A mixed drink and three types of rye whiskey. (Gene Sweeney Jr., Baltimore Sun)
By Frederick N. Rasmussen, (The Baltimore Sun, 2/26/2011)
Blackwater Distilling is set to begin bottling Sloop Betty vodka in Stevensville next month, marking the resumption after nearly 30 years of the proud tradition of distilling spirits in Maryland.
“There’s something about bringing that industry back that means something,” Christopher Cook, a partner with his brother Jonathan in Blackwater, told Baltimore Sun reporter Jill Rosen recently.
During rye whiskey’s golden age, connoisseurs across the land instantly associated Wight’s Sherbrook, Old Reserve, Ryebrook, Mount Vernon, Sherwood Pure Rye, Hunter’s — “First Over the Bars” — and Pikesville Rye, to name only a few that were once distilled here, with Maryland.
The distilling of rye whiskey in America goes back to the 1700s, when farmers who had planted rye and wheat as cover crops over tobacco-ravaged land found it was easier and more profitable to distill rather than ship the surplus grain.
George Washington’s overseer at Mount Vernon, John Anderson, urged him to turn his surplus rye into whiskey and established a distillery on the grounds. The formula was simple: rye grain, malted barley and Indian corn.
Rye whiskey is 51 percent rye, while bourbon is 51 percent corn, in case you want to try cooking up a batch at home sometime. For rye, add 34 percent corn, 11 percent barley malt and 4 percent rye malt.
The “green whiskey” is then placed in barrels for aging from four to eight years, so don’t reach for glasses and ice right away.
By 1799, Washington’s still was producing about 11,000 gallons of rye whiskey, some of which found its way to the public houses of nearby Alexandria, where it found favor with the thirsty in the new republic.
Several years ago, the distillery was rebuilt at Mount Vernon, and the first 471 bottles were sold last summer at $85 apiece.
Small distilleries were established throughout antebellum Maryland, but a high whiskey tax during the Civil War made production unprofitable. After the war, the industry was re-established, and Maryland rye’s reputation soared.
Marylanders and other drinkers enjoyed their rye until the enactment into law in 1920 of the 18th Amendment, which outlawed the production, sale, import or export of alcoholic beverages.
With the coming of repeal in 1933, Maryland distilleries were busier than ever, trying to slake the nation’s thirst for its products. By 1936, the state led the nation in rye production with 14 million gallons.
Two years later, bonded government warehouses broke the news that they had 15 million gallons of rye to dispose of.
With the coming of World War II, rye production would never reach those stratospheric pre-war levels again.
During the war, grain and alcohol was diverted for military use, and blended whiskies began to make their appearance, which found favor with the public and meant that the days were numbered for straight rye whiskey.
Continue reading “Rye Whiskey Was Once Synonymous With Maryland” at The Baltimore Sun.