Rebel Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon

Gaspar’s Krewe 2022 Pick - 120 proof Nose - very light and oaky with no burn Taste - Light for a 120 proof and not very complex. Spice hits the back of the throat with a little vanilla sweetness in the body which makes it delicious but hard to define.

126 Proof Aroma - citrus and brown sugar dominate the nose. Very light oak and vanilla presence in the back. As it opens I’m getting dark fruits. Very sweet profile here and it’s nice. Taste - follows the nose. But it’s more elevated. Overall - This is actually really nice. Full bodied, long finish. Exceptional offering for under $50. And this is extremely smooth for the proof. The more I sip this, the more I appreciate it. You’ll be hard pressed to find a better bottle under $50

63% ABV, selected by Scenic City Whisky Slingers, barreled 8/14/18. Nose is hot. Alcohol hot, cinnamon red hots, hell, even the vanilla I can find is somehow hot. Palate, as you might expect at this ABV and sans age statement, is also best described as hot. Candy hot tamales, cinnamon red hots, and a lot of dry wood spice dominate from beginning to end. There is no real transition to a close, it’s just that you suddenly recognize you can feel your tongue separately from the roof of your mouth, and that you hadn’t realized they had merged at some point in the recent past. What’s it like with water you ask, because nobody would ever drink 132 proof whisky even if it was touted as a smooth wheater? Well since you asked, I’ll tell you that it is a huge tease. You can sniff a nice caramel hiding amongst all the hots, and the hots don’t seem quite so painful if you nose just a little too deep. That sip though man, oof, what a doozy she is! Starting off all warm and sultry, sweetly coating your mouth with caramel and cinnamon and Demerara sugar, maybe even a little peanut brittle and some of that grape funk that sometimes pops up in Wild Turkey. All seems nice, and then you give it a swallow and take a breath and your mouth is now on fire. I don’t mean hot, or spicy, or dry. I mean I almost couldn’t take a breath like I’d been pepper sprayed after running a quarter mile kind of hot (yes, I know what that’s like, and no, I don’t wanna talk about it). Hot. Painfully hot. Go back for a second sip thinking the alcohol by now has surely numbed those choke receptors in your throat only to find out that nope, choke reflex is still working and damn where is all the oxygen in this room!? I want to like this. It has potential, and the color, viscosity and legs indicate a quality production run and a good barrel. I want it to be a somewhat available and affordable alternative to the William Larue Weller Antique Collection that the taters haven’t yet found and ruined. Or maybe just an alternative to the Wellers 107 that still inexplicably sells for quadruple what it’s actually worth. Yes, I know, the WLW hope is a bridge waaaay to far. The 107 comparison should be fair though. I still remember when 107 was $22 and on the bottom shelf beneath the $30 Maker’s Mark and adjacent the $18 Wellers Special Release. And yet, here we are 10 years later and this single barrel, handpicked, high-proof, limited edition wheater is still not as good as a mass produced regular run whisky that sold for a third of the price. And that’s a shame on all accounts.

Selected by: Applachian Beverage (Ellijay, GA) Proof: 120.0 Age: at least 2 years Barrel Filled: 8/18/2017 Barrel #: 7757144

👃 really nice. Vanilla bomb. Lil bit spicy 👄 Buttered toast dipped in a natural syrup that wasn't too sweet 🏁 Nothing unique. Pretty hot I aded an ice cube to finish finding the flavor on the palate and anything in the finish