Review #155: Driftless Glen 8yr SiB Cask Strength Rye

March 20, 2025

Review #155: Driftless Glen 8yr SiB Cask Strength Rye

COST: ~$70 MSRP for 750mL bottle (I’m reviewing a sample)

AGE: 8 yrs

MASH BILL: 75% rye, 25% malted barley (I would be shocked if there's not some sort of roasted caramel or chocolate malt that makes up at least part of this 25%, though I can't confirm)

PROOF: 125

I'm currently on a road trip hitting up Joshua Tree National Park, Zion National Park, and Death Valley National Park. In setting off for this trip I brought along a few 2 oz samples to enjoy from fireside or on a hiking trail looking at some of America’s most beautiful landscapes. I brought this sample along knowing it might be cold and snowy in Zion and a nice spicy rye whiskey might be just the warming up needed at the end of a hike. While I had good intentions of enjoying this on the trail today, the schedule just didn't allow it. So, I enjoyed it back at the camper van at the end of the day. However, I didn’t want to cheat y'all from some of the gorgeous views from today's adventures, so don't forget to see all the photos at the bottom. Let's check it out!

Reviewed neat in a plastic juice glass (#campervanlife)

NOSE: Caramelized brown sugar and sweet cherries lead off. Hay, black pepper, and a herbaceous rye spice begin to take over the sweeter notes. Sweet and zesty orange peel and sweet oak round it out. This has zero proof heat for 125 proof.

PALATE: Big brown sugar sweetness and peppermint right at first with a little stewed red fruit that quickly yields to a spicy blend of bold black pepper, rye, cinnamon, and a touch of dried cayenne bringing some earthiness as well. A light smoky apple or cherry wood bring a fruit sweetness to a toasty back end of the sip going into the finish. That peppermint note has morphed to more of a mint chocolate note going into the finish as well. A good mouthfeel, slightly syrupy and slightly creamy.

FINISH: Long and semi-sweet finish. The proof finally shows up here leaving an evaporative and drying feeling on the tongue. That fruit wood or sweet oak carry over nicely from the palate with just the right amount of char, a slight tannic dryness, and a slight earthiness. A nice caramel and thin mint note carry over as well. The darker notes of dark chocolate and charred wood tend to subside and leave a light dessert sweetness with cinnamon and mint to persist, though, the spices ultimately win out to bring this to a close.

RATING: 7.6/10

VALUE: 8.0/10 (This is an attempt to take into account price, tasting rating, age, and proof. See my spreadsheet for more details.)

OVERALL: This is a rye whiskey that a bourbon drinker would enjoy. Quite sweet with notes of nice caramels, red fruit, and chocolate. However, it still gives a nice warming feeling of spices common in a rye whiskey. While I haven't had another Driftless Glen expression, this 8yr cask strength rye seems to be the perfect age with just the right balance of wood notes to compliment the sweet and spice body of this pour. There is a little proof heat that shows up at the finish and gives a nice hug in the center of your chest which was enjoyable at the end of a day full of cold and damp hikes, but normally would invite a couple drops of water.

BEHIND THE BOTTLE: Driftless Glen resides in the Driftless Area of Wisconsin. The Driftless Area gets its name from the fact it lacks glacial deposits known as “drifts” that are common in the surrounding areas. This suggests that the Driftless Area was never covered by ice during the last ice age which ended around 12,000 years ago. The terroir of this area has a sandy loam soil which makes it excellent for growing most any plant. This was particularly of interest to Brian and Reneé Bemis when selecting a location for their distillery. Driftless Glen has a grain-to-glass mindset. They take pride in using locally grown grains to make their whiskey as well as the water from the Driftless Area.

Driftless Glen opened in 2015, so as an 8yr old rye this is from some of the older barrels they have. While I've seen some bottles of Driftless Glen in my local liquor stores I've yet to pick one up. Although this sample came from an 8 year old single barrel pick from the distillery itself, this sample has me feeling like I've been missing out. There's a lot to be said for a 75% rye mashbill with no sweeter grains like corn or wheat to bring this level of sweetness (thus the reason I'm convinced the malt has to include some toasted malt to bring out some additional sweetness). I love the grain to glass focus that Driftless Glen has and love seeing it rewarded by the production of whiskeys of this quality.