Penelope Bourbon

If you asked me to identify this without knowing anything, I would be certain it was an Irish whiskey. Nose is malt and wet grass, with maybe a little crusty bread in the background. On the palate, I get malt and chocolate. Finishes short with just a little bit of spice. Light throughout. Very different from my first impressions, where the pine was super pronounced. Now, with an open bottle, no pine and a lot of malt (I'm always surprised to see how little malt there is in the actual mash bill). I've definitely warmed to it, but given how vegetal it is, I think some bourbon drinkers will be unpleasantly surprised.

Nose: sweet and fruity. Not too robust/complex. Taste: the sweetness comes through… just as the nose, it’s not a lot. There’s a bit of ethanol bite, like it’s a little too young for this to be a great sip. Palate: thin and warm, sweetness carries all the way. Overall: I could drink this every day without disappointment. It’s nice, not great and reminds me of a younger version of eagle rare.

Young and light. Nose is grain, pine, and mint. Taste is subtle so a little difficult to be specific, but maybe caramel and fruit. Finish is quick but a little bitter - my least favorite part. All in all, interesting but disappointing. I warmed toward it over the course of my glass though, so maybe I'll feel differently after the second glass of the bottle.

The nose was a tough balance of sweet and floral on one side with a touch of paint thinner on the other. The palate was the same kind of balancing act of metallic with notes of cherry and vanilla, but overall bland. The finish burned then tapered off into a waxiness. It wasn’t the worst bourbon I’ve had, but Odysseus and I were not impressed.

Light bodied, smooth and sweet, some nutty and vanilla flavors, get a hint of light florals too. Leaves you wanting more, likely because it is 80 proof. A good “introduction to bourbon” and a good nightly neat drink. The downside, much like the Basil Hayden, is that the good parts of the taste don’t last long so it a little underwhelming.

My first thought was that it looks too pale to be bourbon. It does indeed taste thin, with the sweet and caramel notes being very subtle. There’s a vegetal flavor in the finish reminiscent of tequila. It’s not a bad whiskey but I don’t know if I would call it bourbon. I think that I will stick to my Evan Williams.