Traditional Maryland Style - Sagamore Rye
Port Covington, Baltimore, MD
Chicago’s proximity to Kentucky means brewers have long made the trip down to secure freshly dumped bourbon barrels. Chicago’s beer culture is built in many ways on depth of styles at local breweries and the love affair this town has with bourbon barrel aged beers.
Summertime is unforgettable here, but it’s a cold weather town with disrespectful wind chills blowing off the lake most of the year. You’re likely to find dark, heavy, sassy beer options over say a vast selection of local sours, saisons or wild ales. When it was time for Malt Row’s Begyle Brewing to extend the product line for their award winning BA oatmeal stout, Flannel Pajamas, they laid it to sleep in barrels from barrels Sagamore Spirit Distillery?
Mixed 4-banger of Begyle Flannel Pajamas Aged in Sagamore Rye Barrels
Some of the oldest whiskeys in America were probably ryes. The grain is abundant in the Northeast states. Before Kentucky became a state in 1792 rye whiskey was the popular spirit. The original Michter’s up in Pennsylvania was rye focused. Our episode on NY Distilling’s Ragtime Rye was a reminder that from the Colonial Days up until the Civil War that New York was major whiskey producer.
Compared to the Pennsylvania style, the traditional Maryland style rye uses local spring water to proof down their releases. The pleated jockey silk inspired bottle design is an instant classic. This is the most handsome bottle on the shelf now.
Binny’s Barrel Select Sagamore Rye( 6yrs, 110 proof) has that earthy type of cinnamon spice. It’s more like the Saigon or Celyon cinnamon flavors instead of the traditional red hot cinnamon notes we pick up in many featured ryes.
Maryland Style has its roots in triple-distillation, nowadays Sagamore partners with their friends at MGP to execute on the recipes designed by Sagamore. The current lineup includes a Double Oaked, Straight Rye and a series of finished whiskies (Cognac, Calvados, Tequilla, Manhattan bbls) etc.
On Sale Now
The story goes that Under Armor, CEO Kevin Plank is behind the project. Kevin hired a former MGP Master Distiller to head the operation. The first batch of Sagamore was distilled and aged in Indiana. A major $25M infrastructure investment in Maryland includes a five story aging barn and 57,000 sq ft complex for a distillery and visitor center in the Port Covington neighborhood in Baltimore. Sagamore Rye is in 30 national markets as well as Japan, China and The Philippines .
We have Begyle Brewing to thank for putting this on our radar. Their criminally underrated Mixed Four Pack of Flannel Pajamas is on sale now. Sagamore Rye Cask Strength and the 80 proof offering can be found all over the city.
-The Neat Pour
Be sure to check out Episode 36 of The Neat Pour Podcast for our thoughts on Sagamore Rye.