Recklesstown Releases Second Cooper River Whiskey

Cooper River Rye - Aged at Recklesstown Farm Distillery

Last month, Recklesstown Farm Distillery released a batch of bourbon it had been aging that was originally distilled by the now closed, Cooper River Distillers in Camden, NJ. And this weekend, Recklesstown is releasing Cooper River Rye, aged between three and three-and-a-half years in 15 gallon barrels.

Like the bourbon, there are only 200 bottles available and when it is gone, it’s gone. Recklesstown describes the rye as having “a sweet, floral nose with a savory rye flavor and oaky finish.”

Bottles are $55 each and there is a limit of two bottles per customer.

Out of State Report: Cooper River Is Back (kind of)!

Cooper River Straight Bourbon

One of the first craft distilleries I went to was Cooper River Distillers along the River Line light rail line in Camden, NJ. The old garage was a ramshackle setup and the epitome of bootstrapped endeavor. But the bartenders were friendly, the cocktails were great, the setting sun blinding, and the promise of something new and exciting was real.

Unfortunately it didn’t work out for James Yoakum and his fledgling distillery. He shut the distillery down two years ago and sold his barreled inventory to Recklesstown Farm Distillery in Columbus, NJ, about 27 miles north from Cooper River’s location. There, the spirits have continued to age and on Saturday, August 29th at 12 pm, the first batch (300 bottles) of Straight Bourbon Whiskey will be placed on sale.

Recklesstown has another connection to Cooper River as head distiller, Ben Donia previously worked at Cooper River and played a part in the production of the bourbon.

The whiskey is described as having sweet vanilla flavor, rye spice and “plenty of age.” The 15-gallon barrels were rested for more than two-and-a-half years.

The bottles are $55 each and there will be a limit of two per customer.