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Feature
Old Overholt’s enduring appeal
Steeped in history, bartender favourite Old Overholt rye whiskey remains relevant thanks to its use in cocktails.
*This feature was originally published in the May 2024 issue of The Spirits Business magazine.
Though Old Overholt has been around for centuries – the oldest enduring American rye, sold without interruption since 1810 – to understand its modern appeal, you need only go back 30 years. Rye was revitalised by the cocktail renaissance of the late 1990s and early 2000s, when industrious bartenders turned to the whiskey in an effort to maximise flavour and minimise cost.
But their options were limited. Overholt, with its history and Pennsylvania roots, was an appealing rye-forward expression of the style. “It has been part of the back bar in this country for 200 years, as opposed to most of the ryes that exist now that have only been around for 10 or less,” says Overholt historian Sam Komlenic.
With that historical precedence, referenced in cocktail books and recipes, and a favourable quality-to-price quotient, it became an easy choice for bartenders. “It’s been part of bar culture since its inception,” says Bradford Lawrence, Beam Suntory associate brand manager – heritage & prestige. Lawrence has a bartending background, and has been with Beam since 2016. “As new bartenders are coming through the ranks, it’s this stalwart brand.”
Egalitarian feel
Beam Suntory (now Suntory Global Spirits) bought Old Overholt in 1987, moving production from Pennsylvania to Kentucky in 1993. It has had a firm place behind the bar and in classic whiskey cocktails ever since. “It has this egalitarian feel to it,” Lawrence says. “It was consistent quality, consistent price, and reliable.”
In New York’s East Village, it is part of the split base in the Perfect Old Fashioned at Romeo’s. “It’s become the go-to rye for everybody’s well drinks,” co-owner Evan Hawkins says, referring to cocktails that are always in high demand. “As a bar owner or manager, when you find those types of products, you hold on to them for as long as possible because they’re an asset – something you can always make a good drink out of, and don’t break the bank.”
Tim Heuisler remembers serving Overholt neat and in cocktails at Time, a whiskey bar in Philadelphia, calling it a no-brainer, given its history and his own ties to the state. “It was a point of pride to pour a Pennsylvania-born product,” he says. “It was also cool, because not everybody knew it, even though they probably should have.”
In this way, Overholt became a calling-card whiskey for bartenders, both when making drinks and ordering them. “You walk into certain bars and order a shot of Old Overholt, the bartenders usually give you a nod of approval, they’re like: ‘Oh, so where do you work?’” Heuisler says. After 13 years in hospitality, he joined Beam’s American whiskey team in 2017, and now serves as global small batch brand ambassador.
What’s old is new
In recent years, Beam has invested in Overholt’s history, working with West Overton Village & Museum to preserve the legacy of Abraham Overholt and the whiskey he created. In tandem with those efforts, it has changed the whiskey to make it more historically representative and cocktail-friendly. In 2019, the core Old Overholt straight rye went from 40% to 43% ABV, dropped chill filtration, and received a bump in age from three to four years. All of these moves were consistent with historical recipes. The year before, the brand restored a bonded version to its lineup after one had been discontinued in the early 1960s. Just as Heuisler connected with the brand in Philadelphia, the higher-proof whiskey is resonating with bartenders in Pittsburgh.
“You go to any big reputable cocktail bar in the city of Pittsburgh, and Old Overholt Bonded now is there as well, probably,” says Cat Cannon, co-founder of Pittsburgh’s Mindful Hospitality Group. Her business partner Cecil Usher agrees that there is excitement around the brand in the city.
“We love our bonded whiskeys here,” he says. “The mixability of it – at that proof it has this really great versatility. I can make people who don’t like whiskey like it thanks to a cocktail.”
The changes have been subtle, and in some cases quiet, but Old Overholt remains the only 100% rye property in the Beam portfolio. There has been an effort to expand the brand in ways that honour its history and the bartending community that has embraced it.
“It’s all been step by step, very deliberate to put a better product behind the bar,” Heuisler says. “It was all very intentional to bring back this bigger-bodied, more robust rye whiskey.”
Released in April, Overholt’s latest whiskey once again strikes a balance between historical homage and cocktail application.
A Overholt has a Monongahela mash of 80% rye and 20% malted barley, and though it is still made in Kentucky, it is closer to what Abraham Overholt would have been making in Pennsylvania.
“I have helped Beam Suntory understand what this product used to be,” Komlenic says. “They know what it is now, but they did not always understand what it used to be. I give them a lot of credit for the innovation that they’ve brought to this brand in recent years. That’s something that the bartending community appreciates as well.”
Each change and addition has been authentic to the brand’s DNA and story, all while keeping the bartender in mind. “Whenever we’re designing liquid for the Overholt portfolio, we have a wide variety of consumers to consider, and the bartender is a major factor in that,” Lawrence says. “We can bring back this 100-proof bonded expression, because we know that our number-one fan – the trade, and the bartenders – will really appreciate it because we’re doing it right.”
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