William H. Macy Is Dropping a 10-Year-Old Rye Whiskey With a Beloved Colorado Distiller

Jonah Flicker
·2 min read
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Do you think you’ve had enough celebrity–backed spirits to last you a lifetime? Actually, you haven’t, not yet, because perhaps you were unaware that actor William H. Macy had joined forces with Colorado’s Woody Creek Distillers as its “spokesdude.” The latest release is the appropriately named William H. Macy Reserve Straight Rye Whiskey, a ten-year-old expression that is the oldest to date from the distillery.

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Woody Creek Distillers was founded in 2012, and the first barrels of rye whiskey were laid down a year later in the spring of 2013. The new Macy Reserve is a bottled-in-bond whiskey—at least four years old, 100 proof, the product of one distillery and one distillation season—made from a mashbill of 80 percent rye and 20 percent malted barley. According to co-founder Mark Kleckner, Macy himself tasted the barrels that this whiskey came from and loved it, leading the team to come up with this release.

According to Macy, rye whiskey holds a special place in his heart. “My parents always kept a bottle of rye in a cabinet below our kitchen sink, so naturally it was my first taste of whiskey,” he said in a statement. “These folks [at Woody Creek] are always experimenting and have so many amazing and unique barrels. During the process of tasting through quite a few, I realized I had a talent, and I didn’t need to cheat off the other tasters. After tasting a barrel that was by far my favorite, I had a revelation. I used to think there was magic in the world, now I know it. I hope everyone enjoys Macy Reserve as much as I do and I’m proud that it bears my name.”

Official tasting notes describe aromas of clove, raisin, and cinnamon on the nose, followed by baking spice and nutty flavors on the palate, and a dry finish with a touch of smoke. Macy Reserve is the first release in the Woody Creek Barrel Select program, which will continue with future picks from the distillery’s 5,000 barrels that stand out. The whiskey is available now to order from the website for $200, and you can also find it at select retailers in California, Colorado, and as of December 1 in New York. Other expressions, like the gin, are available from ReserveBar.

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