Old Overholt returns to its roots of Bottled in Bond Rye Whiskey, and we’re glad they did.
"Overholt" is and anglicization of the German name "Oberholzer"… as in Henry Oberholzer — a German Mennonite farmer from Pennsylvania on the banks of Jacob’s Creek. He raised rye grains and saved enough to build a distillery on his farm in 1810. Soon the profits from the distillery greatly exceeded the farm, so that became the core family business when his son Abraham took over. It stayed in the family until 1919. Since then it has been pushed around a bit, but they are one of the few brands that has never compromised on Quality. Now owned by Beam-Suntory and made in Kentucky, they still cling to their roots and original dedication to quality.
Old Overholt used to have a Bottled in Bond Rye for years. But it was discontinued more than fifty years ago. So, is Old Overholt Bottled in Bond Straight Rye Whiskey a return… a re-release… or what? Well, now that it’s made in Kentucky, we’re calling it a new thing that captures the spirit and intent of the original with a balanced mash bill. It’s aged a minimum of four years in new oak under guard and then bottled at 50% ABV.
Smartass Corner:
In German, the word "korn" can be used to refer to any grain in the wheat family. Most commonly, that grain is rye. So, somewhat ironically, if you see "Korn" Whiskey in Germany it usually means Rye Whiskey.