Sips review: Proper No. Twelve

  • Distiller: Proper Whiskey
  • Category: Blender
  • Region: Ireland
  • ABV: 40%

The brainchild of MMA Champion Conor McGregor, the Proper No. Twelve is a blended Irish whiskey named after the area in Dublin in which McGregor grew up. David Elder is credited as the master distiller that worked on this triple-distilled blend that selects from nearly 100 other blends. The company, Eire Born Spirits donates $5 to first responder charities for each case sold – up to $1 million annually.

The bottle is an unassuming green with a black label that has white lettering. It has more heft to it than I expect. The label sports a tiger with a crown front and center – I imagine to invoke the predatory nature of a champion MMA fighter. When I open it, it smells like spice and vanilla; it pours out a color like straw.

I want to say that it was light in flavor and texture, that it tasted like fruits and spices. Really though, it just tastes like a very young whiskey that is still very rough around the edges. I coughed aloud when drinking it. It tingled long after the taste of it had disappeared, which made the short finish seem longer than it really was. Once I adjusted to the kick, eventually, it was fruity to the taste and balanced between a sweetness and an almost bitter taste.

Overall, it’s not a bad whiskey, just…it comes with an angry kick you have to adjust to before being able to appreciate it. It’s also not a complicated whiskey by any means. It reminds me of something that you’d find at a frat party where the main purpose of the evening was to get stupid drunk. In the end, I would never offer this as a sipping whiskey, especially not to anyone with a discerning palate.

Have you tried the Proper No. 12 as of yet? Tell me in the comments what your opinion and tasting notes are!

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