Bourbon Question

[Snowman79]

Got a friend that wants to buy me a good bottle of bourbon. Told me my budget was $150 and I have to pick it out. Booker?s is the most expensive bourbon I?ve ever tried. I liked it. Any suggestions?

[vv83]

The problem with Bourbon is the bottles that cost $150 and are worth it are pretty much impossible to find. If you come across a BTAC by any chance for $150 pick it up, but realistically I?d recommend Joseph Magnus straight bourbon. $80-100 and is a great bottle. You could probably find an angel envy cask strength for that $150 range but honestly it?s not worth that price. EC 18yr is doable in that price range if you can find it. Someone will probably eventually suggest Henry McKenna 10. Unless you find if for $30 I’d stay away, it’s over priced and extremely mediocre. I love bourbon, easily my favorite whiskey but if someone offered to buy me a $150 bottle I might go scotch instead as you?d get a much better value for your money. That Joseph Magnus won?t disappoint though

[MaroonFlounder]

Pappy van Winkle?

[Walkerhill]

Go to distiller.com (or get the app), select bourbon and sort by price (there is a $81-150 category). The community ratings are more helpful than expert imo (wisdom of the crowd).

I have never found you gain that much jumping from $100 to $150-$200. Going to that range I would look for something with an age statement vs a marketing gimmick.

[HaggardDawg]

Buffalo Trace EH Taylor Single Barrel...Also just tried Jefferson's Ocean Aged at Sea-Voyage 17. This probably the smoothest bourbon I've ever had. I was pleasantly surprised how good it is.

[defiantdog]

Best bourbons out there:

Peerless Small Batch Bourbon or Rye - roughly $75

Peerless "single barrels" - range from $120 and up

Old Forrester Statesmen - $50 (one of the best at that price)

Coopers Craft 100 - is made with the same spirral barrel as Jack Daniel's Sinatra Blend but for $30

Old Forrester 1910 - $60 (great double oak bourbon)

Heaven's Door 10 year - $110 (not a bourbon but a great whiskey made by Bob Dillan)

Michter's Rye - $60 (one of my favorite inexpensive ryes)

Rowan's Creek and Noah's Hill - $70 (great bourbon's made by Willet)

Hibiki Suntory - $100 (Japanese Whiskey that's definitely a good buy)

Henry McKenna 10Yr - $50 (2018 bourbon of the year)

1792 Full Proof - $50 (2019 bourbon of the year)

Stay away from Buffalo Trace products - they use steel vats and mass produce..... not worth the money they charge..... and secondary markets gouge for it.

[Walkerhill]

For this price range I would maybe also consider wild turkey master’s keep. I recently received some maker’s make private select that was excellent.

[Leroy Jenkins]

Got a friend that wants to buy me a good bottle of bourbon. Told me my budget was $150 and I have to pick it out. Booker?s is the most expensive bourbon I?ve ever tried. I liked it. Any suggestions?

If I had a $150 budget I would go 3 bottles of Woodford Reserve double oaked. (around 50 bucks)

The thing with whiskey is it's about finding what you like. There are no right answers, but there are some wrong ones.

[Randolph Dupree]

Had a bottle of Whistle Pig not too long ago, about $110/bottle. It was very good.

[Cooterpoot]

I'd rather had three fifths of good bourdon than one overpriced "good" bourbon. The average person can't tell much difference.

[DownwardDawg]

Best bourbons out there:

Peerless Small Batch Bourbon or Rye - roughly $75

Peerless "single barrels" - range from $120 and up

Old Forrester Statesmen - $50 (one of the best at that price)

Coopers Craft 100 - is made with the same spirral barrel as Jack Daniel's Sinatra Blend but for $30

Old Forrester 1910 - $60 (great double oak bourbon)

Heaven's Door 10 year - $110 (not a bourbon but a great whiskey made by Bob Dillan)

Michter's Rye - $60 (one of my favorite inexpensive ryes)

Rowan's Creek and Noah's Hill - $70 (great bourbon's made by Willet)

Hibiki Suntory - $100 (Japanese Whiskey that's definitely a good buy)

Henry McKenna 10Yr - $50 (2018 bourbon of the year)

1792 Full Proof - $50 (2019 bourbon of the year)

Stay away from Buffalo Trace products - they use steel vats and mass produce..... not worth the money they charge..... and secondary markets gouge for it.

Most bourbon drinkers and collectors, including me, really enjoy some of the Buffalo Trace products. Buffalo Trace itself is a good bourbon for the cheap price point. Weller Special Reserve is a great bourbon for $30. Blantons is fantastic if you don’t pay more than $60 for it (which I know is your point). I agree that it’s way overpriced on the secondary market but if you can find some of their products for market value, then I think it’s a good deal.
Another low priced bourbon that I love is Elijah Craig Small Batch. About $30 and I freakin love it!!

