Remus Repeal Reserve Series II (2018 Medley)

Scored this for a significantly discounted price at Costco. Medium strength nose of smoky barrel char, cherry, vanilla, Coca Cola, watermelon, and a faint hint of grass. No ethanol to speak of. Complex and appealing. Palate is very “old school”; lots of vanilla, caramel, cherry, and orange peel, developing into a finish of barrel spices, oak, and char. I was searching for how to describe the flavor when it hit me; tastes just like a well made Old Fashioned. Some toffee and mint on the back end when the spices fade. Shorter finish than what I was expecting. Suitably rich. Flavors transition smoothly and as a whole it’s really well balanced. Mouthfeel could best be described as “velvety” and is the high point, lending to an easy drinking experience. Drinks slightly under its 100 proof. I wish I could tell you there’s something truly groundbreaking going on but I can’t. This doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but if aliens landed tomorrow and said “what is this Bourbon you speak of?” this might be one you’d reach for as it’s a great high quality example of what traditional bourbon is supposed to be. At a $68 discount price I don’t regret the purchase. At $90 like I have seen around town? I’m afraid it’s just not unique or special enough to justify that kind of price point.

Tasting: 2oz neat in glen cairn Nose (4.0): Traditional sweet bourbon nose. Butterscotch and vanilla dominate up front. I also got a little candy corn. Palate: (3.75) Hit me first with a little bit of soap taste that was off-putting. This dissipated quickly and reminded me of grandma's candy bowl. I got those yellow sweet butterscotch candies, with sugary cherry slices, and vanilla. Mouthfeel was buttery and thicker. If not for that soapiness un the beginning I might have been at 4.25. Finish: (3.75) Nice finish. Some peppery notes let you know there is a little backbone to it and it is not all sugar plums and candy corns. Kind of a quick finisher though. Overall: At first I was kind of meh. After some time with it has some merit to it. I am not a huge fan of blended whiskies BUT if this is where things are going it is on the right track. Pricewise though, you can do better. A lot of work blending these whiskies yielded what in my opinion is an above average bourbon at an elevated price in which I would gladly buy something like a Knob Creek or WT Rare breed for less and get same effect. If it were $50 that would be great, but over $70 I am not so sure. As for me, I am glad mine was a sample.

Neat. Neck pour. Found this just chilling on a shelf today. I never had Series 2 and I loved the recent Series 4, so I was inclined to try this. Some say this is the best of the four releases too. On the nose, this is actually subtle MGP. Stereotypical MGP but quite faint. That is surprising. Well balanced though. Can’t decide on butterscotch or caramel, so I’ll just say both. So much honey and graham cracker. Vanilla royal icing. Getting a bit of orange on the back. Texture is thinner than I was expecting. Brown sugar and cinnamon up front with a hint of citrus. Butterscotch takes over. Then the honey. Little of that graham cracker and orange on the finish. The more I sip it there is a build of caramel in the back of my throat, just hanging and building. Umm, hmm. It’s the most average MGP I have had. I mean average in so many ways. Overall it’s middle of the road but all the flavors are right in the middle of what they can be. No flavor is turned up loud, if that makes sense. Nothing pops even though it all goes good enough. It’s very approachable. It’s a background MGP. If you are looking for a Remus, I would stick to Series 3 or 4 over this.

So this was on sale for about 70 (a bit under actually) so I figured why not. Roughly 10 and 11 year old juice give or take 6 months on both sides. From unquestionably America's best distillery in MGP. Nose - Spicy and dusty bourbon. A bit off my standard MGP profile. Still vanilla custard, some rye spice and the blend is pretty heavy in rye. Yeah this is like a vanilla forward rye on the nose. Taste - Wow I'm getting rye big time. this is not even close to my first pour but today I'm getting a lot of rye. Sweet, apples, huge spices, vanilla, light oak...this is sweet and spice forward. I'm liking the overall product here. i could use less of the 36% rye and more of the 25% but I think they've made an incredibly nice product here. A bit pricey if you're paying into the 90 dollar range, but if you can get it for in the 60's or 70's I think this is a reasonable pour. MGP continues it seems to sell their best barrels and bottle their middle class stuff. Not a bad thing but a bit surprising.

3.0 stars - Good; 750 ml bottle Great whiskey, just like great art, should not leave us cold. This whiskey is like a fine painting from a renowned artist, but I am left with no emotional reaction. Is it still art? This should be a home run. MGP? Check. High rye? Check. High age statement? Check. 100 proof? Check. Lots of old oak and rich cherry. But I am left feeling something is missing. Objectively good, but where is the soul? Am I hearing the echos of too many sourced MGP products? I gave the rest of the bottle to a good friend. He loved it. I guess both art and whiskey are subjective.

Nose: Rye spice, underlying vanilla, sweet subtle oak, stone fruit. Palate: first thing that hits is the peppery note from the rye, then a red fruit sweetness, light sugar syrup, and a touch of oak. Finish: big cherry note on the finish with a warm lingering spice (more pepper than baking spice). Overall: A decent pour, but probably wouldn’t buy again. The spice isn’t overwhelming, but I wish there was more richness to balance it out like caramel/vanilla notes or nuttiness. Rating: 6.7/10