6 Year Old Corn Whisky

Corn Whiskey aged for six years in bourbon casks

The corn whiskey from the Ehringhausen distillery is made from regional corn, distilled using the pot-still method, and aged for six years in American bourbon casks. At 47% ABV, it is robust yet smooth. Limited to 738 bottles.

A corn whiskey is a grain whiskey based not on barley or rye, but on corn. This is standard in the USA, but the exception in Westphalia. The Ehringhausen distillery distills it from organic corn grown in the region and then stores it in casks for six years.

Vanillic, woody, spicy

On the nose, there is warm vanilla, followed by delicate caramel and the woody tones brought by toasted oak.

On the palate, you can see what corn is capable of. It provides a velvety creaminess that barley alone does not offer, carrying a sweet depth without actually tasting sweet. It lands on the palate creamy, malty, and velvety, and the 47% ABV provides intensity without becoming harsh.

Warm, smooth, full of character—this is how the distillery describes its own whiskey, and there is little to add to that. If you are looking for Scottish peat bombs, you are in the wrong place. If you like bourbon, you will find familiar notes along with something you haven't encountered before.

Pot still and toasted white oak

It is produced using the pot-still method, meaning in batches rather than continuously in a column.

This is the more labor-intensive route. A column runs continuously and provides a consistent output, whereas a pot still must be refilled, heated, and cut for every single batch. In return, more heavy aromatic compounds remain in the distillate, and these are exactly what a whiskey needs to survive six years in wood.

Then the cask takes over. Ehringhausen uses classic American bourbon casks made from toasted white oak. Toasted means heated, not charred, and that makes a difference: a charred cask releases roasted notes and smoke, while a toasted one leans toward vanilla, caramel, and spice. Six years is twice as long as the minimum time required for whiskey maturation.

738 bottles from Werne

This bottling is a limited edition, and the number is final: 738 bottles, and then it is gone.

The fact that a Westphalian grain distillery is producing whiskey at all is the logical extension of what the business does anyway. Anyone who has been distilling grain for decades and aging spirits in casks for years has mastered the craft. The only thing missing was the patience not to touch the cask for six years—and they clearly had that.

The idea is not new for the house, in any case. Anyone who distills grain and stores spirits for years, as Theres and Georg have long done with their cask collection, must eventually take the step toward whiskey. Corn was the more interesting choice compared to barley, because almost no one in this country uses it.

Distillation takes place in Werne, where the family has worked since 1962 and where Theres and Georg have run the business in the third generation since 2012. "Grain can do more" is the motto of the house, and this whiskey is the most clear-cut argument for it so far.

At 16 to 20 degrees, in a tumbler or nosing glass

The distillery recommends a tasting glass or a whiskey tumbler at approximately 16 to 20 degrees.

The corn whiskey should first be enjoyed neat in the glass without any water to see where it stands on its own. Afterward, a single drop of water is worth it, as it noticeably opens up the vanilla in a whiskey of this strength. Ice cubes, on the other hand, will close it off.

It pairs well with dark chocolate, aged hard cheese, and toasted nuts, and it makes a surprisingly good companion to a piece of apple pie. You can find more bottles of this kind in our whiskey selection. From the same producer comes the wood-aged spelt grain spirit, which uses the same cask type and shows where this whiskey comes from. You can find everything else in the Ehringhausen distillery range.

Organic control body DE-ÖKO-005 – German Agriculture