Quoted from SilverBallKid:OK, I'll bite here.
First off, let me say that I have been a professional brewer for 20 years. My career had been good to me and I have had a wonderful time in the beer business. It does tend to make me very obsessive about beer and spirits so I apologize for the length of this post and any vibe of "lecturing" that comes off it. I just love booze. Booze pays my bills. Booze also buys me coil sleeves, solder and playfield rubber, haha.
Before I was hooked on beer, though, I was hooked on bourbon. My Dad is a true bourbon guy and we always had it around our house. White Label Beam has always been his go to (and mine as well) but the years have found him regularly acquiring a bottle of this or that which has led to some great tasting moments. In my family - including my very large Polish side (Dad's side) - births, deaths, marriages, sports championships and just about any other occasion you can think of have been marked by rounds of shots.
Anyway, bourbon...
First off, I always suggest to people to ease up on the "more expensive is better" idea. While you will generally find smoother and more complex bourbons as you climb the price ladder, you can always find great bourbon at a decent price. I remember when I had Pappy Van Winkle for the first time. Mostly, I was glad that I wasn't the one who had paid for the bottle. Is it great? Yes, I suppose. Is it worth the price? Not in my book it's not. No way. I can list many bourbons that I have had for $25 - $60 that I have enjoyed as much and most often more than Pappy. If you like it and you buy it, that's fine. I don't think you're wrong or stupid or whatever. I just don't think the liquor stands up to the mystique. For my money, it is better to pay attention to proof, ageing time and whether the place you are buying your sauce from is involved in the entire production process. Many houses simply buy young white liquor from someone else (often a very well known place in Indiana) and then just barrel age it and put their name on it. Many fine bourbons are made this way, but I tend to prefer houses that select grist, mash, ferment, distill and age all on their own.
I usually have at least a dozen bourbons on hand at any given time. On pinball nights with the fellas, I like to pour out 4-6 of them in glencairn glasses and then we sample around them and debate merits. Some like them spicy, some hot, some mellow, some sweeter. I love that. There is no right or wrong, just personal taste. I also love setting up "blind" flights with numbers corresponding to the different sample glasses. That way, price point and distillery are removed from the tasters' minds and they often surprise themselves by what they actually like the most. Want to prove to yourself that price is only part of the process? Let someone else pour out 4 to 6 of your bourbons from your coillection and NOT tell you what they are. Sample away "blind " and see what happens!
Some of my personal faves in no particular order:
Willett, for my money, makes some great bourbons. I absolutely LOVE the Pot Still Reserve. Try this one: buy a bottle and do not drink it quickly. Make sure it takes at least one year to finish. You will LOVE the changes it goes through and if you can get past the one year mark with any left, you will be amazed by how smooth, deep and even it gets. If you like Willett, make sure you try both Noah's Mill and Rowan's Creek. Both of these bottles are go to's for me and I love them. Under the radar and under rated in my estimation, and both produced by Willett.
https://www.kentuckybourbonwhiskey.com/
Boone County Eighteen 33 from Independence, Kentucky. What a gorgeous bourbon. Bought some in Florence, Kentucky at the Party Town store there. That place is like an amusement park for me. Anyway, the sales guy and I were shooting the shit as I wandered the bourbon aisles (yes, plural!) and he recommended the Boone County to me. WOW! Amazing stuff. I am now desperately trying to get my hands on a bottle of Boone County's White Hall Bourbon Cream, which is supposed to be amazing over ice cream or in coffee. Someone down there please send me a fifth or two!!! I also really want to try their cask strength single barrel version of BC1833! I'm almost out of Boone County so I suppose it's time for that 5 hour drive down I-75 to stock up...
https://www.boonedistilling.com/
Eagle Rare is so solid and well priced. A little darker and fuller, but I drink it a lot. A sweeter bourbon that I use a lot to get non-bourbon people on the hook. Made by the famed Buffalo Trace distillery. Their entire family of whiskeys is solid.
https://www.buffalotracedistillery.com/
Another bourbon that I use for "training wheel" sampling with newbies is Corner Creek. It is very bright on the palate and overall, almost citrusy, and an even handed bottle. Great stuff.
https://www.cornercreekbourbon.com/
I used to really like Black Maple Hill but the new offering from Oregon - not Kentucky - doesn't stand up as well to my taste.
I could go on forever, so I'll stop. LOVE ME SOME BOURBON.
Happy Sipping!
Tim in Motown