Tastes

This is a wonderful creamy caramel/vanilla bomb!!! Probably and silky throughout the whole sip and taste. Notes of vanilla and caramel (even a vanilla cake), coupled with cinnamon spice & nutmeg. Reminds me of a wonderful piece of warm pumpkin pie spice cake!! Obviously, for my aforementioned description, it is smooth and silky from start to finish. The taste does leave me with a comfortably warm finish on the middle of my tongue and drifting towards the top of my throat. However, it is way overbearing, intrusive, or distasteful. Has a Kentucky bourbon guy, this is an incredible nugget in worthy of pursuing in order to enjoy for sips to come! To me, this is what charcoal mellowing should do to a bourbon/whiskey.

The nose is a rye with some sweetness to it; some fruity & light floral notes The palate has a distinctive “rye” vibe, and these other notes, coupled with rye grasses, gives it a variable “funkiness” as the taste lingers on. The finish gives me a somewhat delayed aftertaste that, once again to me & my palate, resurrected this hard yo describe “funkiness”, and left me with an aftertaste I did NOT like or ebjoy…I felt compelled to eviscerate it with a much better rye whiskey or a quality bourbon to re-calibrate my tastebuds and mouthfeel to “normality! Definitely NOT on my “Good List” ; I won’t buy it again!

Oak on the nose, blended with grains, wheat, grasses, leather, and softened by hints of vanilla and caramel. The taste is initially soft Oak forward (meaning not “heavy oak”), which transitions into notes of leather caramel, and some production – alcohol based spices. Please don’t be scared by my aforementioned description, as this is a very, very pleasant and enjoyable, sipping whiskey for me. I am not a “heavy oak – forward” fan and this is one of the few bourbon whiskeys that I can honestly say I really enjoy with the notes of Oak-forward (on the nose and tip of my tongue) in the tasting process. The taste ends with some spicy notes, but finishes well. It teases me with an on and off linger of warmth and hints of leather and dare I say even some tobacco notes re-emerge, wonderfully softened by hints of vanilla & caramel. There is no “Kentucky hug“ involved with this Whiskey on the finish (in my hunble opinion), and I will gladly refill my Glen Carirn glasd for subsequent pours. As a craft distillery in eastern Tennessee, this Whiskey checks many of my boxes that I look for from a solid and very enjoyable whiskey/bourbon . Cheers!! “Rickhouse 1897”

I love the sweet vanilla & caramel on the nose, overlaid with an anointing of the richness from the Pinot Noir wine barrels. A very interesting complexity of scents. The taste is creamy, rich and smooth with a nice welcoming of caramel cream on the front that then transitions into a finish of the Pinot Noir wine coupled with oak wood/wine barrels towards the finish. The actual finish is very pleasant and there are no hints of dryness or tannins that can accompany some wines. On a scale of 1-5, I rate this a 3.75.

NOSE: grassy;. TASTE: The initial tastes are a combination of an earthiness, dry wheat, leather and faint hints of caramel and oak. Not much sweetness at all. PALATE: on the pallet(center of my mouth) there is a transition to a much more dry grass/wheat kind of taste, but not necessarily unpleasant. With subsequent sips there appears to be a conflagration of tastes. FINISH: nonetheless… The finish is dry, and I’m still left with that earthiness & dry wheat/grass, taste and impression upon my flavor senses. Im really WANTING to enjoy and love this bourbon, but in the final analysis, it doesn’t move me to want more. To me, it is not worth the $89.00+ I spent on it in terms of enjoying the bourbon. HOWEVER, in the context of the support of the men of the U.S. “horse soldier“ infantry in the Afghanistan, war, and their dedication, sacrifice, and service for their country, well,… you simply can’t put a price tag on that!!! 🥰

TASTES: initially, there is some alcoholic heat to the taste, but that is quickly substituted by wonderful tastes of baking, spices, leather, cinnamon, caramel, and leather. FINISH: first off, there is no “burn” (aka “Kentucky Hug”), Put a wonderfully warm sensation of being in a intimate log cabin lodge during a snowstorm!! Ahh… smooth, warmth! At 110-proof this is an exceptional bourbon to taste, experience and, most importantly, to ebjoy!! The “kick” of higher-proof alcohol on the nose & the initial taste precludes me from giving this a “5-Star” rsting…. So i default to a 4.75. But, please feel free to usurp my rsting abd give it a “5-Star”!! Enjoy!

My first impression on the nose was… APPLE, with a coating of caramel. There is a good bit of in rye too. (Duh!!) There was a sweet freshness to the “sniffs” and nosing that I inhaled! The taste is sweet “ Rye-Rye-Rye…with a hint of apple, and twice shy” (a song by the rock groups “Eddie & the Hot Rods” & later, “Great White”). This initial & subsequent sips/chews, the taste was…. ryes… apple…spices….and sweet freshness! There is no “Kentucky Hug” in the back of my throat and downward; but a warm, rye-spice with baking spices and cinnamon (hints of caramel too). In sum…a very, very solid drink that calls me to subsequent sips (could be dangerous! 😉)

TASTE: I got “dried grass”, some “ earthy” tastes, along with some spices of clove, cinnamon, vanilla and possibly some cardamom. The initial taste was spicier and more “hot” than subsequent tastes. In fact, letting it sit and “breathe” a bit opens it up to more smoothness and softer complexities of the bourbon. I like wheated bourbons in general and my favorite Wheated bourbon is Weller. Rebel 100 is spicier but very enjoyable and drinkable. Also since Rebel 100 is much more accessible AND affordable than Weller, I like it as a solid choice for an evening sipper by myself or as a confident pour for my friends, meaning, “no apologies” given for my pouring the Rebel 100 for them. The addition of Rebel 100 to your bourbon collection and available pours is well worth the addition; in my humble opinion. CHEERS!!!

The NOSE was not pronounced for me. I picked up the obligatory hints of alcohol. However, I discerned some leather and tobacco, as well as a hint of caramel and/or spices. The taste is somewhat complex for me. On the initial taste/“chew”, I get hints of spearmint and mint, mixed with some wood, roasted nuts, and grains (wheat and grass). After that burst in my mouth, it brings warmth, viscosity, and more of a “chew” style of impression. There is a definite warmth that overtakes my mouth and almost develops into a “Kentucky hug” of warmth and richness. However, there is no burn down my throat at all, which is very good for me. The finish is very long, warm, and “cozy”. The combination of great taste, warmth, smoothness, and a hint of a “Kentucky hug” on the finish, causes me to desire another wonderful sip. In short, this is an excellent wheated Bourbon and GREEN RIVER DISTILLERY has done themselves proud by it.