Whiskey Clique

benjs said:

I bought this last time I was down in the States (found it in Vermont). Highly recommend it! It was $70.

https://www.kentuckybourbonwhiskey.com/whiskey/willett-pot-still-reserve/

Do you drink that neat, on the rocks or in cocktails? I have seen that in a couple places locally and almost grabbed one, mostly because the bottle is so badass. Seems like it's pretty polarizing bourbon, though. People either seem to love it or hate it.

benjs said:

I bought this last time I was down in the States (found it in Vermont). Highly recommend it! It was $70.

https://www.kentuckybourbonwhiskey.com/whiskey/willett-pot-still-reserve/

I bought it too.  When I posted it everyone in the Bourbon threads (not this one) told me to return it, lol.  Now I want to try it and see what was up all their arses!

dudeman said:

markymark550 said:

dudeman said:

I picked up a bottle of Woodford Reserve Double Oaked today after reading good things about it. Excited to try it this weekend. 

It's very good imo, but I'm a fan of pretty much all things Woodford. Their regular bourbon is my daily sipper (although I don't drink daily).

Is the Double Oaked usually difficult to find? I told a friend of mine that I picked up a bottle and he seemed surprised that I could get it. 

I haven't had much trouble finding it. I think with allocation and uneven distribution, it becomes a regional thing.

Anyone ever try Doc Swinson's Alter Ego Triple Cask Cask Strength? Had a little taste at my local shop and thought it was very good. Quite complex, very strong but also enjoyable. It appears to be sourced but aged and blended in house? Not sure if that's common or not.

tempo_n_groove said:

dudeman said:

Anyone ever try Doc Swinson's Alter Ego Triple Cask Cask Strength? Had a little taste at my local shop and thought it was very good. Quite complex, very strong but also enjoyable. It appears to be sourced but aged and blended in house? Not sure if that's common or not.

Isn't that what Buffalo Trace does anyway?  They source it out and blend it under 1 roof?

I'm pretty sure Buffalo Trace distills their own whiskey using their own proprietary mash bills and they store and age everything themselves. They might have some products that are exceptions to that, though.

I read that Doc Swinson gets different whiskeys from MGP or other third parties, blends them themselves and ages them in different types of casks. In other words, they don't make their own mash and distill it into alcohol.

Bentleyspop said:

dudeman said:

tempo_n_groove said:

dudeman said:

Anyone ever try Doc Swinson's Alter Ego Triple Cask Cask Strength? Had a little taste at my local shop and thought it was very good. Quite complex, very strong but also enjoyable. It appears to be sourced but aged and blended in house? Not sure if that's common or not.

Isn't that what Buffalo Trace does anyway?  They source it out and blend it under 1 roof?

I'm pretty sure Buffalo Trace distills their own whiskey using their own proprietary mash bills and they store and age everything themselves. They might have some products that are exceptions to that, though.

I read that Doc Swinson gets different whiskeys from MGP or other third parties, blends them themselves and ages them in different types of casks. In other words, they don't make their own mash and distill it into alcohol.

There are a lot of whiskey makers who do that.
Look at the label. It will say where it is distilled and where it is bottled.

Gotcha. Thanks. It does seem pretty common after looking into it. Not that it indicates a lesser product, it's just different approach to those who do everything from scratch themselves. I've had really good whiskey from both camps.

Over the last couple weeks, I have tried Maker's Mark, Four Roses Small Batch and Willet (whatever one is in the funky bottle).

Of those, I liked the Four Roses best. The other two are also perfectly fine but not quite as balanced and all-around enjoyable. I can easily see why Maker's Mark is so popular, though. It's pretty easy to drink neat and I think it would be really nice in an Old Fashioned. 

The Willet is really good and I will probably get a bottle to have on hand, mostly because the bottle itself looks so cool.

dudeman said:

Over the last couple weeks, I have tried Maker's Mark, Four Roses Small Batch and Willet (whatever one is in the funky bottle).

