How Old Overholt went from a Leading Brand to Bottom Shelf and Back

Old Overholt labesl from 2012-2023

When Abraham Overholt died in 1870, his company A. Overholt & Co. was well on its way to becoming one of the largest whiskey distillers in the country. Originally, the company branded its whiskey as Old Farm Pure Rye, but in 1888, 18 years after Abraham’s death, they renamed the brand Old Overholt and added his likeness to the logo in his honor. Up until Prohibition the distillery remained largely under family control but when Henry Clay Frick, the last remaining family member passed away in 1919 he left his ownership stake in the distillery to his friend and banking magnate Andrew Mellon. The following year President Harding selected Mellon to be his Secretary of the Treasury, and after a public pressure campaign Mellon sold the distillery to the New York grocers Park & Tilford. But before that, Mellon helped A. Overholt & Co. secure one of the very limited distilling licenses that allowed the company to continue producing “medicinal whiskey” throughout Prohibition. Because of this, Overholt survived while many other distilleries of that era closed, never to reopen.

After Prohibition, a new conglomerate called National Distillers purchased Overholt and continued making its eponymous whiskey at the A. Overholt Distillery in Broad Ford, PA. Old Overholt became one of the five core brands for National Distillers along with Old Taylor, Old Granddad, Old Crow, and Mount Vernon, a straight rye from Maryland. But, despite the post WWII economic boom rye whiskey sales were beginning to slow and in 1951, National Distillers closed the Broad Ford distillery though they continued to source Pennsylvania rye whiskey for the brand. As the years passed on and whiskey sales continued to slump into the 1980s, National Distillers eventually went broke and in 1987, the James B. Beam Distilling Company purchased Old Overholt, Old Crow, Old Granddad and Olt Taylor (which they eventually sold to Sazerac). At that point Beam decided to move production of Old Overholt from Pennsylvania to Kentucky, changed the mash bill to the minimum 51% rye and drop the bottling strength to 80 proof.

For about 27 years Old Overholt sat as bottom shelf whiskey overshowed by other more popular whiskeys in the Beam portfolio. In 2012, Beam dropped the 4 year aged statement down to 3, just as they had done with Old Corw. But, in 2013, something changed and Beam attempted to bring more attention to Old Overholt and its other “Old” whiskey brands, Old Crow, and Old Granddad. At that time nothing had substantially changed but in 2017, the now Beam Suntory began to get label approval for several new Old Overholt expressions. For the first time in about 30 years, Beam Suntory re-released a bonded version of Old Overholt which cause quite a buzz among whiskey writes and bartenders. And, two years later in 2019, Beam Suntory increased the standard bottling strength from 40% to 43% ABV. From then on there has been a steady release of new Old Overholt expressions which has helped to revitalize the brand from its bottom shelf ignominy to a brand that is once again well respected and sought after by American whiskey fans. It has been exciting to see Beam Suntory put some money and effort into supporting this historic brand by creating new and interesting offerings such as the return of the 4-year age statement on the standard bottle, the 11 Year Old Cask Strength, and the A. Overholt Straight Rye made with a traditional Pennsylvania rye whiskey mash bill. Hopefully this trend will continue and who knows what we will see in the future for this more than 200-year-old brand.

Below is a list of the Old Overholt label approvals that help tell the story of how Old Overholt moved from the bottom shelf to a well-respected brand.

• August 2012: Old Overholt Straight Rye Whiskey 40% ABV Three Years Old

• August 2017: Old Overholt Bonded Straight Rye Whiskey

• August 2019: Old Overholt Straight Rye Whiskey 43% ABV (still 3 years old)

• August 2019: Old Overholt Bottled-in-Bond Straight Rye Whiskey (new wording)

• March 2020: Old Overholt Straight Rye Whiskey 114 Proof 4 Year Special Release

• April 2020: Old Overholt Straight Rye Whiskey 11 Year 46.3% ABV

• November 2020: Old Overholt Straight Rye Whiskey 114 Proof Aged 4 Years

• October 2021: Old Overholt Straight Rye Whiskey Aged 4 Years 43% ABV

• April 2022: A. Overholt Straight Rye Whiskey Aged 4 Years 47.5% ABV

• April 2023: Old Overholt Cask Strength Straight Rye Whiskey Aged 10 Years

• September 2023: Old Overholt Cask Strength Straight Rye Whiskey Aged 11 Years

Four of the Best Aged Rums being made in the United States

American rum is going through a bit of a renaissance and there are a growing number of high-quality aged rums being distilled right here in the US. Overall rum is the US’ fourth favorite spirit after vodka, whiskey, and tequila. According to the Distilled Spirits Council in 2023 about 57% of all rum sales were flavored or spiced and the top five brand made up about 77% of the US rum market. However, 10 years ago, the top brands made up more than 80% of the market which tells me that more people are slowly starting to shift their buying habits away from Bacardi and Captain Morgan towards more interesting rums.

If you are a dedicated rum fan or just looking to explore the rum world beyond the five major brands, here are four of the best aged rums being made in the US. And while there are many others, this is a good place to start.

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Bottle purchased at retail by EZdrinking.

Oxbow Rum Distillery

Barrel Aged Straight Rum 47.5% ABV, MSRP $40

Oxbow is one of a very small number of truly estate-distilled rums. This means that they control the entire process from planting the sugar cane in their rich Louisiana soil, to the processing of their own grade A molasses, and on to fermentation, distilling, aging and bottling.

