Opened a 2015 4R Small Batch yesterday and I agree. Have a 2013 open, I’ll need to do a side by side but think I might prefer the 2015 going off memory. One of the top releases of 2015 to be sure.
Or you could open the 2015 Four Roses LE and celebrate with that?
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I have nearly twenty bottles of brown liquor open. I’m going to hold off on opening any new bottles until that number comes down a bit.
The real problem here is that you aren’t drinking enough.
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Was at a bar for a Christmas work event on Friday. Saw a bottle of PVW 15 behind the bar. Asked how much they were pouring at, they said $19 a pour. I thanked them for not gouging, grabbed my boss so we could have a pour each together, then we let the rest stay for the next lucky bloke who notices it on the wall.
That’s a good price. There is a restaurant here with a deep bourbon selection and they are charging $38 for a 2oz pour. A year ago it was maybe $10 less…
I was at a West Village restaurant on the Friday after Thanksgiving and happened to notice they had the entire lineup, with the exception of the 23, behind the bar. I asked how much for a pour of the 20…bartender sighed a big sigh and said “$90”. We looked each other straight in the eyes and had a tender moment of empathy. ![[cry.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/8/853b6e76c6e8406be77a6727c2a27ad1672678b3.gif "cry"){kind=small}
Russell’s Reserve Small Batch Single Barrel Bourbon, 55%, about $57.
Best whiskey I’ve had lately, this stuff is big but easily enjoyable in just a chilled glass. Packed with fruit, spice, charred oak, a finish for days. In the same vein as the Four Roses single barrel selections but even brawnier. First Wild Turkey product I’ve had in memory and certainly impressive.
Other than that have been happily consuming a local store’s single barrel selections of Eagle Rare and Buffalo Trace. These were even cheaper than I normally see them for, $25 and $20 respectively. Snagged a 1.75L of Eagle Rare for $44.99 from the same source, which comes out to below $20 for a 750ml equivalent, felt like stealing.
Also found a couple bottles of Elmer T. Lee at $34 recently instead of at the ridiculous prices around $80 I’ve seen. Can’t wait to give that a try.
work party. open bar. Had willet 8/9 on the shelf. Had myself a couple pours of those.
That is a GREAT price for a fantastic Bourbon.
That’s a great price on the Eagle Rare, even better on the 1.75. I’d buy several at that rate, though the 1.75s are huge, making storage an issue. Even the 750s don’t fit into my built-in cabinetry that serves as a liquor cabinet.
I’m not a fan of the ETL. Tried it a few years back at around $30 and didn’t like it. Saw it the other day for $95 a 750. Outrageous.
For the $$ Elmer T. Lee $$ You’re basically drinking Pappy’s 12 for a fraction of the cost. The way I understand it, the original Pappy’s formulation stock has been drawn from and continuously replaced with BT stock for many moons now. Solera Dilution.
Don: I think you are thinking of the Weller 12 Year, a high wheat bourbon like Pappy. Elmer T. Lee is Buffalo Trace mashbill #2, which is the high rye recipe, also used in Blanton’s and Rockhill Farms.
Michael: Yea the big bottles of Eagle Rare are really awkward, have not found a space to store it yet. Have not had the Elmer T. Lee before so just happy to find some at normal pricing.
Eager to give it a try in any case.
Just picked up Old Forester Original Batch and not impressed at all. At$45 it’s an easy pass…
It’s easy to say things like this (or the similar things said about the Weller 12), and we all know that S-W juice has been gone in all but the 23 for some time, with perhaps some remaining in the 23 now, but I’ve had a lot of Pappy’s, both older S-W and newer BT, and fact is that I’ve never found ETL to be the equal of either the old or the new Pappy. BT makes a ridiculous amount of bourbon. Selection and aging allows for huge differences.
Anyway, for my money I’d take Pappy 10 over ETL, and neither one is very exciting.
I don’t understand the love for Pappy. Supply and demand? Myself aside, I haven’t met anyone who really enjoyed it. To them, it was an overpriced novelty.
When the juice was still old Stitzel Weller, the 10yr was $30, the 12yr was $50, and the 20yr was $70-90, it was right up there with the ‘best’ bourbons and there was love to be had.
20 was awesome with SZ juice. Nowadays I don’t even care
I remember the days even 3-4 years ago when I would pass up the 12 year bottles on the shelf at $50 bucks because they were just always there. Hindsight is 20/20 but could have made a fortune buying these bottles and all kinds of BTAC, Heritage Collection and other bottles that just sat on the shelf for years around the Twin Cities. I am glad to have tasted many of these though before they got crazy outrageous because it just helped reaffirm that some of the most unique bourbons I have had have always been the 4 Roses barrel strength bottlings - which unfortunately are probably going up in price too now.
12 btls of 237ml 1953 Very Old Fitzgerald 8 Year Old hammered for $13,000 before fees at HDH today. Stuff must be good!