George Dickel Rye is distilled by Midwest Grain Products (MGP) formerly known as Lawrenceburg Distillers Indiana (LDI). These fine folks also create the rye whiskey for other NDPs like Bulleit and Templeton Rye and as I’ve said before, there is nothing wrong with that. However, unlike Bulleit and the schmucks at Templeton Dickle actually is a distiller… just not of their rye. However, unlike Bulleit they give it their own “Tennessee Twist” before bottling it. Templeton also gives it a twist and it’s not a good one, but I’ve already covered that and we’re here to talk about Dickle.
Dickel Rye may start life as stock MGP rye, but before it hits the bottle it gets the full Dickle treatment. After securing the stock they take it a Diageo owned facility in Plainfield, IL where they chill it and charcoal filter it just like they do their signature 8, superior 12 and white dog 1. Tasting it side by side with the Bulleit it’s easy taste the difference and feel what that process does to the whiskey. The Bulleit is a little harsher and has more of an unfinished edge to it where as the Dickle gets a little closer to what I would consider a daily drinker with more of the rough edges smoothed out.
Now, because I’ve been on a tear about it lately I have to take a second and thank Dickle for being upfront and honest about not distilling their own rye. If you look at the back of the label is says right there in green and white. Distilled in Lawrenceberg, In, bottled by George Dickle & Co., Norwalk, CT and on the front of the bottle it says Charcoal Mellowed by George A. Dickle & Co. No mention of “produced by” or false claims of distillation. Just straight up “we charcoal filtered and bottled it, but it was distilled in Indiana” right there on the bottle. See NDPs, it’s not that hard; if these awesome folks can tell the truth and still churn out a good product people want to buy so can you. Well done Dickle… well done.
George Dickel Rye Review
ABV: 45%
Age: NAS
Price: $24
Distiller: MGP
Bottler: George A. Dickle & Co.
Mashbill: 95% rye 5% malted barley
EYE
Orangish caramel
NOSE
Dill, rye and spice dominate the nose which is typical amongst young MGP ryes. Orange candy, brulee and notes of grain, raw sugar and touches of fruit and caramel hang out in the background.
PALATE
Dill, rye and a sharp spice again dominate but this time bring notes of citrus zest, caramel, vanilla and a box of warm baking spices with them. Light fruit and a touch of astringency float lightly over the palate and blend into the background.
FINISH
Long and driven by notes of rye, spice, dill, vanilla, caramel and a slightly herbalness. Not like gin herbs, more earthy and leafy than that.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Good balance with a medium body and a smooth mild texture that makes it very easy to drink.
OVERALL
I like it a bit more than the Bulleit rye, but I just can’t quite put any of these young MGP ryes into the daily drinker category. It has a warm dill, spice and candy driven nose that translates well to the palate and through the finish that is pleasant enough and tasty enough to pour a glass now and then. It’s also utterly phenomenal for making cocktails (rye Manhattan… yes please), but when it comes to something I want to come home and sip after work or something I want to relax with on my porch it just don’t quite do it for me. It comes close, but misses the mark by a hair.
SCORE: 84/100
I toured Dickel/Cascade Hollow this past weekend and our tour guide told us it was an unusual day — in that they were actually making rye that day instead of the high-corn mash. Even if it’s still years away, I got excited that Dickel may be bottling their own rye in the future. Have you heard anything about that?
Woah, that’s awesome. This is the first I’ve heard of that… that’s amazing. Thank you for sharing!
Great review as always Josh.
I’m Canadian and in my area this is one of the more affordable American ryes. I paid $28 cad + tax. Rittenhouse goes for $57 here. That was not a typo, $57 + 15% tax for Rittenhouse 100!
While I do enjoy some Canadian whisky very much such as lot no. 40, I prefer to drink straight American whiskey because I know what I’m drinking (I believe almost all whisky here is at least colored).
