New Riff Distillery:
Bottled in Bond. Non-Chill Filtered. Nothing to Hide.
Newport, Kentucky. Every whiskey aged at least four years, bottled at 100 proof minimum, single distillery, non-chill filtered. High-rye bourbon, malted rye, heritage grain wheat, American single malt, and sherry cask finishes. New Riff doesn't cut corners and it shows in the glass.
Shop New Riff Bourbon → Shop Sherry Cask RyeWhat "Bottled in Bond" Actually Means and Why It Matters
Which New Riff Is Right for You?
The Core New Riff Lineup
Four core expressions, all Bottled in Bond, all non-chill filtered. The foundation of the New Riff range.
New Riff Kentucky Straight Bourbon
The expression that put New Riff on the map and for good reason. A high-rye mash bill (30%) at Bottled in Bond standards: minimum 4 years, 100 proof, non-chill filtered. Vanilla, caramel, and rye spice in equal balance, with a full-bodied, oily texture that chill filtration would destroy. The most honest bourbon at this price point in Kentucky. If you haven't tried New Riff, start here.
Shop BiB Bourbon →New Riff Single Barrel Bourbon
Everything the BiB bourbon offers but drawn from a single barrel, which means each bottling is slightly different from the last. Deeper caramel, more pronounced oak, and the unique character of one specific barrel's position in the warehouse and its individual aging journey. The move when you want the same BiB quality with more depth and one-of-a-kind variation.
Shop Single Barrel Bourbon →New Riff Kentucky Straight Rye
A high-rye mash bill applied to straight rye whiskey at Bottled in Bond standards. The result is assertive, structured, and deeply flavorful, bold grain spice, dried herbs, cracked pepper, and a long warm finish with genuine backbone. One of the best-value craft rye whiskeys in the country, and the reason New Riff's rye program is as respected as its bourbon lineup.
Shop Kentucky Rye →New Riff Single Barrel Rye
The single barrel version of New Riff's rye, one barrel, full character, no blending. Each bottling carries the specific signature of that individual barrel: more or less spice, different oak integration, unique aromatic depth. The natural choice for rye drinkers who want every variable locked in to one provenance and one barrel's story.
Shop Single Barrel Rye →Extended Age, 8 Year Expressions
Twice the minimum aging requirement. Both the bourbon and rye at 8 years deliver something the 4-year simply can't.
New Riff 8 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon
Eight years in new charred oak transforms New Riff's high-rye bourbon into something more layered and evolved, deeper caramel, richer oak integration, dried fruit, and a complexity that takes time to appreciate. The four-year BiB is excellent; the 8-year is what happens when you give the same recipe twice as long to develop. The best New Riff for slow, deliberate sipping.
Shop 8yr Bourbon →New Riff 8 Year Kentucky Straight Rye
Eight years on a rye whiskey mash bill produces something genuinely rare in American whiskey, the grain's natural spice and structure balanced by years of oak-derived caramel, dried fruit, and warm complexity. Most rye whiskeys are released young; the 8-year New Riff demonstrates what patient aging does to the category. For serious rye drinkers, this is a benchmark.
Shop 8yr Rye →New Riff 6 Year Malted Rye
A malted rye whiskey, using rye that has been malted in the same way barley is malted for Scotch production. The malting process unlocks different enzyme activity and flavor compounds than standard rye, producing a whiskey with more cereal character, more texture, and a depth that approaches the world of malt whisky. The expression that most directly bridges Kentucky craft distilling and Scottish tradition.
Shop 6yr Malted Rye →New Riff Winter Whiskey
A seasonal bourbon release from New Riff built around the character of colder Kentucky winters, the season when the whiskey in barrel contracts into the wood, drawing flavor from the deepest layers of char. Warm baking spices, dark caramel, dried fruit, and the structural richness that winter warehousing produces. The most festive expression in the New Riff portfolio.
Shop Winter Whiskey →New Riff's Most Distinctive Expressions
Beyond bourbon and rye, three expressions that show the range of what New Riff is willing to attempt. Each one pushes into territory most Kentucky distilleries never touch.
Sour Mash Single Malt
A Kentucky single malt whiskey, 100% malted barley, sour mash fermentation, aged in new charred American oak. Not Scottish, not Irish, a genuinely American take on single malt that shows what New Riff's distillery is capable of beyond corn and rye. Cereal character, dried fruit, floral notes, and a complexity that surprises. The most Scotch-adjacent expression in the lineup.