Their barrel aged straight rum is aged for a minimum of two years in new charred oak barrels which helps to give it great depth and complexity. The run is a symphony of flavors with notes of dried fruit, baking spices, oak, vanilla and a very subtle perception of sweetness. Unlike some other rums this has absolutely zero sugar added after distillation and bottling. All of the perceived sweetness comes from their high-quality molasses and patient maturation in oak.

Oxbow has not taken any shortcuts with this rum and if you are looking for a new aged rum to enjoy or you are a fan of brandies such as cognac or armagnac there is a very good chance you will love this too. Enjoy Oxbow’s aged rum on neat, on the rocks or in your favorite rum cocktail.

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Bottle purchased at retail by EZdrinking.

Roulaison Distilling Co

Barrel Aged Reserve Rum 47% ABV, MSRP $40

Andrew Lohfeld and Patrick Hernandez founded Roulaison Distilling Co in 2016 as a tribute to the long history and culture of cane cultivation and rum making in Louisiana. Roulaison is a French term that refers to the cane harvest season that in Louisiana can span from September to January.

The rum starts with 100% Louisiana grade B molasses which is fermented in separate batches with two different yeast strains to create two distinct marks (rum bases that can be blended later to create a more complex flavor). The washes are then double pot distilled and some is then matured in used oak barrels at or below 110 proof. After about 3 years of aging, barrels of their rum marks are blended and their Barrel Aged Reserve rum is bottled at 47% ABV.

The rum is complex from the first aroma all the way through to the finish. The spirit and oak have combined to create a new unique whole that is greater than the sum of its parts with sweet notes of creme brulee, followed with floral notes, bright citrus, oak and a resonate earthiness.

If you enjoy higher proof spirits you can definitely enjoy this neat, but with a healthy splash of water the flavors widen and allow you more time to enjoy them. Roulaison’s Barrel Aged rum will also work nicely in cocktails such as a rum negroni, rum flip or a Test Pilot.

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Sample bottle provided by Maggie’s Farm Rum

Maggie’s Farm Rum

Queen’s Share Rum 57% ABV, MSRP $65

While Pittsburgh is not the most obvious location for a rum distillery, Maggie’s Farm has been distilling great spirits in the Steel City for more than a decade. All their rums begin by fermenting and pot distilling a wash of turbinado sugar. The Queen’s Share is made by collecting all of the tails from their regular runs until they have enough to redistill one more time. This oily spirit is then aged in oak barrels until it is ready and bottled at cask strength.

The rum is slightly coy with a light aroma of toasted oak, vanilla, and orange zest. However, on the palate there is an explosion of flavor with deep notes of leather, caramel, orange oil and baking spices. Overall, their Queen’s share is rich with an almost oily texture that makes it a truly regal spirit.

Enjoy this slowly either neat or with a small dash of water. But if you were to use it in a cocktail the Corn n' Oil is an obvious choice.

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Sample bottle provided by South Hollow Spirits

South Hollow Spirits

Twenty Boat Cask Finished Reserve Rum 42.5% ABV, MSRP $100

Founded in 2012, South Hollow Spirits is the first legal distillery on Cape Cod since prohibition. The name Twenty Boat comes from an incident in 1930 when 20 police and Coast Guard boats were dispatched to apprehend a bootlegger who evaded capture during a sting where 250 gallons of rum were confiscated and 10 other men arrested.

Twenty Boat rums begin by making a couple different marks by separately fermenting and distilling washes made from molasses and evaporated cane juice. After being double distilled in their 250-gallon pot still the marks are matured between two and three years in used chardonnay and ex-whiskey barrels. For the Reserve Rum a blend of their marks is selected and then finished in white or red port barrels to add complexity and a light sweetness.

Twenty Boat Reserve Rum is an elegant spirit that is simultaneously light in body but full of deep and dark flavors. The rum is packed full of dark and dried fruits, molasses, baking spices, roasted nuts and rounded out with a light oak character.

At 42.5% ABV this Reserve Rum dances across the tongue like sugar-plum fairies. The elements of oak and spirit are well integrated and it would not surprise me if South Hollow Spirits was using the French style of slow reduction, where the spirit is brought down to bottling strength over weeks or months rather than in a single day. This is definitely a rum to enjoy neat or with just a drop of water to further explore the depts of its flavor.

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Honorable Mention

Two of the earliest new American rum distilleries to launch at the beginning of the Craft Distillery boom were Privateer Rum in Ipswich, Massachusetts and Richland Rum in Brunswick, Georgia. Privateer sought to revive the long tradition of rum distilling in New England and Richland was the first estate rum produced in US in the 21st Century.

Privateer starts with grade A molasses imported from Guatemala which is fermented with their own special blend of yeasts. After fermentation the wash is first pot distilled and then distilled a second time in their hybrid still which allows them to engage or disengage plates in an attached column so they can create rums with varying levels of intensity which they can later blend or age to create their different rum profiles. If you are new to Privateer, try their New England Reserve Rum or their Bottled in Bond Rum.

Richland Rum grows their own sugar cane on the southeastern coast of Georgia. The cane is harvested, pressed and then lightly cooked into a cane syrup which removes some of the excess water, concentrates the cane flavors and creates new flavors from the caramelization process. The cane syrup is fermented and then double pot distilled. Their aged rums start out in toasted and then charred new oak barrels and are usually matured between four and five years for their “Classic” expression. While Richland now offers a variety of cask strength and finished rums, if you are new to their style start with their Classic Single Barrel Select Rum.