Of those, I liked the Four Roses best. The other two are also perfectly fine but not quite as balanced and all-around enjoyable. I can easily see why Maker's Mark is so popular, though. It's pretty easy to drink neat and I think it would be really nice in an Old Fashioned. 

The Willet is really good and I will probably get a bottle to have on hand, mostly because the bottle itself looks so cool.

You can't go wrong with Four Roses, their single barrels are $50 all day long.  One of the best deals in bourbon.  I do like some Marker's Mark, especially the Maker's 46. I'm not a Willet fan, I prefer New Riff, Penelope, and Bardstown. 
 Local Michigan stuff to look for: Evernorth Spirits in Freeland (Bourbon Junkies from Youtube), New Holland Origin or anything from them, except the beer barrel bouron, and Detroit City Distillery.
My go to are Knob Creek, any of them, Wild Turkey 101 bourbon and rye and Jack Daniel's Barell proof rye.  Enjoy your journey!

BIGDaddyWil said:

dudeman said:

Over the last couple weeks, I have tried Maker's Mark, Four Roses Small Batch and Willet (whatever one is in the funky bottle).

Of those, I liked the Four Roses best. The other two are also perfectly fine but not quite as balanced and all-around enjoyable. I can easily see why Maker's Mark is so popular, though. It's pretty easy to drink neat and I think it would be really nice in an Old Fashioned. 

The Willet is really good and I will probably get a bottle to have on hand, mostly because the bottle itself looks so cool.

You can't go wrong with Four Roses, their single barrels are $50 all day long.  One of the best deals in bourbon.  I do like some Marker's Mark, especially the Maker's 46. I'm not a Willet fan, I prefer New Riff, Penelope, and Bardstown. 
 Local Michigan stuff to look for: Evernorth Spirits in Freeland (Bourbon Junkies from Youtube), New Holland Origin or anything from them, except the beer barrel bouron, and Detroit City Distillery.
My go to are Knob Creek, any of them, Wild Turkey 101 bourbon and rye and Jack Daniel's Barell proof rye.  Enjoy your journey!

New Holland puts out some amazing stuff!  I also agree, those Four Roses SB's for that price are pretty awesome, and Makers 46, esp the cask strength is great.

While I watch the Bourbon Junkies on YouTube, i've never actually purchased anything from them. 

BIGDaddyWil said:

dudeman said:

Over the last couple weeks, I have tried Maker's Mark, Four Roses Small Batch and Willet (whatever one is in the funky bottle).

Of those, I liked the Four Roses best. The other two are also perfectly fine but not quite as balanced and all-around enjoyable. I can easily see why Maker's Mark is so popular, though. It's pretty easy to drink neat and I think it would be really nice in an Old Fashioned. 

The Willet is really good and I will probably get a bottle to have on hand, mostly because the bottle itself looks so cool.

You can't go wrong with Four Roses, their single barrels are $50 all day long.  One of the best deals in bourbon.  I do like some Marker's Mark, especially the Maker's 46. I'm not a Willet fan, I prefer New Riff, Penelope, and Bardstown. 
 Local Michigan stuff to look for: Evernorth Spirits in Freeland (Bourbon Junkies from Youtube), New Holland Origin or anything from them, except the beer barrel bouron, and Detroit City Distillery.
My go to are Knob Creek, any of them, Wild Turkey 101 bourbon and rye and Jack Daniel's Barell proof rye.  Enjoy your journey!

Four Roses Single Barrel, Maker's Mark 46 and Russell's Reserve are next on my list to try. Thankfully, there are several places around here with good selections. I'm still pretty early on in my journey but I have been able to track down some good, hard to find bottles.

E.H. Taylor, Eagle Rare, Woodford Reserve Double Oaked and Heaven's Door Ascension are some of my favorites so far. I found a couple bottles of Blanton's and Weller Special Reserve, too. Those are good but I don't know if they are worth the hype or cost, personally. Still have much to try and more to learn!