Russell's Reserve Private Barrel Selection

Charred Barrel pick @ 110 proof Bottled 6/11/24 Glass: Glencairn, rested 15 minutes. Color: Medium amber. Nose: Caramel, vanilla, apple. Palate: Cinnamon, baking spice, clove. Finish: Long and warm.  Splash: The hot cinnamon notes are calmed, allowing a nice oak noye to appear. Overall: 9/10 - This is a fine pick & Russell's Reserve is alqays solid for the price.

Will only buy private barrels of this from now on. The difference is real.

OHLQ 2024 selection barrel #1 Barrel No. 24-0205 Warehouse TYR-F; Floor 4 Distilled - 10-28-2015 Dumped - 03-18-2024 Barreled - 04-17-2024 Age - 8 years, 4 months, 19 days Open 7 weeks Nose - Cocoa powder, toasted marshmallow, cherry vanilla, bright cinnamon, nutmeg, peanut shell, grain, medium oak, and medium ethanol. Palate - This bourbon tastes more like cheap milk chocolate covered cherries than anything I've had. Also a dash of cinnamon powder and cereal grain. Finish is long with semi-sweet chocolate, medicinal cherry, cinnamon vanilla frosting, and light ethanol. All I can say is thank god or whomever that I can still buy great picks from state-controlled liquor stores, because these Russell's picks are $80-95 everywhere I've looked in Kentucky. And so far, the few picks I've bought from OHLQ have been winners. This is an excellent, slightly off-profile Russell's with much more chocolate than the typical pick. If it had a year or two more to eliminate some of those sharp edges from the grain and baking spices, this might be 5 stars. Summary of the review, OHLQ does a good job with barrel picks.

Nose is sweet with csramel and fruit Sweet up front with a lot of vanilla. Some cherry/citrus notes as well. Heat on the finish I really like this one. A little pricey though

Kroger Wine & Spirits pick Barrel No. 22-0915 Warehouse CN-B; Floor 6 Distilled on 05-09-2013 Dumped on 06-08-2023 Bottled on 07-17-2023 Age - 10 years, 30 days Open 6 weeks Nose - Bitter oak tannins, dry cinnamon, black pepper, light caramel, clove, burnt vanilla, musty hay, and medium ethanol. Palate - Odd combination of oily and drying, unsweetened gingerbread, peppercorns, toffee, and toasted marshmallow. Finish is medium-long with strong bitter and dry oak, freshly cracked peppercorns, ginger, cinnamon, and strong ethanol. Who knew I could walk into a Kroger liquor store in Northern Kentucky and find a 10+ year Russell's pick for $15 less than nearby independent stores? The stores seemed to have a terrible selection, but surprisingly had multiple barrel picks and batches of Elijah Craig, Russell's, Wild Turkey, Knob Creek, Booker's, and more that are typically harder to find and more expensive in nearby locations. Maybe this was sitting on the shelf is because it isn't very good, arguably the worst Russell's pick I've had. On first crack, I would've given this a 2.5-2.75. Thankfully it mellowed out. It was harsh, tannic, and oddly off-profile. It's lacking the classic caramel and vanilla from most Wild Turkey products. I'll still take a chance on other Kroger picks if they're less money, they all can't be bad.