When I went to Hokus on Friday they had something new in the bourbon section – Dancing Panda bourbon, in a four year old, eight year old, and ten year old bottlings. Hudson Funk told me that the four year old was New Riff distillate, and the ten year old is Heaven Hill, and I forgot where he said the eight year old came from. In the ticket portion of the label, it does disclose that it is Kentucky Straight Bourbon, so that is all we know for sure. For $84 I bought the ten year old, thinking that if this is 100 proof ten year old Kentucky bourbon it is probably pretty good. Dancing Panda has no website to speak of but they do have an Instagram, and my research on the internet yielded very little public information on Dancing Panda. But with a name like Dancing Panda with a cork stopper with a caped Panda waving a flag while kicking on leg up, I had to get a bottle. I do like that whoever is behind this is not pretending they have some historical reference behind their sourced bourbon, or some entertainment star behind their bourbon. Instead, they went with a circus reference with a topper Whistlepig would appreciate.

The color on this is a nice solid amber; reflecting that this was darker before they proofed it down but it likely was aged in a cooler part of the warehouse with less barrel influence than if it were aged on an upper floor. On the swirl is a thin film that turns into many oily droplets that defy gravity, and then big thick oily legs develop. Really nice. The nose is pretty traditional bourbon but with an emphasis on caramel, baked cinnamon rolls, some herbal rye, and some nice oak in the background. On the palate, the caramel notes really come to the fore, along with some vanilla, some baking spices, and, despite the color, a nice healthy dose of oak tannin. On the second sip there is some candied green apple I am getting on the chew that gives this bourbon some nice tartness to offset the sweetness, along with some herbal notes from the rye. This is a really complex and delicious bourbon, and punches above 100 proof flavor-wise. On the finish, baking spice and clove come to the fore in a big way such that you would think this was cask strength bourbon, along with more oak tannin.

This is a solid pour. Despite the novelty of the name, the labeling, and the Panda on the topper, this is a really good and complex bourbon that I can appreciate as a connoisseur. Yet, with the proof and flavor profile, I think this bourbon is pretty approachable. Circuses are fun, and so is this bourbon.