New Riff Distilling will join the Silver Grove Community Foundation to dedicate a new park at Green Valley Pond on April 22, thanks to funds raised through sales of New Riff’s Silver Grove commemorative edition. A nod to a whiskey produced in the 1930s, New Riff also announced a 2024 bottling of Silver Grove Bourbon will be joined by the debut of Silver Grove Rye, with a portion of proceeds from both continuing to benefit the Silver Grove Community Foundation.
“When we built our new barrel warehouse in Silver Grove in 2022, we knew we wanted to support that community through our philanthropic efforts like we do Newport,” said President Mollie Lewis. “We’re thrilled to see people loved the 2023 Silver Grove release so much that we’re able to donate $16,830 to the foundation — and we are excited to see what more we can accomplish together with our 2024 releases.”
The Silver Grove Community Foundation seeks to improve the quality of life and support community-led projects in the city. Thanks to New Riff’s support, the foundation has completed an initial phase of improvements around Green Valley Pond, 5246 4 Mile Road, including installing benches made from recycled plastic, trash bins and a message board. The foundation is planning additional project phases to create a recreational trail around the pond that connects to current sidewalks.
The original Silver Grove was a 1933 bottling distilled in 1917 at the Edward Brinkmann distillery in Cincinnati’s Carthage neighborhood, according to New Riff co-founder Jay Erisman, who has an original bottle in his collection. New Riff’s first barrel proof blend, Erisman said the Silver Grove releases are a “nod to both the area’s distilling past and to New Riff’s future.”
Assistant Head Distiller Bryon Martin describes the 2024 Silver Grove Bourbon as having notes of “dark red fruits and rye spices” on the nose and a deep, full mouthfeel that flows briefly into dark brown sugars then wood spices and tannins. The 2024 Silver Grove Bourbon is a 65% corn, 30% rye and 5% malted barley mashbill bottled at 116.2 proof.
The inaugural Silver Grove Rye has “huge mint, black pepper and hints of citrus, caraway and oak on the nose,” Martin said. An upfront cinnamon spiciness comes with hints of vanilla and singed toffee. “It’s delightfully aggressive,” he said, with a bold rye spice finish with a nice minerality and eucalyptus notes. The 2024 Silver Grove Rye is a 95% rye, 5% malted rye mashbill bottled at 116.4 proof.
Both the Silver Grove Bourbon and Silver Grove Rye released this year are blended from barrels aged on the top two floors of New Riff’s original rickhouse in Newport, yielding robust flavor profiles and high proofs. Both are available exclusively at New Riff’s gift shop for $55.99 only at the distillery’s gift shop beginning April 23.
