Breaking Bourbon Award Winning Single Barrel Club picks are selected by Breaking Bourbon, and whenever possible with the help of Patreon supporters. The bottles are made available to Patreon supporters first by pledge tier. If any bottles remain after all supporters have had an opportunity to purchase, they are made available to the public on a first come, first served basis. Each barrel is sponsored by a retailer partner, who sells the bottles directly to end purchasers.

Retailer Partner: Seelbach’s

Classification: Straight Rye Malt

Company: Chattanooga Whiskey Co.

Distillery: Chattanooga Whiskey Co.

Age: 4 Years (Barreled 9/18/2020, bottled 10/24/2024)

Proof: 119.8

Mashbill: Malted Rye, Yellow Corn, Caramel Malted Rye, Chocolate Malted Rye

Yield: 204 Bottles

Release Date: January 2025

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Rollout Schedule

Tier 1 - Wednesday 1/29/2025 @ 2PM ET
Tier 2 - Thursday 1/30/2025 @ 2PM ET
Tier 3 - Friday 1/31/2025 @ 2PM ET
Tier 4 - Saturday 2/1/2025 @ 2PM ET

About the Tiers

Chattanooga Whiskey Co. has been consistently producing interesting whiskeys using their signature Tennessee High Malt mashbills that span wide ranges of different malted grains. Their Straight Rye Malt Whiskey is a new product, and we were fortunate to get onsite at their Riverfront Distillery location to pick the first ever single barrel of it.

Malting rye is picking up in the American whiskey space, but still a relatively uncommon practice. Malting rye generally smoothes it out, making it milder than sweeter than if it wasn’t malted, which is generally more spicy and grain-forward. A good contrasting example would be WhistlePig or a 95% rye MGP rye, both of which use a high percentage of unmalted rye and are spice-forward as a result.

The team at Chattanooga Whiskey Co. is extremely attentive to detail, which is clear when you tour the distillery, browse their website, or even just pick up a bottle and start reading the label. Because of their deliberate variation in certain elements of the process, we were able to sample across this variation.

The barrel we picked was chosen for its beautifully rich flavor profile. CThe whiskey combines three different types of malted rye - malted rye, caramel malted rye, and chocolate malted rye - with yellow corn. Fermented for 7 days,  aged in a 53 gallon char #4 barrel for just over 4 years, and then bottled at cask strength with no filtration.  

We’re excited about this barrel, and new style from Chattanooga Whiskey Co. Being the first single barrel representative of this style, it will be fun to revisit and compare years from now to see how the whiskey has evolved.

Tasting Notes:‍

Scents of amaretto and candied dark cherry combine with slight leather and aged seasoned oak to create an aroma with ample depth. There’s a hint of chocolate underneath. A wave of rich flavors washes over the palate, with creamy dark chocolate, caramel, gingerbread, and a touch of grape jam on the backend. Baking spices emerge on the finish, combined with layers of burnt brown sugar, caramel, and chocolate. The finish is long thanks to ample spice, which is underscored by a pleasantly soft, malty presence throughout. Overall it’s a beautifully rich, full-bodied sip.

About Seelbach’s

For this pick, we partnered with spirits retailer Seelbach’s, which was founded by Blake Riber, also the creator of Bourbonr and the Bourbonr Facebook group. An online-only retailer with a twist, we interviewed Riber to discuss how he’s running his shop differently than everyone else. “Unlocking Craft Spirits” he calls it - seeking out up-and-coming craft distilleries and learning about their process and tasting through their products to find hidden gems.

Distillers, Producers, and Retailers: If you would like to be a part of this program and get your name in front of millions of bourbon enthusiasts, contact us.

‍Please note these bottles will not be sold by Breaking Bourbon, but will be sold by retailers we partner with in order to fulfill the orders and ship the bottles directly to Patreon supporters. Breaking Bourbon will receive no compensation from our partner retailers under these agreements (with the exception of a bottle from each barrel for editorial purposes). If you represent a retailer and ship to consumers and you’re interested in partnering just let us know!