In the fall of 2014, Arntz brothers David and John were cleaning up the family property at Roberts, Oregon, that had been sold and then re-acquired. During this process they happened to discover their late father's last rye harvest that was stored in a remote granary. Realizing that this rye seed was a strain that had been grown landlocked on the property since homesteaders had settled in the area in the early 1900's the brothers decided to plant the seeds to see if they would still grow. AND GROW THEY DID! David and John have made a commitment to bring this unique grain back into production by reclaiming, acre by acre, abandoned farmland that had become overrun with sagebrush and juniper.

The grain is unique: It has been grown landlocked on property for over 100 years and during that time has seen only sun, dirt and rainwater; there has never been any irrigation, fertilizer or pesticide that has come into contact with the grain. The harvested grains are smaller than commercial rye and the yield per acre, due to the alkaline soil and dry-land farming method, is a fraction of commercial production. This gives the grain an unmatched intensity of flavor.

Seeing that rye whiskey would be the best use of this new venture, the brothers engaged Oregon Spirit Distillers (whose whiskeys are nationally recognized) to mash, distill, barrel and age their grain. To add to the uniqueness of this whiskey, Oregon Spirit uses only water from the property to blend the spirit for barreling and to determine the final proofage.

Please enjoy this rare and masterfully-crafted rye whiskey that brings forth the soil, water and heritage grain from Alkali Flat at Roberts, Oregon.