American single malt whiskey has at last had its long-awaited moment and can now stand proudly and independently beside bourbon whiskey.
These single malt whiskies are not just for patriots but also for connoisseurs who can taste the difference between Oregon and Texas, Virginia and the Rockies, and be able to distinguish a Mountain Angel from a Baller.
In December 2024, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) formally recognized US single malt whisky which has generated greater awareness and respect and funding.
The ASM Capital Whiskey Fund aims to elevate the category globally through its barrel investment model and was developed by father-and-son duo Rob and Hunter Robillard. Former engineer Rob Robillard launched Cabin Fever Maple Whiskey in 2007, which was sold to Diageo five years later. Hunter has worked for Custom Spirits, his family’s alcohol consulting firm with its own portfolio of spirits brands.
ASM Capital is a private placement fund, which means that it can only be sold to accredited investors, and friends and family. It is targeting the institutional investment channel. At the end of 2024 the fund raised nearly $10 million, with the goal of securing $250m by 2026. The fund is a five-year vehicle, with all of the capital returned back to investors within five years, but backers will start receiving proceeds back within a year. The ASM Fund has recently started working with Ohio-based Middle West Spirits, the sixth-largest distillery in North America and a pioneer in the single malt space. As Hunter says:
“American single malt is actually a bigger category than people realise”.
American single malt has outpaced the global whisky market. Volume is projected to reach nearly 170,000 nine-litre cases by 2028 (IWSR 2024 figures) and will hit nearly $120 million by 2028. That’s up $50m from a decade earlier. Regional American whiskies are now having their day.
The Macklowe was the first luxury American Single Malt Whiskey. It is made by Julie Macklowe in Kentucky. Produced on Nantucket Island by Triple Eight Distillery, The Notch is crafted from 100 per cent Maris Otter malt and aged in a coastal climate, with bottles usually retailing for around $350 and available in very limited supply.
Balcones Distilling’s Texas 1, made in Waco, has received rave reviews. Its lineage uses Scottish Golden Promise malted barley.
Based in Colorado, Stranahan’s offers 10 and 12-year-old age-stated whiskeys in their permanent range, with blender, Justin Aden, saying:
“We’ve had a lot more curiosity from international single malt drinkers. They might be Americans, but they’re used to drinking Scotch or Japanese or Irish single malts, and the first one they’re going to reach for is us. Age statements matter a lot to them. It proves that you’ve been at this for a while.”
Stranahan’s yellow label whiskey will soon receive a seven-year age statement, as will the brand’s Sherry cask finish. In terms of pushing the age ceiling, there will be a 14-year-old released later this year. They have also released a 10-year-old Mountain Angel.
“We feel very proud of our ability to carry the torch, not just for American single malt, but really for the craft whiskey movement in this country. We’ve matured into something, we’re now a force to be reckoned with, the next five years is going to be a great time to be a consumer.”
Based out of Portland, Oregon, Westward Whiskey focuses on Solera-style American single malt. Westward Pinot Noir uses casks from several Willamette Valley wineries. Milestone Edition No. 2 has maintained its reputation as a pre-eminent distiller of American single malts.
There are also Seattle’s Redwood Empire Whiskey: Foggy Burl Single Malt Whiskey and 291 “E” Colorado Whiskey Experimental Batch 13 American Single Malt Whiskey. Dave Smith and Lance Winters are the distillers at Almedia, California’s pioneering single malt maker. St. George Spirits has brought out Baller, a Japanese-style whiskey, finished in house-made umeshu casks that’s intended for cocktails.
There are also New Riff Sour Mash Single Malt Kentucky Whiskey, Virginia Distillery Co’s “Courage & Conviction”, Cedar Ridge, Boulder Spirits and Lost Lantern 3-Year-Old McCarthy’s, recalling Steve McCarthy who made a single malt at Clear Creek Distillery in Hood River, OR, in 1991.
Whiskey Del Bac out of Tucson, Arizona, was the first distillery to make single malt that wasn’t peated, but mesquited. Founder Stephen Paul built his own malting tool so that he could dry barley over the native Southwestern wood smoke. Try to find Dorado and its Distiller’s Cut.
Santa Fe Spirits Colkegan Apple Brandy Cask Finished and Stranahan’s Mountain Angel 10-Year-Old is another top single malt from the US.
San Francisco-based Hotaling & Co has also announced the release of Hirsch The Departure, an American single malt made from 100 per cent Maris Otter barley. The whiskey was aged for six years and nine months in new char no. 3 and toasted American oak barrels.
American single malts still have a long way to go. Scotland’s Glenfarclas Distillery has released a 70-year-old single malt, its oldest expression to date, with a recommended retail price of £20,000 or $26,800.
Author Bio:
Kevin Pilley is a former professional cricketer and chief staff writer of PUNCH magazine. His humour, travel, food and drink work appear worldwide, and he has been published in over 800 titles.
Photograph courtesy of Master of Malt
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