Honey | Pear | Steeped tea | Caramel | Light citrus

Chamomile | Oats | Lemon | Light oak

Oak | Light leather | Building rye spice | Faint clove & cinnamon

Espy House is a non-distiller producer located in Bedford, Pennsylvania. The company’s name is derived from the Espy House, which is an actual house that is best known as where George Washington stayed during the Whiskey Rebellion of 1794. The house’s present owner is Todd Eichelberger, who brought history full circle with the launch of Espy House whiskeys. In 2023, the brand launched two new whiskeys: George 1794 Edition and Washington’s Reserve Bourbon. The brand further expanded in 2024 with an Espy House Small Batch Wheated Bourbon and Espy House Rye.

Espy House Rye opens uniquely for a rye; missing are the hard baking spices, fruit, and dill scents you often find with rye. Instead, you’re greeted with honey, pear, steeped tea, caramel, and light citrus, which is a welcome change of pace. Likewise, the palate presents a chamomile note upfront that runs through the course of the palate. This apple and honey-like sweetness makes for a light and enjoyable sipper, which is not exactly how you describe most ryes. The palate concludes with fresh-cut oats, lemon, and light oak. The finish is more oak forward than the rest of the sip, but it's far from overbearing. Light leather joins before a rye spice begins to build, concluding on light clove and cinnamon. The rye ends like it started, bucking your expectations of what a rye should taste like in a light and approachable sipping manner.