Nashville, Indiana-based Hard Truth Distilling Co. announced today the release of its latest expression, the Hard Truth High Road Sweet Mash Rye. This new sweet mash rye whiskey has been specially crafted to allow a broader audience to appreciate the unique taste and subtlety of the sweet mash rye distilling process.
Hard Truth’s line of sweet mash rye whiskies has been enthusiastically received by consumers and reviewers alike. This encouraged the distillery to create a lower proof, more affordable sweet mash rye to help expand the entire sweet mash category. “Our internal evaluation panel results, along with taste-testing in twenty-plus markets confirmed that this is one of the most delicious, sweet mash rye whiskies we’ve ever produced,” said Bryan Smith, Hard Truth’s Master Distiller.
Hard Truth High Road Sweet Mash Rye is bottled at 46.5 percent ABV (93 proof) and features a blend of 55 percent rye, 36 percent corn, and 9 percent malted barley. The whiskey, priced at $39.99 for a 750 ml bottle, boasts a deep copper appearance with a rich vanilla, maple, custard flavor profile and an aroma of apricot jam, honey, baking spice, and graham cracker.
Sweet mashing is a method in which each batch of whiskey begins with entirely fresh ingredients, yielding whiskies that are smoother and have a more complex palate. “We’re proud that Hard Truth is at the forefront of what we believe is a sweet mash rye revolution,” Smith added.
High Road is the largest scale release in the 8-year history of the distillery, an achievement made possible due to Hard Truth’s recent major distillery expansion that includes the construction of its second rackhouse, tripling storage capacity from 4,000 to 12,000 barrels.
Hard Truth’s sweet rye whiskies have been consistently recognized for their excellence. Their first batch of Sweet Mash Rye Whiskey was ranked among Fred Minnick’s Top 100 American Whiskeys of 2021, and the Master Distiller’s Reserve Malted Rye Sweet Mash Rye Whiskey recently won the prestigious 2023 Double Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits competition.