Green tea | Raspberry | Caramelized sugar | Delicious malty undertone

Honey | Green grape | Brown sugar | Almond | Pie crust | Nutmeg

Baking spices | Green tea | Raw sugar | Pretzel bun | Lingering maltiness

Walleye Run is a lesser known whiskey brand from New Holland Spirits, the Michigan-based company known more for Dragon’s Milk beer and bourbon. The Walleye Run Whiskey portfolio currently consists of three core bottles: Malted Rye Whiskey (aged 7 years), Wheat Whiskey (aged 8 years), and Single Malt Whiskey (aged 10 years). Each is distilled using the company’s 100 year old Prohibition-era copper pot still, and according to the company, everything they plan to release under the Walleye Run label will be aged at least 7 years. Malted Rye is made with a sweet mash as opposed to sour mash, fermented with brewers’ yeast, and pot distilled twice before barreling.

There is something about this whiskey that’s immediately memorable, but difficult to put your finger on. The nose kicks things off with green tea and raspberry set on top of a delicious sugary malty undertone. Honey, sweet green grape, brown sugar, almond, and pie crust come together on the palate. Nutmeg on the backend of the sip transitions to a wider range of baking spices as it finishes, which is joined by a surge of green tea and raw sugar along with a pretzel bun note. There’s a lingering maltiness that works incredibly well.

There is something magical going on with New Holland Brewing Company distilled whiskeys. Dragon’s Milk Origin has a unique flavor profile that is entirely its own, and Walleye Run Malted Rye manages to deliver on a distinctive flavor profile in a totally different but equally satisfying kind of way. At only 92 proof this whiskey is bursting with flavor, but alludes to what it could offer at a higher proof. This is an absolute must-buy for fans of unique, highly drinkable whiskeys that push the boundaries of what we know about American whiskey today.