Deerhammer Progeny Edition 2 Review

Born from beer, the Deerhammer Progeny Edition 2 is a whiskey that takes the “whiskey is distilled beer” line to a literal level. It’s literally Crooked Stave’s Hop Savant beer distilled twice on Deerhammer’s pot stills and then aged in lightly charred oak barrels for five years. There are plenty of distilleries doing this, Charbay being the most famous/infamous depending on your view, but this is definitely one of the longer aged versions out there.

Though, don’t expect to see this on the shelves anytime soon. The production of this is limited and as of right now it’s only available in Colorado. So if this ends up sounding good to you, you either need a plane ticket or get to know someone in CO who knows how to pack and ship booze. Though before you consider that, let’s get to drinkin’ and see if it’s worth the effort of making a new friend.

 

Deerhammer Progeny Edition 2 – Details and Tasting Notes

 

Whiskey Details

Region: CO, USA

Distiller: Deerhammer
Mash Bill: 36% Citra, 36% Mosaic, 28% Simcoe Hops (100% Brettanomyces yeast fermentation)
Cask: New Charred Oak (heavy toast, light char)
Age: 5 Years
ABV: 50%

Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color

Batch: 2

Price: $60*

“Our Progeny Series began as a celebration of Colorado and its innovative spirit. The second edition within this series takes form as a collaboration with Denver, Colorado based, Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project.” – Deerhammer Distillery

Tasting Notes

EYE
Caramel

NOSE
Lemony herbal, licorice, pumpkin spice, touch anise and clove and graham and that now-quite-familiar, distilled beer profile.
This reminds me of so many distilled beer whiskies I’ve had but cleaner, crisper and just all-around better. It gets a bit fruity as it opens, but that coppery beer note stays strong.

PALATE
Lemony herbal, licorice, pumpkin spice, touch anise and clove and graham and that now-quite-familiar, distilled beer profile.
Deerhammer Progeny Edition 2’s palate begins as a carbon copy of the aroma, but picks up some caramel notes and gets a tad bready as it opens.

FINISH
Medium -> Herbal, vanilla pastry and wood and some mint and grapefruit as it disappears.

BALANCE, BODY and FEEL
Good, med-full and a light syrupy feel.

Deerhammer Progeny Edition 2 – Overall Thoughts and Score

Once you’ve had a couple of whiskies made from hopped distilled beer, the core essence is unmistakable. I always do my first notes without reading the press release, sample notes or anything and the first thing I wrote was “Oh, distilled beer.” It’s a unique profile that carries across all distilled hops and is quite divisive. On the whole, I’m not the biggest fan of that profile, but I have to say… this is well done.

It’s odd, it’s unique, but most importantly, it’s good – I actually like it. There isn’t a ton of depth to the Deerhammer Progeny Edition 2, but everything that’s there is good and there are no off notes to distract. With water, a bit more caramel shows on the nose and more herbal notes pick up on the palate. Though if there was one word I’d use to describe this whiskey it would be “crisp”. It comes through with less of that brutal hoppy pot-like style of Charbay and more citrus arrives to give it more dimension like a nice, clean, Citra IPA.

SCORE: 3/5

*Disclosure: The sample for this whiskey review was graciously sent to me by the company without obligation. The views, opinions, and tasting notes are 100% my own.

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