Templeton Rye refers to rye whiskey originally made in Templeton, Iowa

Templeton, Iowa

Templeton is a city in Carroll County, Iowa, United States. The population was 334 at the 2000 census.-History:The city was founded in 1882 and is perhaps best known as the home of Templeton Rye, a "brand" of rye whiskey manufactured during the prohibition era that was very popular in Chicago,...

 during the prohibition era

Prohibition in the United States

Prohibition in the United States was a national ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol, in place from 1920 to 1933. The ban was mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and the Volstead Act set down the rules for enforcing the ban, as well as defining which...

 as a way for farmers in the Carroll County area to supplement their income. Amber in color, it was considered to be of particularly high quality and was popular in Chicago, Omaha, and Kansas City speakeasies

Speakeasy

A speakeasy, also called a blind pig or blind tiger, is an establishment that illegally sells alcoholic beverages. Such establishments came into prominence in the United States during the period known as Prohibition...

. It was said to be the mobster Al Capone

Al Capone

Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone was an American gangster who led a Prohibition-era crime syndicate. The Chicago Outfit, which subsequently became known as the "Capones", was dedicated to smuggling and bootlegging liquor, and other illegal activities such as prostitution, in Chicago from the early...

's favourite drink. More recently "Templeton Rye" has been introduced as a brand of whiskey that its producer claims is based on a prohibition-era recipe. Distribution outside of Iowa began in August 2007.
Templeton Rye is distilled and aged at Lawrenceburg Distillers in Lawrenceburg, Indiana

Lawrenceburg, Indiana

Lawrenceburg is a city in Dearborn County, Indiana, United States. The population was 5,042 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Dearborn County...

 and is shipped to Iowa by tanker truck. It is then bottled at an Iowa facility. Lawrenceburg Distillers is a wholly owned subsidiary of MGP Ingredients, a corporation headquartered in Atchison, Kansas.

As a commercial brand

In 1965, Clifford and Rose Romey registered "Templeton Rye Whiskey" as a corporation and trademark in Iowa, which was renewed by Alice Romey in 1996. It went inactive in 2001.

Shortly thereafter, Scott Bush, Keith Kerkhoff, and Ted Bauer (then the holder of the Templeton Rye trademark) formed a corporation to make rye whiskey in Templeton using a prohibition-era recipe. (Based on information on the Iowa Secretary of State website, Bush is the registered agent for "Templeton Rye Whiskey LLC". and Brian Green is the registered agent for "Templeton Rye Spirits, LLC". The brand's product literature lists "Templeton Rye Spirits, LLC" as the corporate name and that is the company that holds the distilling license.) Ted Bauer of Audubon, Iowa, is no longer involved with the company.

Scott Bush claims that his great-grandfather was involved in the making of the original Templeton rye. However, the recipe used is not from Bush's great-grandfather, but from Alphons Kerkhoff; whose son Meryl Kerkhoff provided the recipe.

External links

• Templeton Rye Sprits LLC website: http://www.templetonrye.com
• Templeton, Iowa, website: http://www.templetoniowa.com
• Iowa Public Radio, April 24, 2008, Interview with Scott Bush, et al. on the reintroduction and history or Templeton Rye; http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kuni/local-kuni-699089.mp3
• Rye Whiskey website: http://www.ryewhiskey.com