Smokeye Hill's Blended Rye Takes Double Platinum — And Raises Some Important Questions
Colorado Springs doesn't exactly roll off the tongue when the conversation turns to great American rye whiskey. Kentucky and Indiana dominate that conversation, with Tennessee occasionally muscling in. But Smokeye Hill Whiskey, the family-owned operation quietly building a reputation at 6,100 feet above sea level, just earned a double platinum medal for its Barrel Proof Blended Rye — the kind of recognition that forces the broader whiskey world to pay attention to what's happening in the high-altitude Front Range. It's a significant moment not just for the brand, but for the way serious drinkers and competition judges alike are being asked to rethink the geography, the grain bill, and even the legal classification of great American rye.
The Brand Behind the Award
Smokeye Hill Whiskey is crafted by the family-owned Hazelwood Spirits Company and is rooted in heritage, its profile inspired by founder Blake Johns' passion for heirloom blue corn — a staple grain throughout the American Southwest. The name itself carries weight. Amidst the rugged landscapes of a renowned cattle ranch in Arizona lies the legendary Smokeye Hill. The company was founded by Blake Johns, whose family has owned the land around Smokeye Hill for generations.
The Prohibition-era backstory that Johns leans into is colorful and specific. The company notes that "During the era of American Prohibition (1920-1933), when the production and consumption of alcohol were outlawed, Smokeye Hill and its surroundings emerged as a secluded haven for bootleggers." The moonshiners there crafted and distributed illicit spirits, attracting a clientele that reportedly extended to Hollywood. Legend has it that a Prohibition agent with ties to the area would discreetly tip off the community about impending raids, and in response, the moonshiners tied small bells to mules as a warning system, so that when lawmen rounded the bend, they were greeted by an innocent chorus of bells. It's a hell of a founding story — and one that Johns has translated into a genuine production philosophy: operate outside convention, but do it with purpose.
The brand describes itself as an award-winning premium bourbon inspired by the spirit of the American Southwest, and that Southwest identity is more than marketing. Cultivated and cherished for thousands of years by Indigenous Peoples and Tribes of the southwestern United States, blue corn is known as a symbol of strength and resiliency. Johns incorporated it into his proprietary mash bill not as a gimmick, but as a deliberate regional signature — and competition judges have rewarded the decision repeatedly.
How the Double Platinum Was Earned
The Smokeye Hill Barrel Proof Bourbon was voted Bourbon of the Year at the 2024 ASCOT Awards and awarded Double Platinum in 2025. Those prior accolades on the bourbon side established Smokeye Hill's credibility with serious palates before the rye ever entered the picture. The Barrel Proof Bourbon was named the 2024 ASCOT Bourbon of the Year and Best Small Batch Bourbon of the Year, and also took home a Double Gold Medal Winner at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2024. That's two of the most respected competitions in American spirits, and the double platinum recognition for the blended rye represents a continuation of that trajectory rather than a one-off lucky pull.
The ASCOT Awards carry particular significance in the American spirits community. The competition is led by Fred Minnick, a Wall Street Journal best-selling author, spirits journalist, and professional taster. Judging is blind and involves a prestigious panel of nationally recognized distilled spirits judges, each selected for their distinct and trusted palate. Winning at a blind competition run by judges of that caliber is a meaningful credential — it means the whiskey in the glass earns the score before anyone reads the label.
What's Actually in the Bottle
The Mash Bill: Blue Corn Makes Its Rye Debut
The Smokeye Hill Barrel Proof Rye Whiskey launched as the first rye whiskey made with blue corn on the market. That's a genuine first in a category not known for grain bill innovation. The whiskey is crafted from a proprietary four-grain mashbill of rye, heirloom blue corn, yellow corn, and malted barley. Anyone who has tasted Smokeye Hill's bourbon will recognize the architectural logic: the heirloom blue corn component serves as the brand's signature thread, woven through both expressions to deliver what Johns calls the Smokeye Hill profile.
Prized for many centuries in the Southwest, heirloom blue corn adds a distinct floral richness, making for an altogether exceptional and unique character. In a rye context, where the dominant grain typically delivers assertive spice and sometimes a sharp, almost astringent grain note, the blue corn softens the edges. It introduces sweetness, body, and that distinctive floral quality without blunting rye's essential character. The result, at least conceptually, is a rye that feels more approachable at barrel proof than a standard high-rye expression would at the same proof point.
