American Whiskey Review #29: Spring Creek Whiskey

Distillery: Loup River Distilling

Region: St. Paul, NE.

Mashbill: 80% corn, 20% rye & barley

Price: $30

ABV: 40%

Age: NAS (though I believe the owner said it was a 2 year old whiskey, memory isn’t completely clear)

Color: 1.3, Russet/Muscat.

Nose: The dominant note is of clean, spring water. There’s a bit of sweet corn mash along with the tiniest hint of cherry.

Palate: It’s on the thin side for mouthfeel. It is, however, incredibly crisp and clean in flavor. There’s a sweet corn note that almost reminds me of creamed corn that dominates. Again, a hint of cherry pops up towards the end.

Finish: On the shorter end of things. Mineral water notes along with a bit of cherry is all I pick up.

Conclusion: This whiskey is really unique not just because it’s from the middle of Nebraska but because all of the corn is grown by the same folks who distill it. While I’m sure you can find that regularly with moonshine makers, it’s not one I’ve seen with whiskey makers before. The end result is a really easy to drink and clean flavor. It’s sweet, but not overly so. The little bit of mineral water and cherry really make this a little bit of fun and overall delightful. I’d love to see something from Loup River at a higher proof and perhaps aged a little bit longer but I’m definitely going to be keeping a bottle on hand as it is tasty.

Final Score: 77.

American Whisky Review #29, Nebraska Whiskey Review #2, Corn Whiskey Review #1, Whisky Network Review #214

Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.