That brings me back to the Dickel Rye. I do enjoy this whiskey but I can’t help but notice there’s no mention of “straight” anywhere on the bottle. I feel like some of the flavor, dill in particular, tastes a little too strong to be natural.
Do you know if Dickel adds flavoring to this whiskey? My understanding is any Tennessee whisky such as Dickel no. 12 must be straight whisky but I don’t think there’s any requirement to call something just “rye” whiskey.
Thanks for all your great reviews. Keep up the good work!
Hey Sean,
Great question. I’ve been told there is no additions made to it and none of the other George Dickel Labels say straight on them either so I think it’s just a labeling thing. Straight is a designation they can use, but don’t have to.
Cheers!
Picked up on a whim in Denver at clearance for $26.99 and thought was getting a steal. Extremely impressed with the aroma and no burn. Looking for a domestic daily to replace my 12 yr Glen but gave me a hangover which my Glen never has done.
Not a bad price, cheers!
Just bought a clearance bottle today for $11.99 while on an overnight gambling excursion. Not bad stuff. May have to grab another one tomorrow on the way out of town. I love bargains!
Damn that’s great!
For me, Dickel Rye is the perfect after dinner sipping drink. I prefer 2 fingers over a few cubes of ice. For the price, this bottle can not be beat. I have tried a few bottles in the price range and always go back to a bottle of Dickel Rye.
Totally agree. Cheers Casey!
I absolutely love Dickel Rye. For me it actually could be a daily sipper and also makes a great cocktail mixer. For the price, I don’t think you can find a better Rye.
I agree. For the price it’s a killer deal.
Just bought one as an alternative to my beloved Rittenhouse100, I read a lot about the dill nose and flavor and indeed it is pretty strong. A first taste tells me I still refer Rittenhouse but I am curious to see how it develops
It might grow on you. If not, there’s plenty of that tasty Ritt to go around :)
Despite being exactly the same whiskey, I really enjoy this stuff neat compared to Bulleit Rye. The “touch of astringency” in the Dickel is much more prevalent in the Bulleit, which makes drinking the Bulleit rye rather unpleasant in my opinion. What I’d like to know is what exactly the charcoal filtering/chilling process does to the whiskey that gets rid of that astringent medicinal taste. Whatever it does, it makes the Dickel Rye a great value.
Definitely agree, I like the Dickel Rye over the Bulleit. The charcoal mellowing / filtration pulls out certain types of congeners and soften up the whiskey. That’s why Jack & Dickel do it in the first place to give it a softer more mellow character. For me it polishes out the rough edges on the traditional 95/5 MGP rye.
Cheers!
for around 30 the Sazerac rye is phenomenal.
Man. I totally agree about it being a George “DILL”-kle rye. But I think its good. There are better rye’s Im sure for a similar price.
For the price I haven’t been able to find much better ryes. Definitely found better at higher price points, but not much else in this range for my tastes.
I do like the rittenhouse. A different flavor profile but similar price range. Great everyday rye.
Just picked up a bottle on “clearance” for $13 at a liquor store in Madeira Beach. I’ll give it a spin!
I’d call that an insane value buy. Cheers!
just found several bottles at walmart for $12 , regularly sells for $27. thought i’d stock up. I like it. it gives a nice mellow kick.
Wow, $12 is a steal. I’d stock up a that price too!
I have yet to taste a rye in Dickle’s price range that I like better. The best bang for your buck.
1,000% Cheers Thomas!
I really enjoy Dickel rye but fully agree that it falls just a hair short of the daily sipper variety. I’m more of a bourbon than a rye guy so that certainly factors into the equation but I do think Dickel rye is a very, very solid whiskey and an excellent value. I’ve been nipping at a few of them tonight and enjoyed them thoroughly.
Also, really love the blog and find our tastes in whiskey very agreeable. Cheers!
Thanks Chris, I appreciate it. I definitely enjoy the Dickel and amongst the slew of younger (4-6) yr 95/5 MGP ryes it’s probably my favorite.
Cheers!