Speak of the Devil to celebrate new rye whiskey

When Kurt Hernon, owner of Speak of the Devil, 201 W. Fifth St. in downtown Lorain, opened shop six years ago, he said there only was one choice for the bar’s go-to rye whiskey: Old Overholt.

The oldest continually produced rye in the United States, the spirit has been in American bars and households since 1810.

Even during prohibition, the distillery procured a medical license to keep production going.

Hernon said Speak of the Devil uses more Old Overholt in its drinks than just about any bar in the country, and his bar has the attention of American whiskey giant Jim Beam.

On April 18, representatives from Jim Beam and Old Overholt will appear at the Lorain cocktail bar for the official Ohio launch of their new spirit, A. Overholt Monongahela Mash Rye Whiskey.

“Thursday is actually their official Ohio release here at the bar,” Hernon said. “Jim Beam has invited other bartenders, bar owners, stuff like that to come try it.

“It’s really cool. We’re kind of flattered and honored. We’re just about the biggest account Overholt has, in terms of a bar.”

A nod to Hernon’s Youngstown heritage, he said the idea to use that particular rye at Speak of the Devil came from family parties of his childhood.

From there, it became one of the bar’s signature spirits, used in a number of its cocktails.

“All my family was from western (Pennsylvania) and that’s where the whiskey originated,” Hernon said. “This was what

“All my family was from western (Pennsylvania) and that’s where the whiskey originated. This was what my uncles, my grandfather (drank).”

— Kurt Hernon

my uncles, my grandfather (drank).

“If you went to a Christmas party, that’s what was sitting on the table.”

Once forgotten and viewed as a bottom-shelf rye whiskey, Old Overholt has enjoyed a renaissance period in recent decades.

When Jim Beam bought its rights in 1987, initially, the company skeptical, but the old rye rapidly gained some new fans, Hernon said.

“A couple young bartenders from Pennsylvania were hired by Jim Beam (about six years ago); one is a rye whiskey expert,” he said. “They both went to Beam and said, ‘Hey, whether you know it or not, this bottle has a lot of prestige among cocktail bartenders.’”

After convincing Jim Beam’s brass to start heavily promoting the product, Old Overholt took off again.

The spirit’s revival has led to the release of Monongahela Mash, which has Hernon excited for the future of Old Overholt.

“Finally, they brought everything full circle (and) convinced Jim Beam to put out a new bottle they call A. Overholt,” he said. “It’s a return to the (original recipe) Monongahela Mash, which is 80 percent rye, 20 percent barley, no corn.

“That bottle has finally come to fruition.”

Speak of the Devil will follow up the release of Monongahela Mash with a birthday party for the spirit’s namesake, Abraham Overholt, on April 19.

The party is one of the bar’s largest annual events, Hernon said, and he urged the community to come out and celebrate.

The official Ohio release of A. Overholt Monongahela Mash Rye Whiskey will take place April 18 at Speak of the Devil.

Abraham Overholt’s birthday party will follow on April 19.