I don’t know about you, but I love Pumpernickel bread (I am not, however, feeling 22).

Bread, bagel, whatever, love it. It can go with sweet or savory, hot or cold foods, it’s incredibly versatile and tasty.

So why not try it in distilling, right?

Pumpernickel is a type of rye native to Northern Europe. Rye as a grain category grows incredibly well in that area, and each culture in and from there - including the German, Dutch, Scandinavian, and other immigrants who came to the US - had a version of rye grain and rye-based products they brought with them. Swedes, for example, had knäckebröd, a rye flatbread, and Danes have something similar.

For German immigrants (encompassing areas outside of today’s borders), pumpernickel was their rye of choice. Pumpernickel flour is coarser than the average rye, leading to that beautiful brown-black color out of the oven. Seriously - my mouth is watering just writing this.

So how would this rye - a different style rather than a different strain - work in distilling?

Enter Middle West Spirits. I wrote recently how their Straight Wheat Whiskey should spark a conversation parallel to the one happening around reviving rye in all its strains and varieties; true-to-form, their rye has something to add to the latter conversation as well.

Simply put, this is fantastic. I loved it. I’m waiting to try a sample of it off-the-still as well as hopefully at barrel strength, but even at 96 proof this was delicious. It’s a dark rye that avoids being brooding, a sweet-savory balance of toasted seeds and sweet herbs. There’s tarragon and caraway, flavors you associate with pumpernickel bread while never being bready, yeasty, or grainy.

This is mature right where it is, a wonderful addition to the rye conversation that stands out as something both new and familiar.

Middle West Spirits Dark Pumpernickel Straight Rye Whiskey: Specs

Classification: Straight Rye Whiskey

Origin: Middle West Spirits

Mashbill: Undisclosed percentages of: Dark Pumpernickel Rye, Yellow Corn, Ohio Soft Red Winter Wheat, and 2-Row Barley

Proof: 96 (48% ABV)

Age: 3+ Years Old

Location: Ohio

Middle West Spirits Dark Pumpernickel Straight Rye Whiskey Price: $46.99

Official Website

Middle West Spirits Dark Pumpernickel Straight Rye Whiskey Review: Tasting Notes

Eye: Bronzed honey. Thin rims, thin short droplet legs.

Nose: Hefty rye, full and somewhere between sweet and savory. Warm honey on toast. Bits of herbs appear, but mostly stay sweet and leafy. Barest proof on the nose.

Palate: There’s the pumpernickel - spicy on the front of my tongue with sweet black licorice running into the corners of my mouth. Cherry lozenges, too. Mouthfeel is effervescent, oily, just a tad bitter or roasted from the rye. The flavors keep building and building - this is one to sip on.

Finish: More of a typical high-rye finish though some clearly pumpernickel elements go through. Long, sweet, and coating.

Overall: My favorite of the three core products. Flavorful, unique, and distinct, all while showing a mature heft that similarly aged bourbons can rarely match.

Final Rating: 7.4

10 | Insurpassable | Nothing Else Comes Close

9 | Incredible | Extraordinary

8 | Excellent | Exceptional

7 | Great | Well above average

6 | Very Good | Better than average

5 | Good | Good, solid, ordinary

4 | Has promise but needs work

1-3 | Let’s have a conversation