Yellowstone Joins The American Single Malt Club

With the release of its new Yellowstone single malt label, Kentucky’s Limestone Branch Distillery is the latest whiskey maker to join a growing array of American single malt expressions. The new whiskey hits retail shelves nationwide in March, and will be a permanent addition to the Yellowstone lineup, which until now has included just its core bourbon and annually released limited-edition bourbons. Made from 100% malted barley, Yellowstone single malt is distilled and aged for 4 years in Indiana, but bottled (at 108 proof) at Limestone Branch in Lebanon, Kentucky.

While single malt stars like Westland and Virginia Distillery Co. have made this style their calling card, Kentucky and Tennessee distilleries generally haven’t strayed far from their historic tethers to corn and rye–at least not until recently. Jack Daniel joined the fray last November with its Twice Barreled American single malt, making it one of the biggest new players in a space primarily occupied by smaller craft players. But now whiskeys like Yellowstone American single malt will appear with greater frequency, as more legacy distillers throw their hat into the ring.

Though the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) released a proposed set of American single malt guidelines last summer, it has yet to officially put the rules into place. The required 60-day commentary period ended on September 27, 2022 and no ruling has been announced yet. Some members of the American Single Malt Whiskey Commission remain optimistic and have said that there’s no indication these guidelines won’t eventually go into effect.