MENLO PARK, Calif., Dec 9 (Reuters) - In a small lab in California’s Silicon Valley, Martin Janousek and Stu Aaron are making whiskey. There are no oak barrels stacked floor to ceiling.

Actually, it’s been quite a bit more than that—for the first time since 2022, this Kentucky distillery is releasing its popular barrel-proof rye, news that fans of high-ABV whiskey around the ...