A mash bill is the grain recipe used to make a whiskey.
Bourbon must be made from at least 51 percent corn, while rye whiskey must be made from at least 51 percent rye. Other grains, such as wheat and malted barley, can shape texture, spice, sweetness, and finish.
The grain recipe does not tell the whole story, but it gives members a useful starting point for understanding sweetness, spice, body, grain character, and structure.
- Bourbon51%Corn minimum
- Rye Whiskey51%Rye minimum
- Malt Whiskey51%Malted barley minimum
Common Mash Bill Styles
Six recipes that account for most of what sits on a modern back bar, and what each grain does to the pour.
- Corn
- Rye
- Wheat
- Malted Barley
Traditional Bourbon
Corn with rye and malted barley
- Corn 72%
- Rye 18%
- Malt 10%
- Caramel
- Vanilla
- Oak
- Moderate spice
High-Rye Bourbon
Corn with a larger rye portion
- Corn 60%
- Rye 32%
- Malt 8%
- More spice
- Lift
- Pepper
- Dry structure
Wheated Bourbon
Corn with wheat replacing rye
- Corn 70%
- Wheat 18%
- Malt 12%
- Softer texture
- Round sweetness
- Less spice
Rye Whiskey
At least 51 percent rye
- Rye 65%
- Corn 25%
- Malt 10%
- Pepper
- Soft mint
- Baking spice
- Grain
- Dry finish
Malt Whiskey
Malted barley led
- Malted barley 51–100%
- Cereal
- Cocoa
- Fruit
- Roasted grain
- Malt depth
Four-Grain Whiskey
Corn, rye, wheat, and malted barley
- Corn 60%
- Rye 20%
- Wheat 10%
- Malt 10%
- Layered sweetness
- Spice
- Texture
- Grain character
The percentages above are representative of each style, not fixed standards. Only the 51 percent minimums are set by law; beyond those, every distillery guards its own recipe, and published figures vary from bottling to bottling.
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