There are plenty of whiskey releases that come and go every year, most of them forgettable. Every now and then, though, a distillery puts something out that actually means something — both in the glass and beyond it. New Riff Distilling's latest Silver Grove release is one of those.
The Newport, Kentucky distillery has announced the dual release of its 6-year-old Silver Grove Straight Bourbon Whiskey and Silver Grove Straight Rye Whiskey. These are the oldest Silver Grove expressions the distillery has ever put out, and they're turning heads for more than just the age statement.
A Release Three Years in the Making
New Riff first launched the Silver Grove line back in 2023, and since then it's built a quiet but devoted following among serious whiskey drinkers who appreciate both quality and purpose. Each year's release has pushed things a little further, but this one feels like a real turning point.
Master Distiller Brian Sprance has been watching these particular barrels for years. "We've been really looking forward to releasing older age statements, and we're excited that this marks the first Silver Grove release aged 6 years," he said. "Over the years, our distilling team has followed these barrels closely and learned which flavor profiles really resonate with us."
That kind of patience is increasingly rare in the whiskey world, where the pressure to release product fast and often can push quality to the back seat. New Riff has never operated that way, and this release makes that philosophy clear.
What's Actually in the Bottle
Both expressions are bottled at barrel proof, which means what you're getting is the whiskey exactly as it came out of the barrel — nothing watered down, nothing softened for mass appeal.
The Silver Grove Straight Bourbon is bottled at 116.4 proof with a mashbill of 65% corn, 30% rye, and 5% malted barley. For those who know their way around a bourbon, that's a high-rye recipe, which tends to bring more spice and complexity than a traditional wheated bourbon. On the nose, this one opens up with apple blossom and orchard fruits, with subtle hints of apple brandy and baked apple working their way through. On the palate, apple fritter and candy apple lead the charge before a subtle baking spice kicks in. The finish is long and warm, with lingering notes of pecan and caramelized apple.
It's the kind of bourbon that rewards slow sipping. Pour it neat, give it a few minutes to breathe, and work through it. The layers keep coming.
The Silver Grove Straight Rye is bottled at 115 proof with a mashbill of 95% rye and 5% malted rye. That's about as rye-forward as it gets — a style that tends to appeal to drinkers who want something with real backbone. On the nose, candied orange, clove, and cinnamon come through right away, with citrusy and warming spice notes building on top of each other. The mouthfeel is creamy and surprisingly layered for a high-proof rye, with clove-studded orange, dark berries, and hints of toffee showing up on the palate. The finish lands on notes of oatmeal raisin and cookie dough — rich, warming, and satisfying.
Both of these are serious whiskeys, built for people who know what they're looking for.
Blending for Taste, Not Consistency
One thing worth understanding about what makes this release special is how New Riff approaches the blending process. A lot of big distilleries blend to hit a consistent flavor profile year after year — predictable, reliable, but rarely exciting. New Riff does the opposite.
"The barrels we selected for this release stood out with unique character and flavors we don't typically see — flavors that immediately excited us when we first tasted them," Sprance said. "We don't blend for consistency; we blend for taste, and this release offers something distinctive that we think whiskey drinkers will really enjoy."
That's a meaningful distinction. It means every Silver Grove release is going to be its own thing — shaped by the specific barrels that made the cut, not a formula designed to match last year's bottle. For collectors and serious drinkers, that's exactly what makes a release worth seeking out.
The Story Behind Silver Grove
To understand why this release matters, it helps to understand where the name comes from.
Silver Grove is a small city just outside Newport, Kentucky, and it's where New Riff chose to build a new barrel warehouse back in 2022. The decision was driven by practical needs — the distillery needed more rickhouse space to keep up with growing demand — but it opened the door to something more meaningful.
New Riff has a long history of investing in the communities around it, particularly in Newport and throughout Northern Kentucky. When the Silver Grove expansion came together, the distillery saw a chance to extend that same commitment to a new community. The Silver Grove Community Foundation, which works to improve quality of life and fund community-led projects in the city, became the beneficiary of every bottle sold.
