Off Hours Bourbon Whiskey Review

Off Hours Bourbon Whiskey is an MGP bourbon for the Instagram world. At least that’s the vibe I’m getting from their site and marketing. It’s a hipster bourbon I could see adorning the whiskey shelf of any number of brunch spots in Hollywood, WeHo, Silver Lake, etc. It’s obviously meant to capture the younger Millennial/older Gen Z market with their branding, packaging and messaging… and I have no problem with that because they’re also transparent.

Marketing is marketing and when you’re sourcing your bourbon that’s all you have. You could fabricate a complete and total bullshit story about your sourced whiskey, but only assholes do that. I’m a 15-year veteran of the marketing world and while I don’t particularly connect with their marketing I can appreciate what they’re attempting. Who they’re targeting is clear and the message is perfectly suited for that demo. Which I’m not in, and that’s fine.

What I find refreshing about this brand are two things. 1, mentioned above, they created a brand and marketing that has nothing to do with some garbage about a bootlegging great uncle’s lost recipe, and instead tailored everything to a “youthful modern drinker” and leaned heavily into it. 2, they managed to be fully transparent while doing this. The source, mash and age are listed plainly on the site leaving their clean minimalist label to contain only the bare minimum needed.

Branding and transparency are on point… but how’s the whiskey? Let’s get to drinkin’ and find out.

Off Hours Bourbon Whiskey – Details and Tasting Notes

Whiskey Details

Region: Indiana, USA

Distiller: MGP
Bottler: Off Hours Sprits
Mash Bill: 75% Corn, 21% Rye, 4% Malted Barley
Cask: New Charred Oak
Age: 5 Years
ABV: 47.5%

Price: $47*

White background tasting shot with the Off Hours Bourbon Whiskey bottle and a glass of whiskey next to it.

“This is a bourbon for life. For afternoon relaxations and late night conversations, we raise a glass to all of it and then some.” – Off Hours Spirits

Tasting Notes

EYE
Amber

NOSE
Creamy butterscotch, vanilla, cornbread, lemon poppyseed muffin, wax and dried fruit. One of the oddest aromas I’ve come across in a bourbon. I’m a tad conflicted on how I feel about it.

PALATE
Dried corn, vanilla cake, lemon muffin, dried apricots, nuts and a touch of baking spice and dried fruit. Again, so odd. It’s not a classic bourbon profile, more like a dessert whiskey if the category existed.

FINISH
Medium -> Dried corn, vanilla, lemon cake and dried fruit fade out to a farmy hay-like note combined with some minerality and banana taffy… so bizarre.

BALANCE, BODY and FEEL
Decent balance, medium body and a light feel.

Off Hours Bourbon Whiskey – Overall Thoughts and Score

This is a weird one for me and I’m not entirely sure I would call this as bourbon if done blind. The closest mental image I can conjure would be a matured corn-based new make, but without the oak that usually comes along. No craft woodiness, no well-aged oak heaviness, just mature spirit… and that’s bizarre. Were all these casks pulled from bottom racks and chill-filtered? It’s odd to have a 5 yo MGP bourbon be this light.

As a spirit, I’m neither loving nor hating the Off Hours Bourbon Whiskey. I find it to be a drinkable, but fairly neutral, whiskey that would make for a good brunch cocktail. Though when I shift gears and try to think “bourbon” I’m not fully making the connection and don’t want a glass of it neat. This first release is interesting and I’ll be curious to see what else they do and how this brand evolves.

SCORE: 2.5/5

*Disclosure: The sample for this bourbon review was graciously sent to me by the company without obligation. The views, opinions, and tasting notes are 100% my own.

Off Hours Bourbon Whiskey Review $47

Summary

A curious and interesting spirit that doesn’t scream bourbon, but also doesn’t scream not-bourbon. It sits in this unique limbo I’m not fully sure what to make of just yet.