It has been a while since I picked up a bottle of Penelope whiskey. While I have tried a few over the years, I haven’t been overly impressed with their rather youngish bourbons. However, I stumbled across a bottle of Penelope Estate Collection Private Reserve 9 year old Bourbon. It is a blend of Kentucky and Indiana bourbons including either a four grain or a wheater, with the resulting mashbill being disclosed at 74% corn, 20% rye, 1% wheat, and 5% barley malt. Since I last tried Penelope, they have been acquired by MGP via its subsidiary Luxco, and this whiskey was actually bottled in St. Louis, Missouri, where MGP has a plant. This nine year old limited release bourbon cost me $86. It is non-chill filtered and bottled at 101.2 proof. It was aged in barrels with a number 4 char, and this release was approximately 36,000 bottles. For reference, this is comparable to the number of George T. Stagg bottles Buffalo Trace typically releases in a year.

The color on this is a nice amber; albeit not particularly impressive given the stated age. On the swirl though is a thick film with really thick legs; this is a nice oily bourbon. The nose says very traditional bourbon to me, but with some citrus and oak notes standing out. On the palate, the citrus notes come to the fore, along with cherry Altoids, and a ton of white pepper, baking spices, and oak. This is an interesting bourbon. On the finish, there is no youthful bitterness as I have found on other Penelope releases; there are notes of honey, caramel chews, and candied fruits, and then cinnamon really comes to the fore to dominate the palate. After leaving the bottle open for twenty four hours, the whiskey becomes a bit more distinguished and balanced.

At 101.2 proof, this is a really flavorful whiskey that punches above it’s weight class. This is a great price point on a nine year old high proof bourbon. And apparently for Penelope, getting bought by MGP via Luxco gave Penelope’s founders (who are still employed with the company) access to some really good barrels of bourbon for their new Estate Collection. Given what is in this bottle and the price point, I will certainly be looking for Penelope’s Estate Collection bottles in the future. Now, is this a limited release that is destined to be part of the elite whiskies on my living room bar? No, because at this price point I am just gong to enjoy it.