Wigle Wry Rusky Whiskey

Detailed Description

This spirit is among Wigle’s Brewers Series, a line of whiskeys in which the Pittsburgh-based distillery takes inspiration from a particular beer at some nearby brewery in Pennsylvania and crafts a whiskey to emulate their brews. In the case of Wry Rusky, the inspiration comes from Pittsburgh neighbor Grist House Craft Brewery and their “Black in the USSR,” a Russian Imperial Stout. Wigle gives a concise and informative history of the beer variety on its website, but essentially the distillers aimed to craft a whiskey with a dark, rich, and toasty character. As Wigle specializes in distillations of local rye, they obtained their rye for Wry Rusky from Chatham University’s Eden Hall Campus – which has its own organic farm, green house and demonstration garden – and combined it with five different malts to bring out the characteristics of a Russian Imperial Stout, according to the online description. After distillation, Wry Rusky is then aged in new, charred, American oak barrels for a minimum of 18 months to accentuate the “bold, roasty” attributes and bottled at 46 alcohol by volume.

Wigle Wry Rusky Whiskey Tasting Notes

Nose: The initial sniff hits the nasal passages with a firm but pleasant wave of slightly smoky oak with a sweet undercurrent of vanilla and a touch of lemon and salt, giving it all a tropical island feel.

Palate: Mulled wine like cinnamon, cloves, freshly ground black pepper with an undercurrent of what should have been obvious: rye. That intensity builds until swallowed, which then unleashes a wave of allspice, rye, toasty peat smoke and a touch of toffee that combine to form an earthy yet almost tangy sensation.

Finish: The spicy rye tingles the mouth for the next few moments before settling into a dark caramel flavor.

Distillery Information

Wigle Whiskey (pronounced “”wiggle””) is an artisan small batch whiskey distillery in the Strip District neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Wigle Whiskeys are the flagship products of the Pittsburgh Distilling Company, LLC, which is entirely family owned and operated.

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