French Oak Bourbon Face-Off: Penelope Omega vs Maker's Mark 46 French Oaked Cask Strength; Ep. 96

French Oak Bourbon Face-Off: Penelope Omega vs Maker's Mark 46 French Oaked Cask StrengthTwo French oak finished bourbons go head to head in this episode of Bourbon Brass and Beyond, with a focus on how finishing, mash bill, age, and proof shape the final pour. Dan and Bob compare Penelope Omega 11 Year and Maker's Mark 46 French Oaked Cask Strength, then dig into Maker's history, tours, and a few personal stories along the way.#penelope #bourbon #makersmark #frenchoak #whiskey #billsmauelsjr #wheated #bourbontasting #podcast #bourbonbrassandbeyond #barrelseasoning Key topicsIn this episode: Dan and Bob compare Penelope Omega 11 Year and Maker's Mark 46 French Oaked Cask Strength side by side.Penelope Omega is introduced as an 11 year bourbon finished 3 to 4 years in French oak, bottled at 109.8 proof.Maker's Mark 46 French Oaked Cask Strength is bottled at 112 proof and is discussed as a toasted French oak stave finish.They break down Penelope's mash bill as 79% corn, 10% rye, 1% barley, and note that it reads as corn-forward with a toasted nose.The Penelope shows notes of caramel, vanilla, sweet oak, raisin, and dark fruit, with a medium finish and strong mouthfeel.They compare it to prior Penelope estate releases and suggest the older single barrels may have been softer and more muted than this bottle.Maker's Mark gets a deeper history segment, including the Samuels family, Bill Samuels Jr., the move from engineering and NASA toward whiskey, and the brand's long-standing wheated style.Dan and Bob discuss how Maker's finishes its whiskey after the core liquid is aged, including stave seasoning and stave finishing rather than true single-barrel variation.They note the Maker's nose is sweeter and more pronounced than Penelope's, with classic caramel, vanilla, and brown sugar notes.The episode closes with a direct preference comparison: Penelope wins on flavor and finish for them, Maker's wins on nose.Timestamps00:00 - French oak theme and the two bottles on deck01:26 - Penelope Omega mash bill and proof breakdown02:30 - First impression of Penelope's toasted nose03:28 - Penelope's mouthfeel, finish, and flavor04:33 - Raisin and dark fruit notes from French oak05:23 - Comparing Penelope to earlier estate single barrels06:26 - Penelope estate packaging and proof differences08:39 - Maker's Mark 46 French Oaked Cask Strength intro09:08 - Bill Samuels Jr. story and Maker's origin10:38 - Makers' wheated mash bill and Pappy Van Winkle yeast11:07 - Tasting prep for Maker's French Oaked 4612:17 - Maker's sweeter nose and caramel vanilla profile13:48 - Maker's flavor evolution and familiar top-of-tongue note15:05 - How Maker's uses stave finishing after aging16:18 - Woodford, Buffalo Trace, and distillery tour comparisons17:51 - Why this is a cask strength version of the standard whiskey18:52 - Flavor vs nose: Penelope and Maker's side by side19:19 - Star Hill Farm, Heart releases, and Cellar Aged talk20:33 - Kids, permits, and the chaos of teen driving years22:20 - Looking for Wyatt's first car and a father-son road trip idea23:19 - Learning to drive young, including a 13-year-old road home24:38 - Final verdict: Penelope on flavor, Maker's on nose25:36 - Closing thoughts and future guest tease26:06 - Subscribe, comment, and where to find the show Bourbon, Brass & Beyond - https://www.bourbonbrassandbeyond.com