Hard to go wrong with Makers, Woodford, Basil Haydens. After trying them all over the last few years. Those are solid store bought brands.
Thinking I was pretty much knowing most of what a casual sipper would need to know about bourbon, I was surprised to have developed a taste for something different. lately I have found that un-barreled corn whiskey, properly done, highly distilled but still maintaining a sipping quality and a wonderful corn smell with a hint of sweetness is far superior to any store bought bourbon. Just hold a jar up to the sun. It will put a smile on your face. The stuff has many names. And there is a lot of variance in the flavor and style. Find the right stuff and you'll be pleasantly surprised.
I'm starting to think that people started putting whiskey in barrels because it wasn't well made and needed some help. (stuff you think of while sipping clear corn whiskey).
Note - most trendy liquor store moonshines aren't great. A lot of them can't be called corn whiskey by definition of the law. I did discover a corn whiskey that is actually called Shine X or XXX or something like that. From a distiller in Philly. Disguised with that Shine name and in an ugly bottle that cheapens it's appearance, it is actually really good, it's way towards the sweet corn side of the spectrum, even almost smells buttery. Great for sipping. It's pot distilled so it retains a lot of corn flavors.
Nothing like a sip of the clear stuff on the porch of the hunting camp.