Brown sugar | Vanilla | Oak | Caramel | Faint overall

Slight oak | Light yellow cake | Thin vanilla | Touch of rye spice | Caramel sweetness | Thin mouthfeel

Rye spice | Oak | Touch of vanilla | White peppercorn | Short

Jim Beam Sunshine Blend falls under the “special release” category from Jim Beam Distillery. The company states that “the secret behind Sunshine Blend is that it's a delicate blend of our classic Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey and a new bourbon made with brown rice and aged for four years.” The company bills it as a mixing whiskey for your favorite bourbon cocktail; however, the bottle also states that consumers should “drink it any damn way you please."

While Jim Beam Sunshine Blend was designed as a mixing bourbon, it will no doubt be sipped neat by some bourbon drinkers, especially at its $20 price point. Those who do drink it this way will find a light and easy drinking bourbon, but one that lacks the necessary oomph to stand out.

The sip starts with a faint overall aroma that focuses on classic bourbon scents. The midpoint is thin, but a pleasing caramel sweetness helps prop it up. Finishing on a wave of lighter rye spice, oak, and a touch of vanilla, the whiskey wraps things up quickly. Overall, this isn’t a bad bourbon; its delivery is just incredibly light, enough so that it comes across as a below-average bourbon. That said, as a mixer, it works perfectly, blending into simple one or two-ingredient cocktails, which is precisely what Jim Beam envisioned with this release.