Since the line launched in 2023, the proceeds from Silver Grove whiskey sales have totaled nearly $92,000 — a number that's hard to ignore when you consider this is a relatively limited annual release.
That money has already made a tangible difference. In 2024, New Riff partnered with the Silver Grove Community Foundation to dedicate a new park at Green Valley Pond. The project included multiple utility installations and a recreational trail around the pond, connecting to existing sidewalks and giving residents a real outdoor space to use. It's the kind of local improvement that doesn't make national headlines but genuinely changes day-to-day life for the people who live there.
New Riff President Mollie Lewis has spoken about how the Silver Grove expansion gave the distillery the chance to extend its philanthropic work beyond Newport — doing in a new community what it has long tried to do at home. The label design on each Silver Grove release also carries that history forward, paying homage to Greater Cincinnati's rich distilling heritage in a way that connects the past to what's being built now.
New Riff's Broader Reputation
For anyone not already familiar with New Riff, a little background goes a long way toward understanding why this release carries weight.
The distillery was founded in 2014 in Newport, Kentucky — right across the river from Cincinnati and squarely in bourbon country. From the beginning, New Riff committed to making whiskey the old-fashioned way: sour mash methods, bottled-in-bond standards, no shortcuts. The flagship product is a Bottled-in-Bond Kentucky Straight Bourbon that has become one of the most respected everyday bourbons on the market.
That reputation was cemented earlier this year when New Riff's flagship bourbon was named the World's Best Bourbon at the 2026 World Whiskies Awards — a recognition that puts it among the most acclaimed whiskeys made anywhere on the planet.
The distillery is fiercely independent and privately owned, which gives it the freedom to make decisions based on quality and community rather than quarterly earnings reports. That independence shows up in everything from how long they age their barrels to how they choose to give back.
New Riff also draws its water from a 100-foot private well that taps into an alluvial aquifer directly beneath the distillery — cold, clean, mineral-rich water that makes a real difference in the final product.
For visitors, the distillery offers a full experience through the Aquifer Tasting Room on the third floor, where the entire portfolio is available alongside rare and distillery-exclusive releases. The Riff Shop offers customizable gifting options and locally sourced goods for anyone looking to bring something home.
The private barrel selection program is also worth noting for serious enthusiasts — quarter, half, and full barrel picks with personalized labels, the kind of thing that turns a whiskey purchase into an actual experience.
Where and When to Get It
Both the Silver Grove Straight Bourbon Whiskey and the Silver Grove Straight Rye Whiskey go on sale Friday, March 13, exclusively at New Riff's gift shop in Newport. Each bottle is priced at $59.99.
That price point, for two barrel-proof whiskeys aged 6 years with this level of flavor development, is genuinely competitive. Comparable releases from other craft distilleries routinely push past $80 or $100, sometimes significantly higher. The fact that every purchase also directly supports community development in Silver Grove makes it an even easier decision for anyone on the fence.
Because this is a limited annual release and availability is exclusive to the gift shop, these bottles won't last long. The Silver Grove releases have sold well every year since 2023, and this one — with the oldest age statement yet and the momentum of New Riff's recent international recognition behind it — is likely to move fast.
Why This One Matters
There are a lot of whiskeys competing for attention and shelf space right now. The market is crowded, and it can be hard to know what's actually worth chasing versus what's just well-marketed.
The 2026 Silver Grove release earns attention on three separate fronts. First, the liquid itself is genuinely impressive — two barrel-proof expressions that have been aged long enough to develop real depth and complexity, selected specifically because the barrels stood out from everything else in the warehouse. Second, the distillery behind them has just been recognized as producing the best bourbon in the world, which puts the quality of their craft beyond debate. Third, buying these bottles means putting nearly $60 directly toward community improvement in a small Kentucky city that's genuinely benefiting from the partnership.
That combination — great whiskey, proven distillery, meaningful cause — is harder to find than it should be. When all three line up, it's worth paying attention.
The 2026 Silver Grove release is available starting March 13 at New Riff Distilling, 24 Distillery Way, Newport, Kentucky.
