Rebel Yell 10yr Single Barrel

A little background

I’m just going to start this review off by saying that patience is a virtue. More specifically a necessity when it comes to this bourbon.  I have owned and drank bottles from three different barrels of Rebel Yell 10. Each one was borderline undrinkable to me when first opened due to a heavy and unpleasant perfume quality.  So, with these bottles I find letting them oxidize for a couple of months once opened make a world of difference.  With all that out of the way let’s get to the specs; Rebel Yell 10 from Lux Row Distillers is a wheated bourbon that was distilled at Heaven Hill and comes in at 100⁰ with a retail price of around $60.

(Tasted neat from a Sterling Neat Taster after a couple months of oxidation.)

Color in the glass

Deep Gold

Nose  

Pleasant but straight forward nose that comes off ethanol heavy with roasted cashews, tobacco, vanilla, maple syrup, and cedar.

Palate

There is an interesting ethanol singe on the front of the tongue that some may find off-putting followed by sweet pecan pie, vanilla, nutmeg, and cardamom.

Finish

Nice (slightly dry) oak presence with the return of tobacco, cinnamon, and white pepper. The ethanol heat from the nose and palate has but dissipated by this point.

In closing

Rebel Yell 10 is not exactly what I expected from a “wheater” the first time I tried it. The somewhat aggressive ethanol presence makes it much spicier than most other wheated bourbons I have tried.  Due to this I tend to compare it to bourbons with the more common rye grain mash bill and that are of similar age.  With that in mind I feel Rebel Yell 10 is a good bourbon, but it takes time to get there.