Russell's Reserve Single Barrel Bourbon

Pleasant smell, hints of ice, honey, citrus, and cake. On the palate it's sweet at first, then numbing spice. Bitter chocolate on the backend. A weird cardboard note as well. Definitely spicy, but the alcohol heat is not as much as I expected it to be. You can taste the corn and the rye notes separately, almost like you're drinking two different whiskies. Adding a limestone water ice cube seems to heighten the vanilla on the palate, but also bring out more of the cardboard notes. I imagine there's some variability since this is a single barrel product. 1/23/17 Tried a different bottle with the older label. Definitely complex with lots of good flavors. Still has a cardboard note that I don't care for, if not for that I would rate this higher. 4/2/17