High West Yippee Ki-Yay Straight Rye Whiskey

High West Yippee Ki-Yay 750ml distiller notes:

One day, just for fun, we put some rye whiskey into barrels originally used to age wine. When we mixed the ‘vermouth-ed’ and the ‘syrah-ed’ we discovered an all-natural, not disgustingly sweet whiskey for the rest of us.

How to Enjoy
Yippee Ki-Yay shows best at room temp, neat. With a little time in the glass sitting idle (just a few minutes) the bouquet really opens up to it's full potential

The Name
Where did “Yippee Ki-Yay” come from? Is it a real expression of joy popular with cowboys in the 19th century Western United States? Is it part of the greatest one liner in movie history? Was it influenced by the phrase ‘Yippie-yi-yo-ki-yay’ from the 1936 hit song “I’m an Old Cow Hand from the Rio Grande” about a 20th-century cowboy who has little in common with cowpunchers of old and sung by Bing Crosby in the film “Rhythm on the Range” (also sung later by Roy Rogers and Frank Sinatra) and considered one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time? We’re not sure. But we are sure we like how we feel when we say it... and recommend you use it every chance you get.

Back Label Story
We confess...we didn’t coin the term “Yippee Ki-Yay”. Moreover, we didn’t paint the picture on the front label. It’s an historic poster (Gift of The Coe Foundation and Henry B. Balink) now at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, Wyoming (centerofthewest.org, you really ought to visit). Furthermore, we didn’t distill the whiskeys in this bottle - it’s our Double Rye! However, we did come up with a combination that we think will make you say...Yippee Ki-Yay drinkers of horrible tasting cheap flavored uisge beatha! One day, just for fun, we put Double Rye! into oak barrels that had originally been used to age two different types of wine and discovered an all-natural, not disgustingly-sweet sipper for the rest of us.

Technical Details
Ratio of whiskeys: top secret!
Filtration: not chill-filtered, or carbon treated.

TTB Designation
A Blend of Straight Whiskies

Proof & ABV
ABV: 46%
92 Proof

Age(s), Distilled by & Mashbill(s)
A blend of straight rye whiskeys aged from 2 to 16 years

Straight Rye whiskeys:
95% rye, 5% barley malt from MGP
53% rye, 37% corn, 10% barley from Barton
80% Rye, 20% malted rye from High West Distillery

Barrel Type(s)
Aged in new, charred, white American oak barrels and finished in French oak barrels that previously contained vermouth and Syrah wine

Sensory Notes
Nose: Cinnamon stick, dried apricot, dark chocolate with cherry cordial, dried sage, brown sugar, toasted nut brittle
Taste: Bright cinnamon spice, vanilla, star anise, cherry cobbler, dried herbs, undertones of cedar wood
Finish: Spiced red berry jam, black licorice, and muddled spearmint