Utah’s High West Launches First In-House Bonded Whiskey

Utah’s High West made a name for itself as a company that was refreshingly transparent about its sourced whiskeys at a time when many whiskey nerds had a fever-pitch obsession with the allegedly deceptive practices of Non-Distiller Producers. However, becoming a fan favorite on the basis of creative blending and transparency had the perhaps unintended effect of making those same nerds forget the other significant point of High West: it was a trailblazer of the practice of building a brand with sourced whiskeys while working on a distillery, then navigating the transition to in-house production.

Now High West has unveiled their first in-house bottled in bond whiskey, joining the swelling ranks of small producers with bonded expressions. This is a four year old bonded rye, made from a mash bill of 80% rye and 20% malted rye, and offered at $79.99 a bottle.