Rating: 10/23 This is some dirt cheap Total Wine store brand bourbon, so obviously I expect it to be bad, though upon closer inspection, I am seeing that it's a straight bourbon, so it must not be the most absolutely awful of swill, like that 6 month old stuff that makes it into bottles sometimes. Still, it's only 40% ABV. N: Actually, a nice nose with slightly toasty oak, caramel, tangerine, vanilla, and limestone. It might smell a faint bit youthful (aside from not having a bold woody maturity, I mean), but it really doesn't smell at all bad. In fact, I'm quite enjoying this nose. P: Watery, but I certainly expected that at this proof. Then some spiciness comes in that's hard to place, but melds nicely into the surprising richness. There's caramel with that bit of tangerine heading into slightly tart limestone that adds minerality without making this taste watery. The palate is surprisingly full for only 40% ABV, though it certainly still comes off as low ABV. Vanilla makes its way in too. Perhaps a mild touch of licorice. F: This dries out as the wood makes its way in and blends nicely with the spices. Lingering vanilla for sure. Maybe a touch of licorice and hint of that sweet, rich core. - Conclusion - I'm honestly blown away by this. For $10 I expected something really undrinkable. This isn't great by any means, but it's shockingly actually sippable. The core profile here is really good, putting it in solid competition with the likes of Ancient Age (11/23), though I might like this a hair better because it comes across as a bit richer. Hard to say. An easy choice as a mixer if the drink doesn't need to pack the biggest alcohol punch. Trader Joe's bourbon (11/23) (allegedly sourced from Barton's). is less sweet and more funky, with more of a burn, but less richness. This is a bit flat in comparison though, with the licorice really coming out a lot more side by side. I'm kind of getting some flat Jim Beam Black vibes from this now. Coming back to this, I get richness, but it's kind of immature and bland. I get plenty of vanilla and also caramel, but not a ton is going on here. Previously, I was placing this on about the same level as the Trader Joe's, with the Trader Joe's being hotter and more challenging, but also a bit more interesting (though a bit less hedonistic). Now, I'm finding this to be below the Trader Joe's. I'm thinking a 10 or 11 and I'm pretty confident. This is also below Hotel Tango Bourbon Ready-To-Drink (11/23), which is just so borderline between a 10 and an 11, so I think that this must be a 10.