[Mathiston]

Best bourbons out there:

Peerless Small Batch Bourbon or Rye - roughly $75

Peerless "single barrels" - range from $120 and up

Old Forrester Statesmen - $50 (one of the best at that price)

Coopers Craft 100 - is made with the same spirral barrel as Jack Daniel's Sinatra Blend but for $30

Old Forrester 1910 - $60 (great double oak bourbon)

Heaven's Door 10 year - $110 (not a bourbon but a great whiskey made by Bob Dillan)

Michter's Rye - $60 (one of my favorite inexpensive ryes)

Rowan's Creek and Noah's Hill - $70 (great bourbon's made by Willet)

Hibiki Suntory - $100 (Japanese Whiskey that's definitely a good buy)

Henry McKenna 10Yr - $50 (2018 bourbon of the year)

1792 Full Proof - $50 (2019 bourbon of the year)

Stay away from Buffalo Trace products - they use steel vats and mass produce..... not worth the money they charge..... and secondary markets gouge for it.

Do NOT listen to this guy.

I would look for a bottle of Weller 12 or even the Weller Antique with the red label. It will take some searching though.

[BiscuitEater]

Stay away from Buffalo Trace products - they use steel vats and mass produce..... not worth the money they charge..... and secondary markets gouge for it.

Name the Distillers that don't use Stainless Steel Vats somewhere in the fermentation process. For example, I've been to both Peerless and old Forrester, and both ferment/hold bourbon in stainless steel.

And, it can't be bourbon if it's not aged in new charred white oak barrels.

FYI, I happen to like some Buffalo Trace products and don't find them too pricey. I do like some you mentioned but .. 'To each his own.'

To me, anyone that bought a 'bourbon of the year,' just paid way too much and probably buys Car and Driver 'car of the year' for the same reason.

[Walkerhill]

I would split the difference. Some of the Buffalo Trace line is hyped up by artificial product rationing and good marketing, but it also has some quality products.

I do not think Buffalo Trace distilled in stainless steel barrels. I have heard they store finished product in stainless steel barrels to prevent continued aging before a product goes to market. All the big distilleries do that though.

In general Pappy’s and Weller are way overpriced on the secondary market but they are good products if you like a wheated mash bill. The frenzy around them is super annoying though. Eagle Rare and EH Taylor are good bourbons imo. Stagg and Stagg Jr are really good. Blanton’s is ‘buy on sight’ at less than $75 but is also hard to come by these days.

[1bigdawg]

Best bourbons out there:

Peerless Small Batch Bourbon or Rye - roughly $75

Peerless "single barrels" - range from $120 and up

Old Forrester Statesmen - $50 (one of the best at that price)

Coopers Craft 100 - is made with the same spirral barrel as Jack Daniel's Sinatra Blend but for $30

Old Forrester 1910 - $60 (great double oak bourbon)

Heaven's Door 10 year - $110 (not a bourbon but a great whiskey made by Bob Dillan)

Michter's Rye - $60 (one of my favorite inexpensive ryes)

Rowan's Creek and Noah's Hill - $70 (great bourbon's made by Willet)

Hibiki Suntory - $100 (Japanese Whiskey that's definitely a good buy)

Henry McKenna 10Yr - $50 (2018 bourbon of the year)

1792 Full Proof - $50 (2019 bourbon of the year)

Stay away from Buffalo Trace products - they use steel vats and mass produce..... not worth the money they charge..... and secondary markets gouge for it.

It's Noah's Mill, not "Hill." Great Bourbon - Usually $45 - $50 in NOLA.

[BiscuitEater]

If I had a $150 budget I would go 3 bottles of Woodford Reserve double oaked. (around 50 bucks)

Leroy's got it right. Find what you like and a reasonable price. Double Oak at ~$50 is a good buy.

[DownwardDawg]

Do NOT listen to this guy.

I would look for a bottle of Weller 12 or even the Weller Antique with the red label. It will take some searching though.

I agree with both of those. The Weller 12 year is fantastic. But good luck finding it. I found one in December and the guy wanted $240. It’s $40 bourbon.

[Political Hack]

Hard to get but High West Yippee-Kai-Yay or midwinter's night's dram.

Form my bourbon guru.

[MaroonFlounder]

The thing with whiskey is it's about finding what you like. There are no right answers, but there are some wrong ones.

Yep.

To be honest, the Jim Beam Black Label Double-Oaked Twice Barrelled is pretty damn good.

And around $24

[vv83]

Hard to get but High West Yippee-Kai-Yay or midwinter's night's dram.

Form my bourbon guru.

Those are both ryes but definitely good pours as well. MWND you won’t be able to find this time of the year. Yippee should be easy to track down

[Leeshouldveflanked]

Evan Williams**...it will get him going.

[Prediction? Pain.]

If I had a $150 budget I would go 3 bottles of Woodford Reserve double oaked. (around 50 bucks)

I was about to write the same damn thing, dude. I love Woodford Double Oaked.

On the OP's question, personally, I've never had a bourbon that I'd pay $150 for. The most expensive bottle I've ever bought was right at that price point -- a $75 half-bottle of 17-year-old Dickel -- and it was solid but nowhere near worth what I paid. So I wouldn't focus on spending as close to $150 as you can. If the challenge is to buy the single "best" bottle you can for under that price, well dude, just buy your favorite bourbon and roll with it. Unless you've got crazy tastes, you're going to come in under $150.

