Penelope Bourbon was founded in 2018 by Mike Paladini, who named the brand after his newborn daughter and built it around a blender's philosophy: take multiple mash bills and weave them into something more expressive than any one recipe could be. The Architect bottling is the clearest statement of that idea — a four-grain bourbon assembled from three distinct mash bills sourced from MGP in Indiana.
Each mash bill brings its own contribution. One leans high-rye for spice and structure, another carries wheat for softness and roundness, and the third holds the corn-forward sweetness as the foundation. Blended together at a respectable proof, the result is a bourbon with surprising layers for the price — sweet, spiced and rounded all at once.
The nose opens with vanilla and cinnamon roll, the wheat lending a soft bakery warmth before the rye wakes things up with a subtle pepper edge. On the palate, brown sugar and baking spice take the lead, joined by orange peel and a creamy oak note. The wheat does its quiet work in the background, smoothing rye's bite into something more rounded and approachable.
The finish is medium-long and gently warming, with vanilla, clove and a faint maple sweetness slowly fading. It's not a heavy or imposing bourbon — that's not Architect's job. Its job is to be balanced, layered and a little bit clever, the kind of bottle you can pour for a curious friend without lecturing them.
Penelope Bourbon Architect is sourced whiskey done with intent, and it makes a strong case that a thoughtful blender can be every bit as much a craftsman as a distiller.