Shop Sour Mash Single Malt →Sherry Cask Finish Malted Rye
A malted rye whiskey finished in sherry casks, combining New Riff's malted grain philosophy with the cask finishing technique that defines great Speyside Scotch. The result is a genuinely bridge expression: American grain character and spice, softened and enriched by sherry-cask dried fruit, chocolate, and warmth. The most natural gateway from New Riff into the world of Scotch.
Shop Sherry Cask Malted Rye →Red Turkey Wheat Bourbon
Made with Red Turkey Winter Wheat, a heritage grain variety with roots in 19th century American farming. Where most wheat bourbons use standard soft red winter wheat, Red Turkey delivers more grain character, more texture, and a depth that reflects genuine agricultural provenance. The most historically rooted expression New Riff makes, and a genuinely different drinking experience from standard wheated bourbon.
Shop Red Turkey Wheat Bourbon →New Riff Bourbon Barreled Kentucky Wild Gin
Wild-foraged botanicals, rested in bourbon barrels. New Riff's Kentucky Wild Gin brings the same craft philosophy to gin, juniper backbone with floral and citrus character, softened by time in bourbon casks. The most interesting gin for whiskey drinkers who want something they haven't had before.
Shop Kentucky Wild Gin →Compare Every New Riff Expression
| Expression | Type | Age | BiB? | Best For | Shop |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BiB Kentucky Straight Bourbon | High-Rye Bourbon | 4yr+ | ✓ | Everyday — the benchmark | Buy → |
| Single Barrel Bourbon | Single Barrel Bourbon | 4yr+ | ✓ | Unique variation, depth | Buy → |
| 8 Year Bourbon | Aged Bourbon | 8yr | ✓ | Slow sipper, maximum oak | Buy → |
| Kentucky Straight Rye | Rye Whiskey | 4yr+ | ✓ | Cocktails, rye lovers | Buy → |
| Single Barrel Rye | Single Barrel Rye | 4yr+ | ✓ | Single provenance rye | Buy → |
| 8 Year Rye | Aged Rye | 8yr | ✓ | Best rye for sipping | Buy → |
| 6yr Malted Rye | Malted Rye | 6yr | ✓ | Scotch crossover — malt character | Buy → |
| Sherry Cask Malted Rye | Malted Rye · Sherry Finish | — | ✓ | Scotch lovers, bridge expression | Buy → |
| Sour Mash Single Malt | American Single Malt | — | ✓ | Scotch enthusiasts, adventurous | Buy → |
| Red Turkey Wheat Bourbon | Heritage Wheat Bourbon | — | ✓ | Unusual grain, collectors | Buy → |
The New Riff Story: A Retailer Who Became a Distiller
Ken Lewis spent decades as one of Kentucky's most respected liquor retailers before founding New Riff Distillery in Newport, Kentucky in 2014. As a retailer, Lewis had spent years watching what separated great craft whiskey from the mass-produced mainstream and when he decided to build a distillery, he built it around the standards he'd come to believe in most: Bottled in Bond, non-chill filtration, and self-distillation without compromise.
Newport sits across the Ohio River from Cincinnati, just outside the traditional Kentucky bourbon corridor. New Riff's decision to locate there, rather than in the established Bardstown or Louisville markets, was deliberate: a fresh geography for a genuinely fresh approach. The distillery uses a high-rye mash bill across its bourbon range, a choice that gives New Riff's expressions their signature structured, spicy character and distinguishes them from the sweeter, lower-rye bourbons that dominate the mainstream market.
In its early years, New Riff sourced aged whiskey under the O.K.I. brand while waiting for its own distillate to mature. Since the release of its own aged expressions, the distillery has been entirely self-distilled and the O.K.I. brand was separated and relaunched independently in 2020. Today, New Riff is one of only a handful of American craft distilleries with distribution in all 50 states, a testament to the quality of what the Newport distillery has built since its founding.
Every New Riff expression, Bottled in Bond, non-chill filtered, self-distilled. All in stock.
Shop New Riff →3 New Riff Cocktails Worth Making Tonight
New Riff's high-rye, full-proof character makes it an exceptional cocktail bourbon. These three put it to work.
New Riff Old Fashioned
- 2 oz New Riff BiB Bourbon
- ½ tsp demerara simple syrup
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters · 1 dash Regan's orange bitters
- Large ice cube · Orange peel to express & garnish
Combine syrup and bitters in a rocks glass. Add New Riff and ice, stir 20–25 times until chilled. Express orange peel over the glass. New Riff's high-rye mash bill gives the Old Fashioned structural backbone and spice, the result is a drier, more complex cocktail than you get with standard sweet-heavy bourbons. The full 100 proof holds up beautifully through the dilution of stirring.
