The whiskey wash logo
The World's Most-Visited
Whiskey Website
The World's Most-Visited
Whiskey Website

Trending Stories

Search
American

Cedar Ridge Nine & Three Quarters Rye Review

Can an Iowa craft distillery produce a rye whiskey worth chasing? Cedar Ridge's Nine & Three Quarters, aged nearly a decade, might just hit the sweet spot.

OVERALL RATING

8
$60
  • Charles Steele is an attorney and whiskey enthusiast with a penchant for the peculiar.
Like Conversation

Tasting Notes

About:

Cedar Ridge out of Swisher Iowa is quickly building a massive following across the country, or at least in Iowa. Originally opened as a winery with a distillery, it is quickly stamping it’s name as a major craft distillery.

From a press release: “As a milestone release for Cedar Ridge, this Nine & Three Quarters Rye represents nearly a decade of patient Iowa maturation, making it one of the oldest expressions ever to leave our barrel sheds. By utilizing our signature high-malted rye mash bill, this extended aging has transformed those classic toasted biscuit notes into a rich, deep-oak profile.

This limited-edition expression features a blend of barrels aged at least nine years—the majority reaching nine years and nine months, with one even crossing ten.”

Vital Stats
85% rye, 12% corn, 3% malted barley
Appearance:
A lighter mahogany in color with thin fast legs which do not linger. Tasted neat in a Glencairn.
Nose:
The nose opens with dark oak, rye and strong vanilla. We evolve into grasses while holding the woody oak notes with maybe dried apricots.
Palate:
A dry taste and medium profile. Start with stewed apples, sugar and rye, deep wood and spices, with melted sugars. There is a nice moment of smoke toward the back of the palate and a good pop of pepper.
Finish:
Oily mouthfeel on the finish with a blended dark chocolate among the rye.
Comments:
A really stand-up rye whiskey! I feel with how robust rye whiskey can be, and sometimes a more tempermental spirit, a ~10 year whiskey is about right for a rye. Some are able to really hyper age a rye, but I think this is right in a sweet spot for rye whiskey. The notes are lovely and well presented across the sip. You don’t really have much exploring to do, in my opinion each note presents itself squarely and firmly before fading. This is a distillery to watch for certain. They’re producing some excellent products with reasonable age statements and a great price point to boot.

If you can find one of these you will not be disappointed. Plenty of strenght and flavor for every consumer.

Editor’s Note: This whiskey was either bought as a sample by The Whiskey Wash or provided to us as a review sample by the party behind it. Per our editorial policies, this in no way influenced the outcome of this review.

Charles Steele

Charles Steele, a Portland-based attorney, is a native of the Pacific Northwest. His legal background provides him with an analytical approach to understanding whiskey and other aged spirits. Primarily a legal writer, freelancing for The Whiskey Wash offers Charles a unique opportunity to showcase his versatility as a writer. Although his preference lies with whiskey and whiskey-based cocktails, he has a profound appreciation for all unique and unconventional liquors, from Malört to Ojen - if it's peculiar, he's intrigued.

All Posts

Latest On The Whiskey Wash

The whiskey wash logo