Overview: For years, MGP’s distillery in Lawrenceburg, Indiana was the open secret of the bourbon industry — producing world-class distillate that other brands bottled under their own labels. If you’ve ever wondered why so many bottles say “distilled in Indiana,” MGP is most of that answer. The Remus Repeal Reserve series is what happens when the distillery stops selling the good stuff and keeps it for themselves.

Each annual release is a fully transparent blend — Ross & Squibb publishes the exact composition, distillation years, mashbills, and percentages. That kind of openness is rare in an industry that routinely hides behind NAS labels and vague “hand-selected” copy. Series VI, released in fall 2022, follows Series V — a release that earned genuine raves from people who don’t raves easily. That’s a tough act to follow. Here’s how it holds up.

The Blend

Series VI is a combination of five reserve bourbons across two mashbills and three distillation years:

Vintage	Age	Mashbill	Share
2008	14 years	21% rye (low rye)	2%
2012	10 years	36% rye (high rye)	17%
2012	10 years	21% rye (low rye)	27%
2014	8 years	36% rye (high rye)	25%
2014	8 years	21% rye (low rye)	29%

The 2008 component is only 2% of the blend, but fourteen-year MGP bourbon is not nothing — it anchors the whole thing without dominating it. The real work is being done by the 2012 and 2014 barrels, split roughly 42/57 between high-rye and low-rye mashbills. That push-pull between the two is where this bottle finds its character.

Age: 8–14 years (see blend above)

Proof: 100 (50% ABV)

Mashbill: Multiple — see blend breakdown above

Nose: Classic mature MGP right out of the glass — brown sugar, nutmeg, candied cherries. It’s recognizable if you’ve spent any time with Indiana distillate at age. Let it sit for a minute and a more interesting layer develops: saddle leather, pipe tobacco, and something like glazed fig. There’s a faint bready, yeasty note underneath that keeps it grounded. Inviting and well-composed.

Palate: Oily and coating — a reliable signature of this series. Toffee and maple syrup lead up front, then the high-rye components show up in the middle: cinnamon, clove, and black pepper pushing back against the sweetness. It’s a good tension. Baker’s chocolate shows up underneath the spice and gives the mid-palate some depth. Nothing feels jarring or disconnected. The blending team earned their paycheck here.

Finish: Long, dry, and warming. The sweetness steps aside and oak, leather, and rye spice take over — not harsh, but serious. It dries the palate out just enough to make the next sip interesting. At 100 proof there’s zero alcohol roughness; this drinks considerably bigger than the number on the label.

Final Thoughts: Is it Series V? No. Series V had an aged oak depth that this vintage can’t fully replicate given the younger barrel composition. But measured on its own terms, Series VI is an excellent bourbon. The high-rye components keep it lively, the older 2008 anchor adds something you can sense without being able to point at directly, and the 100 proof sweet spot makes it approachable without sacrificing substance. At $100 MSRP it’s at the high end of what I’ll call a justified purchase — if you find it near retail, that’s the move.

In This Series

The Repeal Reserve is an annual release and I’ve had my hands on a few. Reviews of other series are in progress — I’ll link them here as they go up.

• Remus Repeal Reserve Series V — the 2021 release; the oldest barrel composition in the series, with 13–16 year stocks
• Remus Repeal Reserve Series VI — this review
• Remus Repeal Reserve Series VII — coming soon

Rating: Top Shelf — Rating system explained