Eagle Rare Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 10 Year

90 Proof, Buffalo Trace Distillery

You know that new restaurant in town, the one in the isolated boxy building near the movie theater with the dining room that feels a little like banquet space? The food is actually decent, but the menu is scattered (traditional pastas, fish with Asian preparations, a southwestern chicken salad), the slick décor has one foot in the 1990′s, the wait staff wear black shirts and even the name has a little too much smooth (like Silk, or Taste! or Blue Flame)?

That’s what the Eagle Rare 10 Year is like. The name, sourcing the grand-dad double whammy of patriotism (Eagle) and prestige (Rare), along with the sleek, faux-etched bottle both feel like they’ve test marketed integrity right into the dirt. I mean, Eagle Rare? That doesn’t even make sense. The outward package screams blatant commercial endeavor, even if the brand (created by Charles Beam) originated over 30 years ago.

But so what if inside what’s inside the bottle rocks, right? Alas, like that restaurant that’s trying to hit each selling point at little too hard, the bourbon of Eagle Rare, while enjoyable in the whole, comes across as safe and glossy and lacking any real distinction. The nose gives up leather, caramel, dried apricot and a light smokiness. The palate is medium weight and dry with nice concentration and notes of berries, brown sugar and hard candy ending with hints of vanilla. And it’s all wrapped up in a predictably tight and balanced package.

It sounds okay, and it is, kind of like that grilled salmon with the orange-soy glaze: cures the hunger, fine to try once, but you probably won’t be going back for it again any time soon.

Score: 3