Review by: Raygun

Bourbon has to be at least 51% corn by law. Usually that remaining 49% is rye, sometimes wheat, and malted barley. However, the law doesn’t say what that other 49% has to be. So MGP decided to make a bourbon recipe with the highest possible rye content: 39% regular and 10% malted rye. This particular one is a single barrel bottled for SharedPour. Reviewed from a sample. Rested about 10 minutes.

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Distillery: MGP  

Bottler/Brand: Remus  

Region/style: Indiana straight bourbon whiskey

ABV: 59.05%. Barrel proof. 

Age: Not stated, but reputed to be 6-7 years old. Released in 2024.  

Cask type: New oak

Color: 1.4 tawny

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Nose: Some herbal rye scent straight away, strong on the mint and yes, dill. Caramel and a touch of orange. Not hugely oaky, but spicy and herbal.        

Palate: I was expecting it to be somewhere between bourbon and rye…and sure enough, it is. Plenty of caramel and a little cherry, and mint, caraway, and dill. Sweet, with a spicy punch. Medium oak.    

Finish: Brown sugar, mint ice cream, caraway, and some vanilla. Not far off the palate, in short. Drinks pretty easily.      

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Conclusion: Nice stuff. Better than experiments often turn out to be. Might be a little mild for big rye fans, I suppose. Interesting to try the highest rye possible for a bourbon, though I won’t be rushing out to get a bottle.

Score: 79

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Scoring Legend:

• 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
• 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category. (Blanton’s Straight from the Barrel)
• 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram. (Stagg Jr batch 12)
• 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff. (Elijah Craig Barrel Proof (new))
• 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting. (Pikesville Rye)
• 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better. (Wild Turkey 101)
• 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink. (Maker’s Mark)
• 50-59: Save it for mixing. (Old Grandad 114)
• 0-49: Blech. (High West Yippee-ki-yay)