Russell's Reserve Single Barrel bourbon, barrel 93 for Cleveland Bourbon Club

This is from my actual bottle, but I can't find any bottle pics. I saved this sample, then sent some out to friends around two years ago. This Russell's Reserve was CBC's second bourbon selection ever and, more importantly, a good bottle that drank fast. I drank this sample alongside Monday's Russell's 10yo and *SPOILER ALERT* the competition was over quicker than it began.

Brand: Wild Turkey

Owner: Gruppo Campari
Range: Russell's Reserve
Distillery: Wild Turkey Distillery
Location: Lawrenceburg, Kentucky
Mash Bill: around 13% rye (probably)
Age: around 8 years old

Exclusive to: Cleveland Bourbon Club
Alcohol by Volume: 55%

(from somewhere in my bottle)

One notices immediately how much calmer the nose is despite the higher ABV and shorter maturation time, when the whiskey is compared to the Russell's 10yo. There are cherries, mixed nuts, toasted sesame seeds, roses, black raisins ...... yes, I'm going to go on ...... cotton candy, vanilla bean and hints of Elmer's glue and ground mustard seed. The palate leads with lots of citrus and marasca syrup. Then sea salt, dark chocolate and mild oak notes. It gets sweeter with time. The sweet, fruity finish (think cherry syrup and clementines) has a good length to it, and no weird tannins.

Yum. The winning combo here is more fruit, less tannin. And, yes, I probably should have gotten another bottle. We all know that tune. I enjoyed this pick while it lasted, in fact it's my only bourbon bottle in the past four years whose contents never swam in a cocktail. If bourbon was usually this good, I'd buy more bourbon! It's about time I try the regular version of this stuff, and I'll attempt to keep my expectations in check.

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - ????
Rating - 87