Commodore's Cut
Cut No. 3 Single Barrel Straight Rye Whiskey
Barrel No. MWR02-101
Middle West Spirits, Ohio
Double-Oaked in Canton Cooperage, Commodore’s Cut, Cut No. 1 Bourbon Barrel
Aged 9+ Years | 129.09 Proof
Release Date: September 11, 2026
Product Details | Barrel Specs
DISTILLERY
Middle West Spirits, Ohio
AGE
9+ Years
PROOF
129.09 (Barrel Strength, Uncut — not cut or filtered)
BARREL NO.
MWR02-101
BOTTLES
~150 — Single Barrel, Limited Release
MATURATION
Distilled in Ohio · Double-oaked and aged at altitude in Colorado
SELECTED BY
CAPT Don "Willie" Williamson, USN (Ret.) — Founder, Commodore's Cut
NOSE
Warm and inviting from the first approach. Brown sugar and soft caramel lead, rounder and sweeter than you'd expect from a rye — an early sign of the time this whiskey spent finishing in the Cut No. 1 bourbon barrel. Beneath the sweetness, the classic aromatic lift of rye baking spice rises gently, present but never sharp. The color draws attention before the first sip — a beautiful, deep amber that speaks to more than nine years of maturation and a second life in well-seasoned Canton Cooperage oak. Nose it slowly. There's a lot here.
PALATE
The entry is sweet and immediate — brown sugar and caramel arriving across the front of the palate, an unexpected and welcome opening for a rye. As the pour moves through the mid-palate, the rye character asserts itself with confidence: structured, aromatic, and complex, but never overly spicy or sharp. The balance between the bourbon-barrel sweetness and the rye's natural backbone feels effortless — the rare rye that leads with sweetness and finishes with character. This is a whiskey that rewards a slow sip.
MOUTH-FEEL
Full, silky, and generous. The viscosity is immediately apparent — a weight and richness that coats the palate and signals both the age and the influence of the seasoned bourbon barrel. Despite its high proof, there is no harsh heat or sharp edge. The pour is smooth and unhurried, drinking far more easily than its strength would suggest — so easily, in fact, that it's worth a gentle warning: this one sips dangerously well.
FINISH
Longer and gentler than the proof would suggest. The finish is warm, smooth, and lingering, with a rounded sweetness that carries through without heat. The rye leaves a final whisper of spice, while the Canton oak — seasoned first by Cut No. 1 — makes its closing statement quietly, and with authority. Approachable enough for someone who thinks they don't like rye. Deep enough for the most serious collector.
COMPLEXITY
Barrel MWR02-101 does not reveal itself all at once — and that is its greatest virtue. The nose, palate, and finish each tell a different part of the same story, and that story shifts with every sip as the pour opens in the glass. The interplay between the bourbon-barrel sweetness, the rye's aromatic spice, and the deep character of twice-seasoned oak creates layers that reward attention. This is not a one-note rye. It is a conversation that deepens the longer you stay with it.
Tasting Notes
The Story Behind This barrel
the Selection
The Commodore did not set out to find the most expensive barrel, or the one with the most impressive resume. He set out to find the one that was ready — the same standard he applied for 26 years when determining whether a mission, a crew, or an aircraft was ready to launch.
Barrel MWR02-101 may be the finest whiskey Commodore's Cut has released. Even for a palate that leans toward sweeter bourbons over rye, this pour is something special — a rye that drinks with the richness and warmth of a great bourbon, shaped by the barrel that carried our very first release. It is simultaneously sweet and structured, bold and balanced, complex and generous. Finished in the original Cut No. 1 barrel, it closes a circle: the wood that shaped our beginning now shapes one of our best.
It is also a fitting tribute. Cut No. 3 honors Patriot Day and the 25th anniversary of September 11th — and the first responders who ran toward the danger when everyone else ran from it. It is a bold pour with real warmth and backbone, and there is no better way to remember that kind of courage than to raise a glass of something worthy of it. The only regret is that once it's gone, it's gone. That is the pleasure and the burden of a single barrel — and the memory of a pour, and a sacrifice, worth honoring.
Every barrel in the Commodore's Cut program is selected by hand. Not by algorithm, not by committee — by a Naval Aviator who spent 26 years making high-stakes decisions under pressure.
A 9-year straight rye whiskey, personally selected and finished with intention. After nearly a decade of maturation, this rye was double-oaked—finished a second time in the original Canton Cooperage bourbon barrel from Commodore’s Cut, Cut No. 1, our flagship release. The result is a bourbon-finished rye that comes full circle: the barrel that carried our first release now shapes our third, layering the spice and structure of aged rye with the rounded sweetness of a seasoned bourbon cask.
Released in remembrance. Cut No. 3 honors Patriot Day and the 25th anniversary of September 11, 2001—and all those who ran toward the danger. September also marks Constitution Day, a fitting reminder of the oath so many have sworn to support and defend.
Released only when it meets the standard of those who serve. $5 from every bottle is donated to organizations supporting those who serve.
The Story Behind This barrel
the Finish -
Double-Oaked in
a Canton Cooperage
Bourbon Barrel
Denver, Colorado sits at a mile above sea level. That elevation is not just scenery — it is an active participant in how bourbon ages.
At altitude, atmospheric pressure is lower. The air is drier, temperature swings between seasons are more pronounced, and the dynamics of evaporation through the barrel stave change. Water leaves the barrel more readily than alcohol in a dry, high-altitude environment — which is why Colorado-aged bourbons often show rising proof and accelerated maturation. Barrel BKB01-103's robust 121.55 proof at bottling is consistent with exactly this pattern: a barrel that concentrated and deepened in the thin mountain air.
Colorado's high-altitude environment is known to develop certain flavor characteristics — butterscotch, dark fruit, and a distinctive dryness in the finish — more readily than at sea level. These are not shortcuts or artificial interventions. They are the natural consequence of physics and climate acting on wood and spirit.
What you taste in Barrel BKB01-103 was shaped by a journey across two states and multiple environments: the Kentucky distillery where it was born, twelve years of aging, a second Kentucky barrel that gave it a final layer of character, and the Colorado altitude that concentrated and deepened it all. Each one left its mark.
The Story Behind This barrel
the Environment -
Aged at A Mile High
How to Purchase
at Onyx & Amber
Commodore’s Cut is selected from aged single barrel inventory, bottled, and fulfilled in collaboration with Onyx & Amber. When you click below, you will be taken to the Commodore’s Cut purchase page on the Onyx & Amber website. All orders, fulfillment, and shipping are handled by O&A, with direct-to-consumer delivery available in 45 states.
Onyx & Amber was chosen because their standards and mine align — in barrel selection, in transparency about provenance, and in the belief that exceptional whiskey should be able to tell you exactly where it came from and why it was chosen.
ABOUT ONYX & AMBER
Commodore's Cut is produced in collaboration with Onyx & Amber, Denver, Colorado — a craft spirits company founded by the Colorado Bourbon & Rye Collectors community. Onyx & Amber ages sourced whiskey at altitude in Denver's unique climate, where barometric pressure swings and dry mountain air accelerate maturation and concentrate flavor.
Learn more about Ben Rosen and Onyx & Amber: www.onyxandamber.com