The Production Process: Indiana Distillate, Colorado Maturation
Smokeye Hill's production model is unconventional and worth understanding in detail. The company receives the raw, unaged distillate and barrels it themselves in Colorado Springs, where it matures for a minimum of five years before bottling. The whiskey is produced in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, at what is presumably Ross & Squibb Distillery, formerly known as MGP. But the critical distinction the brand and its defenders make is that their distilling partner is not a common sourcing arrangement — it's contract distilled using heritage blue corn, which comprises more than 50% of a ryed bourbon mashbill.
The company worked closely with its trusted partners to develop a one-of-a-kind mash bill, custom distilled exclusively for Smokeye Hill. The raw white dog is then trucked to Colorado, where it enters wood in Colorado Springs. It is barreled and matured at 6,100 feet in 30-gallon American white oak casks charred to Nos. 2, 3, and 4 for added depth, complexity, and character.
The reason for those specific char levels is intentional. Since the brand utilizes numerous barrel chars in a very specific way to achieve the signature Smokeye Hill flavor, they dump 10 to 13 barrels at a time, which works best for their mash bill. The small-batch approach is baked directly into the production math — not just a marketing claim. The limited-edition rye release includes fewer than 1,400 cases and stays true to the company's small-batch roots.
High-Altitude Aging: The Colorado Advantage
The altitude plays a more active role in the maturation than most consumers realize. Colorado's fluctuating climate naturally accelerates the aging process, as the barrels expand and contract with hot summers and cold winters, unlocking layers of depth and character. In the pursuit of world-class whiskey, Colorado's unique environment provides optimal aging — significant hot and cold cycles provide incredible integration with the barrel staves, expanding and contracting for every last drop of flavor.
This thermal cycling effect is the same mechanism that makes Kentucky summers so important to bourbon maturation, amplified by the dramatic seasonal swings of the southern Rockies. A barrel stored in Colorado Springs doesn't just sit — it breathes. The wood opens and closes with temperature, pulling the spirit deep into the char and drawing it back out again, each cycle extracting vanillin, caramel compounds, and tannins from the wood. The 30-gallon barrel format, smaller than the standard 53-gallon, increases the wood-to-spirit ratio and speeds this process further. Five years at altitude in a smaller barrel delivers a maturation profile that could easily take seven or more years in a standard Kentucky rickhouse.
Tasting Notes: What the Double Platinum Actually Tastes Like
The flavor profile of the Barrel Proof Blended Rye reflects everything the production process is designed to create. On the nose, the whiskey delivers butterscotch, honey, warm spice, and dried fig. On the palate, it's full-bodied with caramel, cinnamon baking spice, dried apricot, sweet vanilla, toasted oak, and a touch of pepper. The finish is long and oily, with honeyed oak, warming spice, and black tea.
Bottled at barrel proof and left unfiltered, this rye opens with dried apricot, cinnamon, and toasted oak then yields to layers of vanilla, honey, and black tea. The barrel proof comes in hot — the final proof of the Smokeye Hill Barrel Proof Rye varies slightly by batch, ranging from 131.2 to 131.7. That's roughly 65.6 to 65.85% ABV, which puts it firmly in the territory of serious barrel proof expressions like Stagg, Wild Turkey Rare Breed, and other cask-strength American whiskeys that command premium shelf placement and loyal followings.
The long, oily finish is worth dwelling on. It suggests a level of barrel extraction and grain richness that separates it from thinner, lighter-bodied ryes. The black tea note — astringent without being harsh, tannic but not bitter — is a common signature of well-aged rye matured in heavily charred wood. Combined with the sweetness that the blue corn component contributes, the overall profile is one where power and approachability share the same pour.
The Blended Rye Debate: A Labeling Storm in a Whiskey Glass
The award is great news. The labeling situation surrounding the rye is considerably murkier, and some voices in the whiskey press have pushed back hard. The central issue comes down to what legally constitutes a "straight rye whiskey" versus a "blended rye whiskey," and why that distinction matters far more than it might seem at first.
According to Smokeye Hill Founder Blake Johns, "a percentage of our flagship bourbon is blended in, ensuring that the signature Smokeye Hill profile shines through." Since it contains a component that is not a straight rye whiskey, that would make this product a blended rye whiskey. On the brand's website, the rye is referred to as "Smokeye Hill Barrel Proof Blended Rye Whiskey." But on the packaging received and the label depicted in Smokeye Hill marketing materials, the product is clearly labeled a "Straight Rye Whiskey" — a designation the inclusion of even a little bourbon in the blend should preclude.
