MDBourbon Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 Curious to know what people think of this release. Apologies if there is already a dedicated thread for this. I could not locate one in the search. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gotzero Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 I picked one up recently in MD. I am enjoying it but wish it was higher proof and lower price. For now I assume the high price is just to keep NDPs from losing it. I think it is more significant as a harbinger of things to come. MGP clearly has a lot of great whiskey aging, and I would like to see more of it available straight from the source (and preferably straight from the barrel). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BourbonGuy Posted December 24, 2015 Share Posted December 24, 2015 I saw a bottle for just shy of $68. I passed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDBourbon Posted December 25, 2015 Author Share Posted December 25, 2015 1 hour ago, BourbonGuy said: I saw a bottle for just shy of $68. I passed. I've seen them for that, keep passing but very curious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanstaafl2 Posted December 25, 2015 Share Posted December 25, 2015 3 hours ago, MDBourbon said: I've seen them for that, keep passing but very curious. As am I (well, I tend to be curious about any new whiskey, especially if it is a major distillery and not an unknown sourced or young small barrel whiskey). One would think that they would try to put their best foot forward with their first offering direct from the distillery and that the Master Distiller would try to make sure an inaugural bottle bearing his name was a pretty decent whiskey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gotzero Posted December 25, 2015 Share Posted December 25, 2015 I went back and picked up a second bottle for the stacks. It is not lifetime top 5 or anything but I am really enjoying it and if nothing else it will be a fun future conversation piece. Tonight I am trying a Smooth Ambler 10 year single barrel cask strength high rye bourbon that weighed in at a whopping 48.9%. I think it is a good sign LDI/MGP was tinkering with low entry proof over a decade ago. Must be lots of interesting things in the warehouse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jersey12 Posted December 26, 2015 Share Posted December 26, 2015 Just got a bottle of this for Christmas. Hope to crack it open tonight and will share my thoughts for those interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Black Tot Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Yes, we're interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berto Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 I went to a tasting of some Japanese stuff about a month ago and the rep had an open bottle of Metze's for the store to sample. I talked her into letting me and my buddy have a sip. We both liked it. It was on the sweeter side but not overly so. A very solid bourbon. I would have liked a bit higher proof. And the price is $20 more than I think is warranted. That said I ordered a bottle over the weekend and should have it later this week. For me it's worth further exploration. I'm splitting the bottle with two friends so ~$22 for 8oz is worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jersey12 Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Opened the bottle tonight. Kind of a light nose with some cinnamon and pepper notes. Very smooth and elegant mouth feel with a nice touch of rye spice on the finish. Definitely an easy drinking pour that I imagine would go over well with the non-enthusiast set. Overall, I like it and am happy to have a bottle but doubt I would pay $65+ for another. If it were bottled around 110 proof, I may think otherwise. Interested to hear some thoughts from the other members here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokinjoe Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 I'm on the fence with this one. As a bourbon enthusiast, I have an interest to try anything and everything, with price not necessarily being an immediate reason to proceed, or not. So, a relatively high ~$65 only gives me slight pause with this whiskey. But more concerning is the fact that I just have never found many of the MGP bourbons that I've tried to catch my fancy. I've had dozens of different Smooth Ambler regular and Private Selection bottles, along with other NDP variations, and nearly all have fallen flat for me. On the other hand, this is a release from the distillery itself, which piques my curiosity as to what MGP thinks how their whiskey should be presented. Maybe, their iteration will hit me better? So, having less willpower than our Sheltie, I'll probably pay to see it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drunk Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Aside from the 7 year Old Scout, I've had a great experience with Smooth Ambler. Especially the 10 year 110 proof Binny's pick that I just bought for $60! I'm interested in trying this, but I'm not going to pay $10 more for younger, lower proof stuff. Once again, I can easily walk away from a "special edition". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDBourbon Posted January 2, 2016 Author Share Posted January 2, 2016 On December 31, 2015 at 11:11:46 AM, smokinjoe said: I'm on the fence with this one. As a bourbon enthusiast, I have an interest to try anything and everything, with price not necessarily being an immediate reason to proceed, or not. So, a relatively high ~$65 only gives me slight pause with this whiskey. But more concerning is the fact that I just have never found many of the MGP bourbons that I've tried to catch my fancy. I've had dozens of different Smooth Ambler regular and Private Selection bottles, along with other NDP variations, and nearly all have fallen flat for me. On the other hand, this is a release from the distillery itself, which piques my curiosity as to what MGP thinks how their whiskey should be presented. Maybe, their iteration will hit me better? So, having less willpower than our Sheltie, I'll probably pay to see it... Buy it buy it buy it... I'll probably do the same. Just saw it local for the first time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry in WashDC Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Metze's Select had a booth at WhiskFest Washington DC last night. I'm pretty sure it was MGP's Master Distiller, Greg Metze, who was pouring (forgot to ask, but he sure looks like the guy in GM's pictures). Being used to the very high rye spice in MGP spirits sold to NDPs, I was surprised at how UNrye-like this is. (Well, it is a bourbon with a rye component instead of 95% rye, so . . .) The MGP website press release (July 21, 2015) announcing its release says: "MGP’s Master Distiller Greg Metze has crafted only 6,000 hand-numbered bottles of this unique expression, which is the result of marrying three distinct straight bourbon whiskeys. The brand consists of 38% 2006 bourbon (21% rye), 3% 2006 bourbon (36% rye), and 59% 2008 bourbon (21% rye), all made by MGP. Metze’s Select is bottled at 46.5% alcohol by volume and will be available in 750ml bottles at a suggested retail price of $74.99. It is expected to be available at retail beginning in September this year. - See more