Distilling Heirloom Grains at a Heritage Distillery

The grain used to make many of today's whiskies isn't always
picked for its flavor, but that's not the distiller's fault.
Blame the commodity grain system, in which the largest grain
customers determine what types of rye, corn, wheat, and barley
are most widely planted by farmers. It's the Golden Rule, in
which the one with the most gold gets to call the shots...and
distillers aren't the ones with the most gold. Because of that,
many grain types distillers would love to use are consigned to
"heirloom" status or forgotten entirely. That's what happened to
Rosen Rye, a strain prized for generations by Pennsylvania
distillers that almost disappeared completely - until a small
band of mavericks brought it back to life. Earlier this month, a
team of craft distillers gathered at George Washington's
Distillery at Mount Vernon to make a batch of Rosen Rye, and
we'll have that story for you on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the
news, the whisky portfolio for South Africa's Distell Group is
being split up in a merger with Heineken, while Pernod Ricard has
fired up the stills at its first malt whisky distillery in China
and another craft distiller is celebrating its 10th anniversary.