of the head lifestyle designers at Nike. He created a unique bottle with clean lines anchored by their logo, a butterfly signaling their commitment to evolution and change, front and center.
The next step was to apply another lesson they gleaned from watching sneaker drops, creating a buzz around limited releases of products. Instead of releasing one or two mainline products year-round, they adopted a quarterly release schedule, along with holiday drops, that offered a one-time-only product. Once it sold out it was gone. Taking it further, they change their butterfly logo color with every release. Just like each new pair of shoes, each release is different.
Their first release, a 14-year-old Kentucky Straight bourbon priced at $169, sold 2,600 bottles in two weeks. That was before it was named best bourbon at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. By offering consumers the chance to buy half the lot through their online site, they captured drinkers from across the country while still placing their bottles in select retailers that catered to luxury drinkers. Each release since then has followed the same plan. They announce an upcoming release date through their social media threads, put tranches of bottles online at set times, and close buying until the next window opens.
Blue Run’s 13.5 year-old single barrel with it’s distinctive butterfly logo and bottle.
Blue Run Spirits
Kentucky Straight High Rye Single Barrel
The Blue Run team has selected 12 different single barrels of their High Rye Bourbon, which was contract distilled at Castle & Key Distillery. Each barrel, which featured a #4 alligator char and was aged in Frankfort and Bardstown, KY, will have its own unique personality based on where it was in the rickhouse and how the whiskey reacted to the wood. They range from 115-117 proof and the color of the butterflies vary based upon the distinct flavor profile.
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New Release: Blue Run Spirits Launches Reflection I Kentucky Straight Bourbon
Blue Run Spirits recently announced its second whiskey release of 2022 with Blue Run Reflection I Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, contract distilled by the companys liquid advisor, Bourbon Hall of Fame member Jim Rutledge. Blue Run Reflection I became available starting May 4th at select retailers in the U.S. and Canada, as well as online at BlueRunSpirits.com.
Blue Run Reflection I Kentucky Straight Bourbon is a small-batch whiskey which Rutledge distilled at Castle & Key Distillery in 2018. Just 200 carefully selected barrels were chosen for this bottling, each toasted to a #3 or #4 char and aged in Frankfort and Bardstown, KY. Reflection I is bottled at 95 proof.
MORE ON CHAR #3
Curious on the Char #3 inclusion, we asked BRS to elaborate more deeply:
The char 3 takes on more toasted notes, merging well with the heavier char 4 to create a unique flavor profile that we hadnt experienced before. Were always looking for uniqueness and the ability to stray from homogenous is always one were on the lookout for.
In general, you will get less smoky oak/campfire-type notes with a 3 but more mocha/brown notes. You may see slightly slower aging with 3 as compared to 4 during the same period of time.a.k.a. flavor impact of a 4 will be greater than that of a 3 due to the nature of the flavor compounds formed with the higher degree of heat.
BRS CEO and Cofounder Mike Montgomery had this to say regarding the newest run:
National Availability
Blue Run Kentucky Holiday Rye Cask Strength
Blue Run Holiday Rye Cask Strength features product from the same family of barrels as the recently released Blue Run Straight Golden Rye Whiskey, which won a Gold Medal at the San Francisco International Spirits Competition, but at Cask Strength, coming in at 106 proof. Each bottle features a âPollockâ treatment on the brandâs signature butterfly, making it easily identifiable on any back bar.
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