Dad’s Hat Pennsylvania Rye Whiskey is a rye distillery located in Bristol, Pennsylvania, (approximately ½ hour northeast of Philadelphia) with a deep commitment to both the history of the region and their rye style. I recently spoke with founder and distiller Herman C. Mihalich about the past, present, and future of Dad’s Hat and the importance they place on history.
Thank you for taking the time to speak with me. Let’s start with your name. Where did Dad’s Hat come from?
I wear a lot of my Dad’s hats. When we were looking for a brand, our marketing firm, Signature Communications in Philadelphia, came up with the idea of using the backstory of my family’s bar that my grandfather started as a speakeasy during prohibition, and that my father ran until it closed in the late 70’s. The town where the bar was located and where I grew up, Monessen, Pennsylvania, is just a couple miles downstream from what was once the largest whiskey distillery in the US, at Gibsonton along the Monongahela River. My father and grandfather were both rye whiskey guys – we always had Old Overholt or Sam Thompson on the bar back in those days. So the Dad’s Hat reference has a personal backstory connection, and Signature thus chose it as a way to communicate the nostalgia we wanted to associate with our brand – bringing back Pennsylvania Rye from the past.
Please tell me more about the historical context for your distillery and how that connects to distilling in Pennsylvania as a whole?
In 2006 the New York Times ran an article about the increasing interest in rye whiskey, mostly coming from bartenders who wanted to make classic cocktails like Manhattans and Old Fashioneds the way they were originally made, with rye whiskey. This article caught my eye and I started discussions with John Cooper, my business partner, about bringing rye whiskey back to its historical home of Pennsylvania. At the time, there were no whiskey distilleries in Pennsylvania.
You call your rye “Prohibition Style.” What do you mean by that? What is your mash bill?
That reference is to our mash bill. “Back in the Day” distillers had to use enough malted barley to convert their mash, and that level was typically around 15% or more. We researched how the classic Pennsylvania distillers were making their whiskey and found that 15% to 20% was the common practice (today it is not necessary to use this much malt since distillers can add enzymes that would otherwise be delivered by the malted barley or rye). We did a lot of up-front work at Michigan State University to test recipes and settled on 80% grain, 15% two-row malted barley (more flavorful than six-row distiller’s malt), and 5% malted rye.
Tell me about your core expressions. Do you have any seasonal or one-off releases as well?
Our most popular expressions are our 90-Proof Classic Rye and our 95-Proof Straight 4 Year Old Rye. The Classic Rye is a blend of whiskey from 15-gallon and 53-gallon barrels. The 95-Proof Straight Rye is aged in 53-gallon barrels exclusively for a minimum of four years, with most of the whiskey between five and six years old. For these two expressions we use 1,500-gallon vatting tanks that are never completely emptied to maintain a consistent flavor style. When we remove whiskey from these tanks for bottling, we always keep the tanks one-third full and then add the next set of harvested barrels to the remainder.
Independent bottling after the Scottish tradition is growing across the American whiskey landscape. Have there been, or will we see independent bottler releases of Dad’s Hat?
We did two bottling releases with Lost Lantern and we are talking to a couple of other bottlers, so stay tuned.
Rye is an exciting whiskey category and, to my mind, one still with a lot of growth potential, but I’m curious if you also have plans to branch into bourbon or American Single Malt?
We have no plans to do anything else right now, although we do already make some Apple Brandy – another spirit with a deep history in the US.
Dad’s Hat is a farm-to-bottle distillery. Can you tell me about the farm where you source your rye?
We get our rye grain from Meadowbrook Farms in Riegelsville, PA. The Mease family does a great job supplying us with the absolute best quality rye grain for our whiskey. They have been farming that land since 1716 and have a deep appreciation for growing the highest quality grain for us.
I went to college in Pittsburgh, so I am familiar with Pennsylvania’s state liquor stores. Please tell me about the benefits and challenges of operating a distillery in a control state. What are some of the recent changes in the last 15-20 years, and how have they affected you?
We have a very good relationship with the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board and are in hundreds of stores across the state. About ten years ago the legal environment changed for the better for distilleries in Pennsylvania. We are now allowed to open up to five satellite locations where we can operate tasting rooms. We are permitted to sell our products by the glass (including in cocktails) or in bottles to go. In addition, we are allowed to sell any spirits, beers, wines, or ciders made in Pennsylvania by the serving for consumption on site. These locations have been very popular for us and other distilleries across the state.
What can visitors expect at your Dad’s Hat tasting rooms?
We feature both our whiskeys and cocktails made with our whiskies. Our team has developed fantastic cocktails that show off their creativity, our whiskey, and other spirits from distilleries across Pennsylvania. We also offer flights of whiskey, including products from other Pennsylvania distilleries that we enjoy.
Where are you distributed outside of Pennsylvania? Do you have plans to expand?
We are distributed in sixteen other states – Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Colorado, Iowa, Washington, California, Nevana, Arizona, and Washington, DC. We do not have plans to expand at this time.
How did you navigate the disruption from the COVID pandemic?
Our ability to sell directly to Pennsylvania customers helped us to a certain degree. The biggest impact on us was the changes that occurred with our distributors in several states. We typically try to work with smaller distributors who pay attention to our brand. Several of those were acquired or went out of business during COVID, and that had a negative effect on our sales in those states.
There have been signs that whiskey is cooling off. What is your take on the state of the business? How have industry and world conditions forced you to adjust your business?
There is no doubt that demand has softened. We are focusing our resources on our local/regional markets and our direct-to-consumer/satellite businesses.
Finally, you were nominated for the James Beard Awards in 2017. Tell us about that experience and what it did for your business?
It was an honor to be nominated and we are proud of our contribution to the American whiskey scene. I think it contributes to our credibility as a producer of high quality whiskey that we make farm-to-bottle rye ourselves using local ingredients and traditional methods.
Thanks again to Herman for taking the time to speak with Whiskey Network.
Dad’s Hat is restoring the legacy of Pennsylvania rye one bottle at a time. From speakeasy roots and family tradition to modern-day innovation and community collaboration, Herman C. Mihalich and his team are crafting and distilling history. Whether you’re sipping a classic cocktail or exploring their tasting room, Dad’s Hat invites you to raise a glass to the past, and toast what’s still to come.
