A. Smith Bowman Abraham Bowman Virginia Limited Edition Rye

@hp12, very nice review, and a rye I definitely want to taste. I am confused about one thing, though, is this 45% or 68.2% ABV?

@HP12, Great review. I can't wait to try it. Being in L.A. area, I too will have a hard time locating this gem.

@Victor, its ABV 68.2%. lawhiskeysociety.com/whiskey/1504/…-

The more I taste this AB and develop a more experienced palate, the more I realize how special this whiskey is. It has become one of my favorites in my cabinet. I have upgraded the review rating from the original 89 to the current 92. This is one damned tasty libation!

@Victor as referenced by @whiskyshiba, this whiskey is 68.2% ABV. The "standard" availability of AB is found at 45% ABV. I think you would like this.

@HP12, I haven't the slightest doubt that I would like it!

Victor, I have seen this bottle at a few of the VA ABC stores in the Falls Church and Arlington area but never in MD or DC. So if you come over to the dark side of the Potomac, I'm sure you could find it.

@JeffC what you have seen is likely the 45% ABV expression, not quite as difficult to find as the review inspired 68.2% ABV. I too I've seen the AB 45% in our ABC stores here in VA.

I want to add to the back story of this expression. The initial "white dog" is distilled twice at the Buffalo Trace Distillery in Kentucky. It is then transported to the A. Smith Bowman Distillery located in Fredricksburg, Virginia where the spirit is distilled for a third time, aged for about 10 years in their Virginia warehouse and then bottled at their facility.

You got me so excited I went to look for another way to spend my hard earned money.... However, looking high and low albeit briefly I did not see a single online source to purchase and it was not available at the couple places I have bought scotch from... Where to now for some 140 proof Rye?

@GregLogan, the Abraham Bowman Rye was distilled before Buffalo Trace purchased the distillery in 2003. There were several barrels, three that I know of, privately bottled early in 2011 and the bottles privately sold in the summer and fall of 2011. These are fantastic whiskeys, but 'one-offs' and probably impossible to find now for sale. @HP12 tells me that he was told at the Bowman distillery recently that they, ie the decision-makers at the Sazerac Company, are not planning to do any more rye whiskey distilling at Bowman for the foreseeable future. For high proof rye, eg above 50.5%/101 proof, there are not many regular options. Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Straight Rye is probably your best bet. Less frequent to find (and far more idiosyncratic) would be Old Potrero 18th Century Style Whiskey. Less common still would be some of the old (15+ yo) Willett Single Barrel Ryes. You might find a lighter ABV young (6 yo or younger) Willett rye, typically about 55% abv because of the short maturation. If you haven't already tried it, I recommend the Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Rye. It is usually at 63-65% abv. On Connosr we talk about rye whiskeys as they they are commonplace. Five years ago, in the US, very few stores carried more than one or two ryes in stock, and those were almost always the most basic products. High quality ryes, and high proof ryes, are much more obtainable now, but options and quantities are still somewhat limited.

@Victor - Thanks - I am surprised that with what is probably a reasonable demand to at least a certain identifiable level they are not continuing to distill these whiskeys... Too bad - I feel like I have lost out. I like rolled rye perhaps best for my breakfast cereal - though I like barley as well - I don't know how this will translate but I will keep my eyes open.

@GregLogan, in our Connosr circles there is currently 'reasonable demand' for high end high proof rye whiskeys. When the current crop of well aged ryes were barreled, though, the move may have been seen as mostly an experimental trial balloon. Greg, where is Shoreline? (thank you @HP12 for having our posting on your review)

@Victor - Shoreline is adjacent to Seattle, WA on the north side.

Party Source across the river from Cincinnati (spelling?) shows the 45% version in stock, but does not list the barrel strength version. Is the 45% version worthwhile...at $73? How do the two versions compare?

No, Pudge, the 45% abv Abraham Bowman 10 yo Rye is not at all in the same league as the 65-70% abv proof Abraham Bowman The Party Source private bottlings. I wish that it were. We have a bottle of it. The flavours of the 45% version are not merely more dilute, they are nowhere near as good. $ 73 can buy you much better rye whiskey.

Cherry-picking of the best outlier barrels can sometimes yield some extraordinary quality whiskeys, as I would describe what I have tasted of the TPS private barrels. I own some whiskey from two of the three TPS barrels, and thus far have drunk from only one of the barrel's samples. The whiskey from that bottle is currently my favourite of all of my bottles of whiskey. The review by @HP12, above, is of the barrel of which I do not own a bottle.

I thought that was the case, but I just wanted confirmation. With that being the case, Talisker 18 will likely be the target should myself or a relation of mine be travelling through TPS's neighbourhood.