New Riff Distilling commemorates its new Rickhouse in Silver Grove with a whiskey that will also honor a past whiskey released in the 1930s with the Silver Grove name.
The company began working on its 55,000-square-foot barrel storage building (Rickhouse) in Silver Grove last April. The warehouse holds 41,000 barrels and is designed for storing and aging distilled spirits.
For the Silver Grove 2023 release, the distillery used 65% corn, 30% malted rye, and 5% malted barley mashbill, a combination that uses malted rye instead of standard rye. New Riff is known for using malted rye; the Silver Grove 2023 continues the distillery’s exploration of malted grains.
“The original Silver Grove was a 1933 bottling distilled in 1917 at the Edward Brinkmann Distillery in Cincinnati’s Carthage neighborhood,” New Riff Distilling co-founder Jay Erisman said in a release. “This release is a nod to both the area’s distilling past and New Riff’s future with our new warehouse in Silver Grove. And this whiskey is truly a new riff on an old tradition: a meeting place of vintage labels with a robust barrel-proof bourbon with unique flavors from malted rye.”
Erisman noted it is also the first time New Riff has offered a barrel-proof whiskey that is not a single barrel but a vatting of many.
A portion of proceeds from sales of the Silver Grove 2023 release will support the Silver Grove Community Foundation, which seeks to improve the quality of life and help community-led projects in the city.
Erisman described the Silver Grove 2023 release as rich and spicy with an added roundedness and mellowness from the malted rye. “It’s very approachable straight up, full-strength out of the bottle,” Erisman said. “But adding a splash of water will unlock all the flavor secrets and the fullest experience.”
This will be New Riff’s first blend at barrel proof and will only be available for purchase at the distillery located in Newport. The release will be available at the distillery beginning April 15 for $55.99.