Green River Full Proof Bourbon Review

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I’m behind the curve in terms of reviewing whiskies made at Green River Distillery. So to remedy this, let me start off by reviewing a bourbon that has recently earned a spot on Breaking Bourbon’s “Best Bourbons of 2024.” Green River Full Proof was accompanied by Booker’s The Reserves, Still Austin Bottled in Bond Red Corn Bourbon, Woodinville Straight Bourbon Aged 8 Years and Chattanooga Whiskey Bottled in Bond (Spring 2020) for last year’s honor. It’s nice to see so many obtainable bourbons on their list.

Green River Full Proof Bourbon

Green River Distillery (DSP-KY-10) was revived in 2016 under the name O.Z. Tyler Distillery. If you are a gentleman (or lady) of a certain age, you may have known it before as the Medley Distillery. But the current iteration sports a fully renovated and modernized distillery, aging warehouses and visitor’s center.

The early days of O.Z. Tyler were marred by their production of a terrible whiskey made with a patented process called “TerrePURE.” O.Z. Tyler was betting big on a way to mature barrels at a faster rate by using sonic waves. The final product was universally panned by reviewers and enthusiasts with good taste. I personally drank some of it from a brand called “‘Merica Bourbon” and thought it tasted like drinking liquid dough. If that was the only type of whiskey they made, it could have sunk the company financially. Thankfully, the distillery’s management didn’t put all of their eggs in one basket and was also distilling traditional bourbon and rye whiskey recipes at the same time.

The TerrePURE fad was short-lived (but still exists on a smaller scale). When their regular bourbon and rye started to come of age around 2019, the owners decided to change their name from O.Z. Tyler to Green River Distillery. This would help to distance themselves from their early mistake.

Green River’s Bourbon Specs

Green River’s own distillate is made differently from most of their competitors. They claim to use two different yeast strains to ferment with. I assume they make separate batches but combine them before it enters the column still. I suppose there is the possibility that they’re actually distilling each yeast strain separately and combining them after distillation is complete, but they never spell it out. Let me know if you’ve heard how they utilize the two yeasts and how it shapes the final product.

From that point, Green River uses some pretty typical specs to create their bourbon. The recipe (regardless of yeast strain) uses 70% corn, 21% rye and 9% malted barley. It comes off the still at 138 proof and goes into the barrel at 120 proof. From there, the barrels are aged in either their tile (don’t call them brick, haha) rickhouses at the distillery or at their other campus located in Hartford, Kentucky (about 30 miles south of Owensboro). That campus has 19+ single-story metal warehouses. These are likely set up to age the barrels on pallets rather than ricks. The metal construction might also mature them faster due to metal’s higher rate of conductivity.

The barrels used for Green River’s Full Proof Bourbon are aged between 5 and 7 years before they were blended together. My guess is that this label won’t see too much change from this barrel makeup over the next couple years until their stocks start to catch up with demand.

Why the term “Full Proof?”

The one last thing I want to touch on is Green River’s use of the word “Full Proof.” While I realize that they’re not the only one using it in this context (Lux Row’s Old Ezra Full Proof Rye Whiskey is another example), I disagree with how its being used. The modern day meaning of Full Proof should mean that the bourbon was bottled at the same proof that it went into the barrel at. This is why Weller Full Proof is bottled at 114 proof and 1792 Full Proof is bottled at 125.

If Green River would follow those examples, they should have bottled this at 120 proof. But the proof (for this batch) is clearly labeled as 117.3 on the front. I believe what we’re witnessing is the combined proof of the batch. In other words, it’s a fancy way of saying “barrel proof.”

Maybe I’m just making a big deal out of Green River’s decision to call it “Full Proof.” After all, it isn’t a regulated term; but I’m still not a fan. I assume they’re only doing it to stand out in a crowded segment of “barrel proof” bourbon. Besides, they’re not the first to try and use a term other than Barrel Proof, Cask Strength or Barrel Strength. Distilleries like Ben Holladay named their version “Rickhouse Proof” and Iron Smoke uses the term “Casket Strength.” Companies need to get creative to stand out on a shelf.

Now that I’ve given you the background, I’m ready for a taste. Thanks to my friend Mike over at Mostly Peaceful Bourbon for the opportunity to taste this. As usual, I sampled it neat in a glencairn.

Tasting Notes

Nose: A very refined and pleasant nose. There’s a lot of rich caramel that borders on smelling like toffee along with seasoned oak and vanilla. My first thought when nosing the glass was how similar this smelled to an Old Forester Single Barrel bourbon. Previously, I had noted some similarities between Green River’s bourbon and MGP’s low-rye bourbon recipe. In any case, I do pick up on a bit of fruit in the nose as well – cherry turnover scents pop up here and there. Overall, it’s a somewhat simple floor routine that nails the landing.

Palate: I’m finding plenty to like with each sip I take. The somewhat prickly rye spices are entertaining and lively; not harsh. Cinnamon, allspice, fennel and orange zest all show me traits of that particular grain. I can taste spiced honey for sweetness along with sweetened apricot. I’m surprised to find seasoned oak in such a young-ish bourbon, but I won’t say it was totally free of youthful notes. I occasionally came across a “green wood” note or two. Nothing terrible detrimental to my enjoyment, but it could be cured with a couple more years in the barrel. 

Finish: A sweet honey/caramel taste lingers after the sip is complete. There are spice notes like cinnamon and allspice that hang around for a little while as well. There’s even a little bit of oak. It’s simple, but delicious. 

Score: 7.8/10

This bottle of Green River Full Proof left me impressed for its balance, maturity and price. While I didn’t find it to be wildly complex, the flavors and scents demonstrates that Green River’s bourbon can hang with the big boys right out of the gate. That’s no easy task for such a young distillery.

Usually if a distiller is this new, their first barrel proof, errr, full proof offering would reflect a substantial bump in price. Not so with Green River. They’ve given us a fantastic product for only $50. And while it might be younger than a few other established products in this same price range (Rare Breed, Stagg Jr, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof), there are still some it competes directly with in terms of specs (Maker’s Mark Cask Strength, Backbone Bourbon Small Batch, Larceny Barrel Proof). This is quite the accomplishment.

Final Thoughts

Green River is a perfectly competent product that’s going to speak to many consumers out there. But the one thing I feel like is holding it back is that it’s a little on the ordinary side. I fully back anyone who is willing to pick up a bottle, but the commonalities with other similar bourbons might make it a one-time purchase for many. One could argue that’s the case with many distillery’s base products, but producers typically find a way to inject some variances between batches. This keeps them interesting enough for consumers to continue to seek them out. Time will tell if Green River Full Proof will have enough diversity from batch to batch to achieve this.

In this day and age of having dozens of options for barrel proof bourbon on the shelves of any liquor store, it requires a lot for a brand to stick out and make a consumer want to buy it. Green River’s unique packaging and low price are enough to move the first bottle, but will it speak to them enough to buy a second (and third and fourth) bottle? We probably won’t know until we get more batches to compare them against. So buy your first bottle and enjoy what they’ve done and let’s all hope that their whiskey continues to get better as the years pile on.