Make it with New Riff BiB Bourbon →New Riff Manhattan
- 2 oz New Riff Kentucky Straight Rye
- 1 oz sweet vermouth
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- Cherry or lemon twist to garnish
Stir rye, vermouth, and bitters with ice for 30 seconds. Strain into a chilled coupe. New Riff's rye, Bottled in Bond, non-chill filtered, full of grain spice and structure, cuts through sweet vermouth with authority. The result is a Manhattan with genuine presence, not a cloying sweetness. One of the best bottles in the $30–50 range for a serious Manhattan.
Make it with New Riff Rye →Rye & Ginger (The Simple Best)
- 2 oz New Riff Kentucky Straight Rye
- Ginger ale or ginger beer to top
- Ice · Lime wedge to squeeze & garnish
Build over ice in a highball glass. Add rye, top with ginger, squeeze the lime and drop it in. The Rye & Ginger is deceptively simple and seriously underrated, New Riff's full-proof, non-chill-filtered rye brings enough spice and character to make this a genuine drink rather than a throwaway long. The high rye percentage gives the ginger a natural pairing that lower-rye bourbons can't match.
Make it with New Riff Rye →New Riff Distillery, Frequently Asked Questions
Does New Riff distill their own bourbon?
Yes, 100%. New Riff is entirely self-distilled at their Newport, Kentucky facility. In its early years, the distillery released sourced whiskey under the O.K.I. brand while waiting for its own distillate to mature. Since those bottles hit their age statements, New Riff has released exclusively its own production. O.K.I. was subsequently separated and relaunched as an independent brand in 2020.
What does Bottled in Bond mean for New Riff?
Every New Riff whiskey is Bottled in Bond, meaning it meets the requirements of the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897: aged a minimum of 4 years, bottled at exactly 100 proof (or higher), produced at a single distillery in a single distillation season. Combined with New Riff's non-chill filtration policy, every expression is as transparent and unadulterated as American whiskey can legally be.
What makes New Riff's bourbon different from other Kentucky bourbons?
Three things: high-rye mash bill (30% rye vs. the industry standard 10–15%), Bottled in Bond standards on every expression, and non-chill filtration without exception. Most bourbons strip natural oils during chill filtration to ensure consistent appearance in cold temperatures. New Riff doesn't, which means the texture, mouthfeel, and full flavor compounds remain in the bottle.
What is the New Riff Sour Mash Single Malt?
The Sour Mash Single Malt is a 100% malted barley whiskey distilled using sour mash fermentation and aged in new charred American oak. It's a genuinely American take on the single malt tradition, not Scottish, not Irish, but built on the same malted barley foundation while applying Kentucky production methods. The most Scotch-adjacent expression in the New Riff lineup and a must-try for Scotch enthusiasts exploring American whiskey.
Is New Riff available nationwide?
Yes — as of early 2025, New Riff is one of the very few craft bourbon distilleries with distribution in all 50 states. For buyers outside Kentucky, LoveScotch ships the full New Riff lineup direct.
What is the New Riff Sherry Cask Malted Rye?
The Sherry Cask Malted Rye is a malted rye whiskey (using malted rye grain rather than standard rye) finished in sherry casks, combining New Riff's malted grain philosophy with the cask finishing technique central to great Speyside Scotch. The result bridges American craft whiskey and Scottish tradition: rye spice, malt character, dried fruit from the sherry, and a warm, complex finish. The best New Riff for Scotch lovers.
Love New Riff's Transparency & Craft? Scotch Built the Same Standards.
New Riff's founding principles, strict aging requirements, no additives, no chill filtration, production transparency, are the same values that define great Scotch whisky. The Bottled in Bond standard was America's attempt to create the kind of authenticity guarantees that Scotland built into its whisky law. New Riff's Sherry Cask Malted Rye and Sour Mash Single Malt are practically designed as on-ramps to the Scotch category. If the craft and the honesty are what you love about New Riff, Scotch takes those principles further.
Bottled in Bond. Non-Chill Filtered. Nothing to Hide.
Every New Riff expression, from the flagship BiB bourbon to the Sherry Cask Malted Rye and Sour Mash Single Malt, ships direct from LoveScotch to all 50 states.
Shop New Riff Bourbon →