My tastes change so much that the bottle I'd pick right this second probably isn't the one that I'd pick a month from now. If pressed, I'd be picking between these three:

Eagle Rare

Woodford Double Oaked

A Dickel product (either Barrel Select or a 10-year single barrel, assuming the barrel is on point)

All of those are between $30 and $50 in most markets and are widely available. I enjoy the high-proof, small batch stuff as much as the next guy -- I'm drinking Baker's as I write this and am working on a bottle of 13-year-old, 120 proof Knob Creek Single Barrel, too -- but, at least right now based on what I've been drinking, I don't fee like I can go wrong with the three I listed.

[SapperDawg]

Never going to get a good allocated bottle for less than $150 anymore.

Experienced bourbon drinker: get Old Forrester 1920, Angels Envy Rum Cask, or Jefferson's Ocean Cask Strength.

Otherwise get a Four Roses Single barrel, Elijah Craig barrel proof, Belle Meade barrel finished, or any store pick selection.

All of these should be generally available.

[Snowman79]

I really appreciate all the advice. I knew I came to the right place! And I will probably go with a couple of bottles of good stuff and insist my friend partake. We have similar tastes. We both usually drink EW black label, or WT 80 or 101.

[defiantdog]

Name the Distillers that don't use Stainless Steel Vats somewhere in the fermentation process. For example, I've been to both Peerless and old Forrester, and both ferment/hold bourbon in stainless steel.

And, it can't be bourbon if it's not aged in new charred white oak barrels.

FYI, I happen to like some Buffalo Trace products and don't find them too pricey. I do like some you mentioned but .. 'To each his own.'

To me, anyone that bought a 'bourbon of the year,' just paid way too much and probably buys Car and Driver 'car of the year' for the same reason.
Neither distill in stainless steel..... I'm talking about distilling, not holding tanks during the mash process. If you want to get technical..... Woodford is the only one who uses cedar staves in the initial process.

Buffalo Trace makes some good products, but you'll end up getting ripped off trying to buy them. Good luck finding Weller on the shelf. Hancock Reserve is one of my favorites from Buffalo Trace but that's even hard to find now.

[defiantdog]

Do NOT listen to this guy.

I would look for a bottle of Weller 12 or even the Weller Antique with the red label. It will take some searching though.

Weller 12? So you're willing to spend $200 for a $50 bottle of wheated bourbon? It's not on the shelf..... so you either have to have an "in" or buy it in the secondary market. Good luck

[defiantdog]

Name the Distillers that don't use Stainless Steel Vats somewhere in the fermentation process. For example, I've been to both Peerless and old Forrester, and both ferment/hold bourbon in stainless steel.

And, it can't be bourbon if it's not aged in new charred white oak barrels.

FYI, I happen to like some Buffalo Trace products and don't find them too pricey. I do like some you mentioned but .. 'To each his own.'

To me, anyone that bought a 'bourbon of the year,' just paid way too much and probably buys Car and Driver 'car of the year' for the same reason.
1792 Full Proof and Henry McKenna are great bourbons that you can still find at reasonable prices.

[1bigdawg]

We left out Willett Family Reserve. I used to get it for around $100. The last bottle I heard about was $3,000 and I cannot find it at all now.

I do get a bottle of Pappy at regular retail every year. It does not compare to the Willett Family.

[BiscuitEater]

Buffalo Trace makes some good products, but you'll end up getting ripped off trying to buy them. Good luck finding Weller on the shelf. Hancock Reserve is one of my favorites from Buffalo Trace but that's even hard to find now.

I live in Virginia and the state limits what an ABC Store can charge BUT the downside is BT limits how much they send to us. Prices are cheap but selections are spotty. I have friends that show up at a local ABC every Monday to see what comes off the truck.


https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850408838_a0e4a99ace_c.jpg

[DownwardDawg]

I live in Virginia and the state limits what an ABC Store can charge BUT the downside is BT limits how much they send to us. Prices are cheap but selections are spotty. I have friends that show up at a local ABC every Monday to see what comes off the truck.


https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850408838_a0e4a99ace_c.jpg

Huge score getting the Weller 12. It?s almost impossible to find. My brother got two bottles in north Georgia last year. I haven?t found one other than the black market in a couple years. My bro paid $48 per bottle. I get Blantons for $55 regularly and you can find Buffalo Trace at every damn gas station in Louisiana. Hard to find in Mississippi though.

BTW, Buffalo Trace always seems to end up being my go to during deer season. No idea why! It?s cool how our taste buds change and we like different bourbons at different times.

[BiscuitEater]

Weller 12? So you're willing to spend $200 for a $50 bottle of wheated bourbon?

No, I paid $45 for Weller12, $50 for Blanton's (Small), $32 for Buffalo Trace (best I can recall). SEE PHOTOS

I have never paid more than $75 for any bottle of anything ! And, that was an outstanding single malt!

What can I say .. I'm frugal (another word for cheap) I look for best for the least!

[FISHDAWG]

I'd rather had three fifths of good bourdon than one overpriced "good" bourbon. The average person can't tell much difference.

THIS .... I like Clyde Mays but simple math says 6 bottles of WT 101 > 1 bottle of $150 Bourbon