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Bourbon


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Bourbon must be drunk to be properly appreciated.

... er, me too, come to think of it.

Jim Beam for me, ol' reliable.

Elijah Craig is serous medicine, but the price has become a bit crazy lately.

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Tonight at a charity event I had a Kentucky bourbon called Buffalo Trace. I really enjoyed it, but I don't think anyone has ever mentioned it.

Buffalo Trace is good (note that they're one of the big-shot distilleries, and so they make about a billion products; the eponymous one is just the flagship), I just never know quite what to compare it to. It's a distinct step up from Beam; I prefer it to Makers for some applications, but I don't consider it as good as, say, Knob Creek, so it kind of sits in no-man's land when I make recommendations.

Had a cocktail with Bulleit tonight, and a glass of Knob Creek, to celebrate Bourbon day even though I was in a Spanish restaurant.

Scot- glad to hear the aeration helped. Every time I buy a bottle of Bulleit after not having any for a considerable period of time, I'm always disappointed with the first glass, and impressed with the second; I've had the same thing happen with Woodford also.

OJ- what's your opinion of the Woodford Double Oaked? I find it a little better, but really not worth the (significant) price difference at all.

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OJ- what's your opinion of the Woodford Double Oaked? I find it a little better, but really not worth the (significant) price difference at all.

I've only tried it twice - once at the liquor store and once at a restaurant. I'm not even sure I'd say it's a little better than the regular Woodford, honestly. It was good. Probably as good as the regular stuff, but not significantly better. I'd never pay for a full bottle. And now that I've tried it twice, I'd probably never order another glass of it either. If I want Woodford, I'll stick with the regular stuff.

Which makes me wonder something... do liquor stores in other states have tasting bars where you can actually buy a ounce or two of a spirit at a time in order to try out an especially pricey bottle so you can figure out if you actually like it first? Some of the nicer stores around here have started doing that with their bourbon in the past few years and I think it's a wonderful innovation.

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  • 2 years later...

Thread necro because I found a "new" bourbon worth talking about.

 

I put new in quotation marks because I am petty sure it's just new to me. Anyway, I was wasting time at the liquor store yesterday and noticed for the first time bottles of Old Grand-Dad 114 proof bourbon. It stood out to me for two reasons, 1) because Old Grand-Dad is my father-in-law's bourbon of choice. I've never really cared for it a lot myself, but I found the notion of a high-end version of OGD somewhat amusing. And 2) because of the price. It was only $21. And that seemed like a really good deal for a high-proof bourbon. I've been lamenting the demise of Ancient Ancient Age (the 10-year version of another budget bourbon, which was the best bourbon dollar-for-dollar I've ever drank) for a couple years now. And I was sorta hoping that OGD 114 would fill that void for me.

 

And... it sort of has. Now, I don't like it as much as Ancient Ancient Age, but I do like OGD114 a lot. It's more "spicy" than most bourbons I've had, because it has a large amount of rye in the grain recipe, but I sorta like that. It makes it different. It's also pretty strong, as you'd expect from a 114 proof whiskey. It really seems like a stiff drink your granddad would drink, so the name really fits here. It really has a nice flavor and bite though. And at the price, you can't beat it. If you put a Makers Mark or Woodford label on it, it could easily sell at a $40-$50 price point. But, since it's Old Grand-Dad, it is super affordable. 

 

Because of the high percentage of rye and high proof (although the latter can be dealt with by adding a bit of water), this bourbon probably isn't for everyone, but I'd really recommend anyone that likes good bourbon to give it a shot. Because at that price, you can really afford to; and if nothing else, it'll be a good chance to experience a different kind of quality bourbon.

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My family is throwing a thing this weekend and I'm bringing a bottle of Basil Hayden for me and one other guy (we're the only bourbon drinkers). Excited to try it.

Last time he brought a bottle of Booker's, which, eh. It'll take us a while to kill this BH, but Blanton's is next on my list to try.
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My family is throwing a thing this weekend and I'm bringing a bottle of Basil Hayden for me and one other guy (we're the only bourbon drinkers). Excited to try it.

Last time he brought a bottle of Booker's, which, eh. It'll take us a while to kill this BH, but Blanton's is next on my list to try.


Enjoy! Love me some BH.
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Blanton and Booker's both (if memory serves) vary a bit from bottle to bottle (maybe it's just one of them that does that and I've conflated the two).  This is due to... I can't remember why, perhaps they don't blend barrels to ensure consistency, and so you wind up with different flavor profiles and intensities depending on the year and the barrel.

 

Can anyone back me up on that or am I hallucinating?

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