Since bourbon has been blended in, the whiskey could accurately be classified as "A Blend of Straight Whiskeys," "Blended Whiskey," or "Blended Rye Whiskey." But a Straight Rye Whiskey, it is not. The TTB, which governs alcohol labeling in the United States, has specific definitions for these categories, and they are not interchangeable. A straight rye must be made from a mash of at least 51% rye, distilled to no more than 160 proof, entered into the barrel at no more than 125 proof, and — critically — cannot contain any added whiskey of a different type. Once bourbon enters the equation, the "straight" designation is legally off the table.
To be fair to Smokeye Hill, this kind of labeling inconsistency is not unique in the craft spirits space, and the brand's own website uses the correct "blended rye" designation. The disconnect between physical label and web copy may reflect a product in transition, potentially moving toward label correction. Regardless, the double platinum was awarded to the liquid in the glass, not the words on the bottle — and by all accounts, the liquid earns the recognition.
The Bigger Picture: Colorado as a Whiskey State
Smokeye Hill's success in competition is part of a broader narrative about Colorado's emergence as a serious player in American whiskey. The state's extreme diurnal temperature swings, low humidity, and high altitude combine to create aging conditions that produce whiskey on an accelerated timeline without sacrificing depth or complexity. Distilleries and aging operations throughout the state have been leveraging this for years, and competition results like Smokeye Hill's are beginning to validate the thesis at the national level.
The brand's blue corn mash bill was influenced by Arizona, contract distilled to their exacting requirements, and then barreled, aged, and bottled in Colorado Springs. Somewhere between the desert heat and alpine cool, they strike the perfect balance. It's a tri-state whiskey in a very real sense — Arizona by heritage, Indiana by distillation, Colorado by maturation — and the fact that it's winning double platinum awards suggests that the geography of American whiskey production is more complicated, and more interesting, than a simple Kentucky-versus-everywhere-else framework would suggest.
Smokeye Hill is a Colorado-based producer that made a semi-viral splash in 2024 with their barrel proof bourbon with blue corn in the mashbill. That early buzz generated real sales momentum and critical attention, and the brand has clearly used that window well, moving quickly into rye while the bourbon's critical recognition was still fresh. The strategy is sound: establish a brand identity and flavor signature with bourbon, then extend it into a new category rather than simply releasing more of the same.
Awards Trail and Industry Trajectory
From Bourbon of the Year to Rye Contender in Under Two Years
The speed of Smokeye Hill's rise in competition circles is notable. The brand broke new ground with its first rye whiskey in October 2025, and the double platinum recognition for that expression followed quickly. For a brand that only launched its flagship bourbon in May 2024, the award accumulation in roughly eighteen months is remarkable. Most craft producers spend years quietly refining a single expression before entering competition. Smokeye Hill entered the fray immediately, and the results have been consistently strong.
Smokeye Hill has earned national acclaim, with its Barrel Proof Bourbon named 2024 ASCOT Bourbon of the Year and Best Small Batch Bourbon of the Year, along with a Double Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. Those are two of the most credible blind competition systems in American spirits, and winning at both within the same calendar year is not a statistical fluke. It suggests that the Hazelwood Spirits Company's approach — custom mash bill, high-altitude maturation, small barrel format, non-chill filtration — is producing whiskey that resonates with trained palates in a meaningful and repeatable way.
Availability and Pricing
The Barrel Proof Rye is available for a suggested retail price of $89.99 in select stores across Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Nevada, Washington, and Texas, with nationwide online availability through Seelbach's, Spirits Network, and Keg N Bottle. At that price point, positioned just above the $79.99 MSRP of the Barrel Proof Bourbon, Smokeye Hill is clearly playing in the serious craft premium segment — not the mass market, but also not the ultra-luxury allocated tier where bottles disappear before most consumers ever see them.
For a limited release capped at fewer than 1,400 cases nationwide, the $89.99 price tag is arguably underpriced given the award recognition and the production constraints. That math could change quickly if demand continues to build, particularly as the double platinum news circulates through enthusiast communities. Buyers in Colorado, Arizona, and Texas — where the Smokeye Hill story resonates most naturally with regional identity — would be well-served to move sooner rather than later.
