Peerless Pursuit (Round 5!) - Distillers Row and Lemon Pop Rocks Single Barrel Bourbon Picks Review
Background
It’s your resident Peerless shill back for another review! One of the best things about Whiskey Row in Louisville is that the proximity of everything means you can just pop into distilleries and see what's up. You never know what bottle releases or distillery-only tastings you might find, and so stopping by Peerless on the way to our recent Old Forester pick was a no brainer.
And credit to Peerless, they did not disappoint! Not only do they consistently have new distillery only single barrels, they recently launched a new “express tasting” option. Perfect for an awkward amount of time between more formal tours and tastings, you can now swing by for a 15-20 minute tasting where you’ll pick two pours from a lineup of current offerings (was six when we were there). Before this review gets to be a longer read then the tasting itself, let’s get into the notes!
Peerless Single Barrel Bourbon - “Distillers’ Row Series” (6 Years, ~115 Proof)
Nose: One of my buddies said “the old, musty bubblegum you’d get with baseball cards” and that’s so spot on. The sweetness is balanced by a nice leathery funk.
Palate: More bubblegum sweetness but it's wonderfully intertwined with this leather and oak funk. It's rich, with a natural maple syrup mouthfeel.
Finish: Still some maple syrup, nougat, and fresh tobacco leaf. Rich, sweet and delicious.
Great (7/10)
Overall: My bad, I forgot to write down the exact proof but I believe it was around 115. Anyways, at almost seven years, it’s amazing to see how Peerless Bourbon is developing. There’s a richness and robustness to this sip that is migrating closer to their double oak bourbon than past single barrel bourbons I have had from them. But where the double oak is a little more chocolate or wood polish driven, there’s a harmony of fruit, dark sugar, and oak notes to this pick. I do truly believe that everything in their production (low barrel entry proof, single level rickhouses, Kelvin Cooperage barrels) lends itself to a whiskey that is going to age exceptionally gracefully.
Peerless Single Barrel Bourbon - “Lemon Pop Rocks” (6 Years, 114.1 Proof)
Nose: Grilled lemon, a touch herbal and grassy, heavy on the citrus and inviting.
Palate: Lemonhead candies, candied ginger, cloves and baking spices.
Finish: Natural cinnamon, lemon tea, it lingers herbal, citrus, spicy and yet still bright on the palate. Like a natural iced tea with lemon and a bit of baking spice.
Very Good (6/10)
Overall: Excellent variety between these two whiskeys, and this one is as advertised with the bright lemon candy notes. It’s married with a bit of herbaceousness, at times providing notes of lemon herbal tea or Ricola cough drops. I’d kill to mix this in with some ice tea and make a bootleg bourbon Arnold Palmer.
Previous Peerless Reviews: