Bourbon Thread - Reviews

[Xring01]

Starting a Bourbon thread... that's going to give personal reviews of the bourbons we all try

I will get it started with this beauty in an hour or so...

I am like a virgin on prom night, can't wait to get my hands on this.

Edited this post to reflect my review.
This is not a cheap bourbon. In fact its on the expensive side. I think I paid $75-80 and Wine and More in Temecula.. It was the last bottle. Since its my 25th year wedding anniversary... I splurged on it...

I prefer Bourbon on the rocks, because I feel is open's up the nose, and is alot more fragrant. A huge portion of taste is in the smell olfactory glands something to that effect.

This bourbon is distilled on a triple distillation process on traditional pot stills

Pro's
Appears to be double oak, or heavily oaked.
Its 45.2% or 90 proof, but its very very smooth for the ABV.
Hints of Caramel, Cinnamon and a bit of fruitiness almost citrus ness to it.
Its tastes good, I am enjoying it.
Dark Brown, Very Spicy/peppery... like black pepper.

Cons
Price - Is it worth the price point... No. I have had alot better for less $$
Flavor - Bourbon can be to smooth, this one is that smooth, which may be a pro to some. The overall flavor profile is not as robust and other bourbons.
I prefer standard Woodford at less than half this price.
I think a true bourbon guy is missing the Rye/Wheat flavors... that this is missing...??

Overall Score is 8 out of 10....
Its hard to give it a higher score at the price point... if it wasnt this expensive, it may have a higher score.



Going forward, this is my idea of a review...
I think Pro's - Con's and a Overall score gets right to the point... I think a scale of 1-10 is simple enough.

But I am not dictator, and I am open to suggestions and on how to proceed going forward...

 

[sintax]

nice man! I like the idea of this thread, i'm far from a pro when it comes to Bourbon, but I have an appreciation.

I've been drinking some George Dickel Single Barrel as my "cheap stuff" around the campfire or whatever. I also have some Booker's that I've really enjoyed, each batch has its own characteristics and notes. Certainly worth a try!

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

Nice.. Ill be along with a few.

 

[Done-it-again]

I'll be looking for your feed back.....

How's that barrell bourbon? I've been tempted to pick one up...

Just got this last Friday.

 

[was thatguy]

I'll be looking for your feed back.....

How's that barrell bourbon? I've been tempted to pick one up...

Just got this last Friday.

View attachment 805917

Can not go wrong with Blantons.
Imo, the best bourbon for the money hands down.

 

[Xring01]

Blantons Rocks...
That better get 9 out of 10, or I may kick you off this thread... just joking... cant wait to hear your opinion...

FYI... I rank Blantons very high, especially at its price point.

Every Batch of Barrell is different....
Google them and you will get all the info you want.
Some are amazing... Some are not worth money..

Quick version what Barrell Bourbon does..

Is the go to a Bourbon distiller taste a boat load of the barrels, and pick out the barrels that they like the best, and only buy those barrels.. Then they age them to 9-14 years before bottling and selling them. Sometime they blend bourbons from a couple of distilleries and age them for extra 4-5 years..

Which is why every release it a truly new experience. Some amaze, some disappoint me.

 

[ONE-A-DAY]

I’m starting to mature at 55 and getting in to Old Fashioned’s, question, bourbon or whiskey in one? I get different answers. And from there what bourbon or whiskey should I ask for at a bar?

thx, newb

 

[HBCraig]

Reasonable ones:

Basil Haydens
Four Roses

 

[Mcchevy69ss]

My current ranking for Bourbons / American Whiskey under $100.
#1 Blanton’s
#2 Whistle Pig
#3 Jefferson’s Special Reserve
#4 Clyde Mays
#5 Angel’s Envy

 

[was thatguy]

I’m starting to mature at 55 and getting in to Old Fashioned’s, question, bourbon or whiskey in one? I get different answers. And from there what bourbon or whiskey should I ask for at a bar?

thx, newb

Makers for mixing, single barrels for straight on ice or neat.


That’s my taste anyway.

 

[Xring01]

nice man! I like the idea of this thread, i'm far from a pro when it comes to Bourbon, but I have an appreciation.

I've been drinking some George Dickel Single Barrel as my "cheap stuff" around the campfire or whatever. I also have some Booker's that I've really enjoyed, each batch has its own characteristics and notes. Certainly worth a try!

When it comes to a review... No one can fault you for your review... because its your opinion. They may disagree with it... But they may like Blondes with Small Boobs, when your married to a Brunette with 40 DDD's... to each their own...

I havent had George Dickel in along time... please review it... Bookers/Baker/Basil Hayden/Four Roses/Elijah Craig/ 1709/ Blantons/ Jim Beam, Knob Creek/Woodford, I like em all...
Hell I went to a bar not to long ago all they had was Jack Daniels...

Thats what I ordered... Hadnt had it in awhile... damn for $$$ its hard to beat.

 

[Done-it-again]

I’m starting to mature at 55 and getting in to Old Fashioned’s, question, bourbon or whiskey in one? I get different answers. And from there what bourbon or whiskey should I ask for at a bar?

thx, newb

I typically like my old fashions made with a rye and don’t add a muddled cherry. Unless it’s a luxardo Cherry.

in my opinion Fleming’s has the best old fashion. Next would be the bar at the Anaheim packing district.

 

[Xring01]

Rye Guys...

you have to try Sazerac Rye....

Its may be the best bottle of Rye I have ever had... I have never been a Rye kind of guy, until this one...

Polished that bottle off pretty quickly.

 

[Havazoo]

Jefferson Ocean, you’ll thank me later!

 

[was thatguy]

My current ranking for Bourbons / American Whiskey under $100.
#1 Blanton’s
#2 Whistle Pig
#3 Jefferson’s Special Reserve
#4 Clyde Mays
#5 Angel’s Envy

Agree except I’d switch Angels with Whistle Pig, move them down, and have Willet at #2

 

[was thatguy]

Jefferson Ocean, you’ll thank me later!

Is it still at $90 a bottle?

 

[Xring01]

Batch 15 is great,
Batch 14 decent
Batch 1 decent but spicy

 

[braindead]

Rye Guys...

you have to try Sazerac Rye....

Its may be the best bottle of Rye I have ever had... I have never been a Rye kind of guy, until this one...

Polished that bottle off pretty quickly.

Sazerac rye is good stuff!

I tried tincup whiskey a couple weeks ago, wasn't bad for the price

 

[Done-it-again]

I like Russell reserve this is their 10 yr.

 

[DrunkenSailor]

Bullets rye isn't bad for the money. Blanton's is excellent. Monkey shoulder is very unique the banana gives it an interesting flavor that just works. Angels envy is very good especially as you climb the pricing ladder. Buffalo Trace is another that isn't horrible for the price. I am a big rye guy. Keep em coming.

 

[Duffster]

I normally just stick to the local small batch stuff but these three are pretty good over ice

 

[was thatguy]

I like Russell reserve this is their 10 yr.

View attachment 806259

Pick up your shoes!

 

[Done-it-again]

Pick up your shoes!

ha ha ha. The kids like to wear them around the house and that’s where they left them. Damn tornados they are.

 

[Done-it-again]

Damn. Only allowed 2 bottles

 

[mjc]

Damn. Only allowed 2 bottles

View attachment 806881

Did you buy them all?

 

[Done-it-again]

Did you buy them all?

I wish. Needed a bottle for our german manufactures and I took one. So I have letter B and O, need a few more to spell blantons.

 

[Gelcoater]

Jefferson Ocean, you’ll thank me later!

I actually turned on my family practice doctor to that

I have some regular Jefferson in my gullet currently

 

[Skinny Tire AH]

Pick up your shoes!

 

[Crazyhippy]

Something cheap and easy to drink for a Monday night. 94 proof so it has a bit of a bite. Very sweet up front, lots of vanilla and caramel. Just a bit of spice on the tail.

All in all, a highly rated bourbon. I would say 8/10, and a 9.5/10 at the price point ~$25

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[Done-it-again]

Something cheap and easy to drink for a Monday night. 94 proof so it has a bit of a bite. Very sweet up front, lots of vanilla and caramel. Just a bit of spice on the tail.

All in all, a highly rated bourbon. I would say 8/10, and a 9.5/10 at the price point ~$25 View attachment 807254

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I had some yesterday at the airport lounge, it was very enjoyable. Going to add some to the collection.

 

[Gelcoater]

Something cheap and easy to drink for a Monday night. 94 proof so it has a bit of a bite. Very sweet up front, lots of vanilla and caramel. Just a bit of spice on the tail.

All in all, a highly rated bourbon. I would say 8/10, and a 9.5/10 at the price point ~$25 View attachment 807254

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That’s good stuff.
It’s good as a shot, almost too much
It’s awesome over a nice ice rock.
Good aroma
A little spice on the tail end.
Not too sweet.
Ice really opens it up.

 

[Crazyhippy]

I just found out that Cock Fighting is done with chickens... there is 9 months of training down the drain!

Fighting Cock is a 103 proof fairly young bourbon. You aren't going to mistake it for super high dollar stuff, and that is OK! It is a big whiskey, lots of pepper up front, and just a hint of sweet in the tail. Some vanilla, some caramel, just enough to tame the initial bite.

It is super affordable, should be under $20 a bottle and does mellow out a ton with an ice cube or 2 if you find it overly aggressive.

All in all, it is a fun Tuesday night whiskey, and I will keep a bottle on hand.

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[Deangang]

Love your thread ! I’m of the opinion that there are no bad bourbons . They are either good or great but I may be bias because that’s my drink of choice . One thing I can say is over the last 5-10 years it’s become extremely popular and this has caused the price to go way up and availability down of some of the great ones .

 

[rrrr]

What happened to Fireball? I thought that was the go to booze around here.
<<<<<<<---------- Quit drinking a long time ago

 

[Done-it-again]

View attachment 807533 Love your thread ! I’m of the opinion that there are no bad bourbons . They are either good or great but I may be bias because that’s my drink of choice . One thing I can say is over the last 5-10 years it’s become extremely popular and this has caused the price to go way up and availability down of some of the great ones .

I can use one the E.H Taylor’s you have. You don’t need that many! Lol

 

[Xring01]

View attachment 807533 Love your thread ! I’m of the opinion that there are no bad bourbons . They are either good or great but I may be bias because that’s my drink of choice . One thing I can say is over the last 5-10 years it’s become extremely popular and this has caused the price to go way up and availability down of some of the great ones .[/QUOTE

I have not tried the McKenna yet....
But I have sampled all the rest on your cabinet...

I noticed the Bib & Tucker Bottle... those are hard to find on the West Coast, but its good drink.
Weller is very difficult to find... at least for me.

 

[Waterjunky]

Makers for mixing, single barrels for straight on ice or neat.


That’s my taste anyway.

Exactly how I roll.........
The joke around here with friends is that Makers is my "House" bourbon.

 

[Crazyhippy]

I'm going to cheat a bit tonight... this is not bourbon! But it is an American whiskey with a story to tell.

Have you heard of the Band Metallica? This is their whiskey. It is a blend of a bunch of different whiskeys, that then gets tossed into a rum barrel and aged while Metallica's music is played. The vibrations are supposed to help take the whiskey off to never never land.

Cool story, but how is the booze?

I am not a huge fan honestly. It drinks young. Yes there is some citrus and sweet tied in there, but I get something else that reminds me of hanging around methanol fueled circle track cars... not my ideal for a drink.

That said, this is another bottle that I will keep on the shelves... the story is too good to pass up.

Cheers!

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[Deangang]

I'm going to cheat a bit tonight... this is not bourbon! But it is an American whiskey with a story to tell.

Have you heard of the Band Metallica? This is their whiskey. It is a blend of a bunch of different whiskeys, that then gets tossed into a rum barrel and aged while Metallica's music is played. The vibrations are supposed to help take the whiskey off to never never land.

Cool story, but how is the booze?

I am not a huge fan honestly. It drinks young. Yes there is some citrus and sweet tied in there, but I get something else that reminds me of hanging around methanol fueled circle track cars... not my ideal for a drink.

That said, this is another bottle that I will keep on the shelves... the story is too good to pass up.

Cheers! View attachment 807814

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[Deangang]

I actually like that whiskey , it took a glass or two before it grew on me . The late David Pickerell ,old brew master at makers mark and whistle pig worked with them on this . I have noticed variation from batch to batch so maybe the aging process of the low frequency sound waves of different Metallica songlists for different batches actually does do something .

 

[Rondog4405]

Something cheap and easy to drink for a Monday night. 94 proof so it has a bit of a bite. Very sweet up front, lots of vanilla and caramel. Just a bit of spice on the tail.

All in all, a highly rated bourbon. I would say 8/10, and a 9.5/10 at the price point ~$25 View attachment 807254

Sent from my SM-N950U1 using Tapatalk

Something cheap and easy to drink for a Monday night. 94 proof so it has a bit of a bite. Very sweet up front, lots of vanilla and caramel. Just a bit of spice on the tail.

All in all, a highly rated bourbon. I would say 8/10, and a 9.5/10 at the price point ~$25 View attachment 807254

Sent from my SM-N950U1 using Tapatalk

My go-to bottle right there.. It way out does its $25.00 price tag for sure!

 

[RVR2SNO]

Been looking forward to this one for a while!

 

[Xring01]

View attachment 808080

Been looking forward to this one for a while!

Please give it your honest review...

 

[Crazyhippy]

View attachment 808080

Been looking forward to this one for a while!

Every "Voyage" tastes different... 8 was spectacular, the rest have not been as good IMHO... still innovative and quite tasty.

My favorite whiskey ever is Jefferson "Groth Cab Aged." It is their Bourbon that gets tossed into a used wine cask for 6 months... Delicious, but tough to find. The last bottle I have was picked up @ the distillery, and signed by Trey.
They do a few other wine cask aged versions, the pritchard hill is good, haven't dug into the other versions... yet.

 

[Racey]

You guys that like Jefferson Ocean should try some young Islays. 4 years old, 6 absolute max (i actually like the younger ones better). They have the sweetness of bourbon, but the salt/seaweed and a mild peat.

You can find them under private label single barrel bottlings like Battle Hill, or Berry's, at Total Wine, or Bev-Mo.

 

[Crazyhippy]

Having some fun tonight... started with some Larceny. It is yet another solid 25-30 buck bourbon.

Then I captured some of the smoke coming from my BGE (mesquite chips added, coming up to temp for a tri-tip) and attempted to make a smoked bourbon...

It changed the flavor for sure. Not sure it is better, but it isn't bad. Will require more experimentation.

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[Done-it-again]

Found 2 bottles in Germany, but couldn’t spend the 200 euro price.

 

[Done-it-again]

Picked up a new bottle. It’s a whisky from High West in Utah. Will see, was recommended and available.

 

[Crazyhippy]

Story time bourbonofiles...

The year is 1856, in the south. A farmer/pastor/whiskey distiller has his congregation beating on his door because he "is worshiping 2 different spirits." In response, he sells his distillery off to his apprentice...

The often untold portion of this story, is what happened to the slaves he had been using to do the actual distilling. The head slave/ distiller was named Nathan "Nearest" Green, or Uncle Nearest. Following Lincoln freeing the slaves, Uncle Nearest was free to open a distillery of his own, and seemingly did! Unfortunately it wasn't a massive success, and had completely disappeared into the annals of history...

The white apprentice's whiskey became a huge success, and recently celebrated it's 150year anniversary. While researchers were digging into the history, they came across Uncle Nearest's story. One of the historians was so enthralled with the story that they bought the actual farm that this story started out on. They also have bought several hundred acres a few towns away and started to recreate Uncle Nearest's original recipe. This is a bottle of that recreation!

It is a DAMN good whiskey (not sure it qualifies as a bourbon or not, but it is irrelevant). Super sweet nose, a bit of spice, overall a beautifully balanced drink! A 9.5 out of 10 on it's own. Add in the backstory, and this will be a very sought after whiskey!

If you haven't yet googled it, the white apprentice was a gentleman named Jack Daniels... maybe you've heard of him?

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[Xring01]

Damn

Weller is a great bourbon
Its a solid 9 out of 10

Pros
Flavor, very robust, but smooth
Lots of oak
Cinnamon, butterscotch/caramel flavors

cons
A bit more oak or more aging?
Price, yep paid $39.99 but its hard to find

Damn good bourbon