What Blake Johns Is Actually Building
According to Smokeye Hill Founder Blake Johns, "Our Barrel Proof Rye spends five years aging to develop depth and complexity, before a percentage of our flagship bourbon is blended in, ensuring that the signature Smokeye Hill profile shines through." That philosophy — letting a single backbone spirit age to full development before introducing a complementary blending component — is closer to the Scottish blending tradition than the standard American approach of simply dumping barrels and proofing down. It's a measured, intentional process that reflects a founder who has thought carefully about what he's trying to make, not just what will sell.
Johns has noted that the rye, like the bourbons, "is about creating something fresh and distinct while honoring the craftsmanship and character of our Southwestern heritage." Heritage and innovation are easy words to put on a marketing deck. Johns backs them up with specific production decisions: the heirloom blue corn, the Colorado aging, the multi-char barrel approach, the non-chill filtration at barrel proof. Each decision has a technical justification and a cultural reference point, and together they produce a house style that is genuinely recognizable — you'd know a Smokeye Hill whiskey in a blind lineup.
The company, crafted by the family-owned Hazelwood Spirits Company, is rooted in heritage, evident in the profile that was inspired by Founder Blake Johns' passion for heirloom blue corn, a staple grain in the southwest. That family-ownership structure matters in a whiskey landscape increasingly dominated by large conglomerates acquiring promising craft brands almost as soon as they gain traction. Smokeye Hill, for now, remains an independent operation building toward its own vision rather than a corporate exit strategy.
For the Enthusiast: Should You Buy It?
The double platinum designation, set against the labeling controversy, sets up an interesting consumer decision. If you're the kind of drinker who cares deeply about regulatory categories and label accuracy, the "straight rye" designation on physical bottles creates a legitimate grievance. You're entitled to know exactly what you're buying, and the TTB's category definitions exist precisely because they communicate meaningful information about production method.
But if you're the kind of drinker who evaluates whiskey by what's in the glass — by whether a serious, blind judging panel found it to be among the best in its category — then the case for purchasing is strong. Driven by rye's bold spice and layered with heirloom blue corn, yellow corn, and malted barley, the mash bill delivers remarkable depth. Bottled at barrel proof and left unfiltered, the whiskey opens with dried apricot, cinnamon, and toasted oak, then yields to layers of vanilla, honey, and black tea. Crafted with a touch of Smokeye Hill Barrel Proof Bourbon to achieve the signature flavor, this rye is best savored slowly, offering rugged warmth, an enduring finish, and the unmistakable taste of Smokeye Hill.
The expression was aged for five years in 30-gallon American oak casks across a combination of numbers 2, 3, and 4 char levels. Barrel proofs vary batch to batch across a fairly tight range from 131.2 to 131.7. That consistency in proof across batches — rare in true barrel proof releases — suggests a level of production discipline that reflects well on the operation. Most barrel proof releases see wider variance; the tight range here implies careful barrel selection and a genuine commitment to hitting the intended target.
At nearly 66% ABV, this isn't a session pour. Add a few drops of room-temperature water and give it five minutes in the glass before the first sip. Let the nose develop. Rye at high proof tends to mask its more subtle notes until the ethanol settles — the dried apricot and black tea that reviewers have noted are there, but they need room to breathe. Treat it like a conversation, not a shot.
A Rising Western Brand in a Crowded Category
The double platinum for Smokeye Hill's Barrel Proof Blended Rye lands at a moment when the American rye category is genuinely competitive and genuinely exciting. Rye is no longer defined by a single profile. There are classic, spice-forward examples built on high-rye mash bills, softer styles that lean into sweetness and texture, and an increasing number of bottles shaped by finishing, blending, or unusual grain recipes. Smokeye Hill falls firmly into that last group — unusual grain recipe, deliberate blending, and a maturation environment unlike anything in the traditional rye heartland.
Rye whiskey's resurgence isn't a passing trend. It feels more like a return to form, and a reminder of just how versatile the style really is. For years, it sat just behind bourbon in the American whiskey conversation. Now, it's carving out its own space again. Smokeye Hill's timing is right, their execution is strong, and the accolades are real. Whether the brand resolves its labeling questions and whether it can maintain quality as recognition drives demand are the two outstanding questions that will define the next chapter.
For now, Blake Johns and the Hazelwood Spirits Company have done what very few new operations manage in their first full year of existence: they've built a recognizable house style, earned top-tier competitive recognition in two different whiskey categories, and created something with a genuine sense of place — even if that place happens to be spread across three states, one legendary Arizona cattle ranch, and a Colorado Springs rickhouse sitting a mile and a quarter above sea level.
