Burnt orange rind | Strawberry | Cedar wood chips | Dill | Sage | Touch of green olive | Very interesting

Burnt orange rind | Nutmeg | Roasted mixed nuts | Burnt caramel | Light astringency

Fruit cake | Leather | Mixed nuts | General roasted lingering aftertaste

Liberty Pole Spirits Old Monongahela Full Proof Rye is Mango Creek Craft Distillers’ take on an Old Monongahela Rye. It was a style of rye that got its name from whiskey farmers working in the Monongahela Valley in Pennsylvania. Originally an unaged product, it got its “old” moniker when distillers started barreling and aging it in stone and brick warehouses. Old Monongahela Rye used source water from the Monongahela River, typically used only two grains in a 4 to 1 ratio of rye to malted barley, a sour mash fermentation, and a three-chamber still (see Leopold Bros. Three Chamber Rye).

As you can see, Mango Creek Craft Distillers took some liberties with their Old Monongahela Rye (see note below). Introducing wheat to the recipe is unique for the style and this could be because the distillery had great success adding red winter wheat into their Liberty Pole Spirits Single Barrel Rye mashbill. However, with this release, Liberty Pole Spirits Old Monongahela Full Proof Rye comes off as much more astringent at times, which sometimes can be a side effect when using wheat.

Despite this, the rye’s aroma is utterly fascinating. Burnt orange rind and strawberry mixed with cedar wood chips start the sip off in a great place before introducing dill, sage, and a slight green olive scent. It’s every bit as intriguing as it sounds. The palate skews rustic, with more burnt orange rind that is joined by nutmeg, roasted mixed nuts, and burnt caramel. The finish adds a layer of dark fruit in the form of a holiday fruit cake, leather, and more mixed nuts.  

Overall, Liberty Pole Spirits Old Monongahela Full Proof Rye is a very unique tasting rye. It doesn’t hit at the same level as their Liberty Pole Spirits Single Barrel Rye, but I have to celebrate the flavor boundaries it pushes as a rye.  

The bottle in review is from Batch D24.

Editor's note: After posting our review, Liberty Pole Spirits reached out to us letting us know this release is meant to honor whiskey rebellion era farmer distillers of the late 18th century. This is before the invention of the three-chamber still. Distillers still used a high-rye mashbill, but used whatever grains they had that they didn't want to spoil. According to Liberty Pole Spirits, they checked with Pennsylvania whiskey experts Laura Patrizzio and Sam Komlenic and got their approval before bringing this whiskey to market under the Old Monongahela name.