William H Macy creates whiskey with Woody Creek

Actor William H Macy and Colorado distillery Woody Creek have collaborated on a limited edition 10-year-old bottled-in-bond rye whiskey.

For Woody Creek, William H Macy is much more than a celebrity spokesman. Fargo star Macy purchased a house in Basalt, Colorado, becoming neighbours with distillery founders Mark Kleckner and Patrick Scanlan.

When the distillery needed land to grow potatoes for its vodka, they turned to Macy, and the Academy Award-nominated actor has been working with the distiller ever since.

“This is not a celebrity play, a hired gun,” Kleckner said. “Bill’s been my neighbour up in Woody Creek since we founded the distillery. We’ve grown potatoes on his land for our vodka and gin. And the guy is a whiskey aficionado. He’s had a passion, the same passion we have.”

Kleckner said Macy is so familiar with the distillery that he could give tours, and after years of serving as the brand’s “spokesdude”, penning songs and starring in promotional videos for the distiller, he is finally releasing a whiskey with them.

William H Macy Reserve Straight Rye is a 10-year-old, bottled-in-bond whiskey made with a mashbill of 80% rye and 20% malted barley. 

Macy blind tasted numerous barrels at the distillery, saying he was relieved when other, more experienced tasters agreed with his selection. “My palate is getting more and more educated,” Macy said. “I’m like a 15-year-old to see my name on this bottle.”

The whiskey comes from eight barrels, and reflects Macy’s preferred profile, what he describes as sweeter, gentler, and peppery.

It is the oldest release from Woody Creek and the distiller’s first bottled-in-bond expression.

The release kicks off the distiller’s Barrel Select Program, and Kleckner says they will release more limited editions under the Macy Reserve label.

“I’m trying to push Bill toward a 100%, rye, because he’s the rye guy,” Kleckner said. “The fun thing about this is it’s been a business, but it’s also been our life. We can try new things and we can try different things. We’ll find that new whiskey and it’ll be different but it’ll be special.”

Macy celebrates Woody Creek’s ability to experiment with mashbills and different spirit types, saying he likes to explore the barrel house and ask questions.

As for his new whiskey, he is eager to share it with his Shameless castmates when they are together in Los Angeles. “Some of them don’t drink,” he said, “but the rest of them drink a lot.”

William H Macy Reserve Straight Rye is bottled at 50% ABV and listed at US$199.

It is available for purchase nationwide online, and at select retailers in Colorado and California, with expansion to New York set for 1 December.