at: http://www.mgpingredients.com/news-and-press/MGP-Introduces-Metzes-Select-Limited-Edition-Indiana-Straight-Bourbon-Whiskey-317801921.html#sthash.KHEYYQS9.dpuf" Mr. Metze was telling me about the mash bill but I missed some of it because I sipped and spent a few seconds in nirvana so I went to the website today to pull that paragraph. I have owned a few shares of MGPI for years so I visit the website on occasion. I asked him if Metze's Select is the first move into general retail selling by MGP given, particularly, the expansion of their mash bills. He said that MGP company, not the distiller's arm, makes those calls but that no formal announcement either way has been made to his knowledge. I noted they had purchased the Schenley property nearby and asked how work there is proceeding. He said they are, indeed, expanding storage space on that property for aging their various lines. The persons in the booth indicated in passing that the high price of the Metze's Select was due to the experimental nature of the release and that future releases likely would be in larger amounts and, we can all hope, less than MSRP $75. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanstaafl2 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Sounds like you enjoyed it? I bought it on a whim to fill out an online purchase I made a couple of days ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry in WashDC Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Yes, I did enjoy it - not at $75 MSRP enjoyment (thinking now of the barrel picks of 4R that pop up regularly around here), but I did like it. If I were faced with, say, one of the LE Wild Turkeys @ $125 and this @ $60, I likely would get two of the Metze. Incidentally and off-thread, John Glaser was there with a half dozen or so of his Compass Box offerings. His Hedonism and Hedonism Quindecimus were wonderful. I also love the amount of info he discloses on his blends - not just provenance but age, percent of the final blend, and grains, etc. If I hadn't just been talking with David Perkins and remembered your trip to HW, I might not have also remembered comments you made about CB on the scotch threads and would not have stopped by. So, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanstaafl2 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 My pleasure! Interesting that John is back across the pond for Whiskyfest. I guess he and David typically go to all of them. And even Jimmy Russell was there. I wonder if they will both be in Chicago as well or if they are perhaps trying to pull out all the stops since DC is a new location for Whiskyfest this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Black Tot Posted March 4, 2016 Share Posted March 4, 2016 If they can get the price down below 50 (and perhaps the proof up to >=100) and the release numbers are such that we don't have to beg retailers for it, I'll be very pleased indeed. The aging expansion at Schenley is particularly exciting to read about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjbeggs Posted March 17, 2016 Share Posted March 17, 2016 My favorite store got a big chunk of the allocation for our area of this. He's one of a few stores to still have it on the shelf, and he's still got several bottles. I grabbed one yesterday for $49 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanstaafl2 Posted March 17, 2016 Share Posted March 17, 2016 Good price compared to what I have seen so far online. No sniff of it locally so far. Unfortunately based on the one I have been trying (which cost $61 on sale plus shipping) I won't be rushing out to get more even if I could find it locally at $49. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry in WashDC Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 10 hours ago, tanstaafl2 said: Good price compared to what I have seen so far online. No sniff of it locally so far. Unfortunately based on the one I have been trying (which cost $61 on sale plus shipping) I won't be rushing out to get more even if I could find it locally at $49. I saw the GBS comments you all posted a couple days ago. In retrospect, I agree; that is, my WhiskyFest euphoria has now worked its way through my liver, and my blurred vision has miraculously cured itself. I do look forward to their next release which they told me will be less expensive and larger. We'll see. I think my strike price is $40 now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanstaafl2 Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 12 hours ago, Harry in WashDC said: I saw the GBS comments you all posted a couple days ago. In retrospect, I agree; that is, my WhiskyFest euphoria has now worked its way through my liver, and my blurred vision has miraculously cured itself. I do look forward to their next release which they told me will be less expensive and larger. We'll see. I think my strike price is $40 now. Well, I don't know if it is the next release or not but the label they just cleared doesn't generate a lot of interest for me. Among the new labels cleared per SKU's blog: A label cleared for what appears to be a new official MGP whiskey. Cloud's Batch '41 is a blended wheat whiskey bottled in celebration of MGP's 75th anniversary. It's composed of 51% two year old straight wheat whiskey and 49% neutral spirits distilled from wheat. Umm, yeah. So it's less than $10 a bottle, right??? To their credit at least they say exactly what it is on the label and don't try to make it out as something it is not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 ^^^Jeeeeeze... to celebrate 75 years, you'd think they'd want to release something special? I'm thinking something around 9-12 years old and barrel proof! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulO Posted March 19, 2016 Share Posted March 19, 2016 On 3/18/2016, 12:59:26, tanstaafl2 said: Well, I don't know if it is the next release or not but the label they just cleared doesn't generate a lot of interest for me. Among the new labels cleared per SKU's blog: A label cleared for what appears to be a new official MGP whiskey. Cloud's Batch '41 is a blended wheat whiskey bottled in celebration of MGP's 75th anniversary. It's composed of 51% two year old straight wheat whiskey and 49% neutral spirits distilled from wheat. Umm, yeah. So it's less than $10 a bottle, right??? To their credit at least they say exactly what it is on the label and don't try to make it out as something it is not. I'm not sure what the concept or who the market is for this. I've been underwhelmed by Bernhiem Wheat. So this is much younger plus about half GNS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokinjoe Posted March 19, 2016 Share Posted March 19, 2016 23 minutes ago, PaulO said: I'm not sure what the concept or who the market is for this. I've been underwhelmed by Bernhiem Wheat. So this is much younger plus about half GNS. I may be way of base on this, but it may be a way to commemorate their history by offering a combo of product from both of their distilling operations? Wheat whiskey from Lawrenceburg and wheat GNS from Atchison? Or, if both are produced in the same facility, perhaps giving a nod to both their aged whiskies, and the historical general alcohol production from Kansas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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