Rolling Rooster Bourbon

I’d like to thank Shore Fire Media for sending over this sample with no strings attached.

St. Augustine of Hippo is one of the last big Roman Religious Philosophers of a united Roman Empire. During his lifetime, the Western Roman Empire collapsed during the so-called Fall of Rome. He was extremely influential in the development of Western Catholic Christianity and its many, many offspring. As both a Catholic (and Eastern Orthodox) saint, he has a Feast Day in his honor each year. For the oh-so-Catholic Spanish explorers, that would be on the 28th of August each year (the date is different for those who follow Eastern Orthodoxy).

None of that has more than a passing relationship to tonight’s bourbon except as an origin of the name of the distillery that produced tonight’s Bourbon. But since I am a Roman history buff (and, more specifically, an Eastern Roman/Byzantine history buff), I take all the opportunities I can to bring it up. I am literally the recent meme about how often a man thinks of the Roman Empire.

St. Augustine Distillery is located in St. Augustine, Florida, the second oldest city of European origin in a United States territory (the oldest being San Juan, PR). It was named because the Spanish explorer who founded the city did so shortly after sighting the land that would become Florida on St. Augustine’s Feast Day in 1565.

I’ve driven through St. Augustine on my first, and probably last, road trip to the Florida Keys. That is a very long drive from Minnesota. It was a lovely city that I never saw much of as I was having a massive anxiety attack and could not bring myself to stop. I know that I drove past a beautiful old Spanish fort/United States National Monument while in the city. This means I could have possibly driven right past the building where the distillery is currently. It was a while ago, so I really don’t remember much, especially with the anxiety attack.

St. Augustine Distillery makes bourbon, rum, gin and vodka. They made tonight’s bourbon as a collaboration with musical artist J.J. Grey of Jacksonville, Florida. Quoting from the press release:

Inspired by Grey's deep-rooted connection to the South and his love for the soulful flavors of home, Rolling Rooster is a bourbon that personifies the spirit of Southern comfort. "Warm and fuzzy at the top, with a tiny hint of cocoa before it spreads out wide across the palate," Grey described, "No matter how far I travel, it always brings me back home." Richard deMontmollin, VP of Production at St. Augustine Distillery, echoed Grey's sentiments, stating, "When I was asked if we could create a bourbon with JJ Grey, I was over the moon. JJ brought the soul, we brought the juice, and it's all in perfect harmony." 

Let’s dig in, shall we?

Rolling Rooster Bourbon

Purchase Info: This bottle was sent to me at no charge by the producer for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $100 per bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $6.67

Details: 51% ABV. Release number 1. Bottle 0526. According to the PR Agency, all of the bourbon used in this project was at least four years old.

Nose: Dried grains, orange zest, black tea, and smoky oak.

Mouth: Cinnamon, black tea, and oak.

Finish: Medium length and warm. Notes of cinnamon, mint, dried grains, and black tea.

Thoughts: Have you ever noticed how sometimes you taste a really great wine or bourbon in the tasting room, and once you get it home, you are less happy with it? The ambiance of the tasting room affects your perception and enjoyment of what you are tasting. The same goes for great conversation with friends. Well, I have a feeling that this bourbon would be one of those that I really like at the distillery. However, at home with my wife, doing a structured tasting, I’m neutral on it. There are no obvious flaws, but it just doesn’t align with my palate. There is a lot going on in here. It is full of flavor and has a lot of things to like, but the flavor profile just isn't for me. I'm not a fan of strong, unsweetened black tea, which this has in spades. I also don’t prefer grain-forward bourbons, and this is one. That said, I couldn’t fault anyone else for absolutely loving it if that is a flavor profile that works for them. Hence, the neutral rating: this bourbon’s not for me, but it might be for you.

Though it isn’t supposed to be released until late May, the first batch of this product has already sold out during pre-order. One thing music fans and craft distillery fans have in common is that they are both great at supporting those they love. So, if you’d like to sign up for information on the release of a second batch, you can do so here: www.jjgrey.com/rollingrooster.

---

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

Coppercraft Straight Bourbon Whiskey

I’d like to thanks CraftCo and their PR team for sending me this sample with no strings attached.

I know it doesn’t seem like it from the outside, but I don’t accept every sample request that comes my way. I run everything through a filter of “Will anyone be interested in this?” before I say yes to an offer of samples. Most of the ones I turn down are regional craft distilleries that don’t have a wide distribution or are just another bourbon that was “Distilled in Indiana.” The draw of a sample isn’t the free whiskey—don’t get me wrong, that is a nice perk—but instead, the idea that I can give some insight into things that you guys might be searching for.

That’s how this one ended up on the “yes” pile. Sure, it might be “Distilled in Indiana,” but it was being pushed by a big PR agency. And I know this one does a pretty decent job of getting the word out to people. So, it is my guess that you guys have been or will be seeing this brand pop up on your feeds. You might even be searching Google looking for a review to see if it is any good. And so it makes sense for me, helpful dude that I am, to let you know if I like it and if it is worth the asking price.

So let’s get into it, shall we?

Coppercraft is a craft distillery in Holland, Michigan, a small city on the shores of Lake Michigan. It was founded in 2012 and produces Gin, Vodka, Applejack, Rum, sourced Bourbon, and a Rye that is a blend of sourced whiskey and its own in-house distilled rye. Of those, the Rye and the Applejack are most interesting to me. And as that rye looks to be distributed here in Minnesota, I’m sure you will be seeing it show up here in the future.

But we are looking at the bourbon tonight. According to the Coppercraft website, this is a blend of four- and nine-year-old Indiana bourbons that are then left to mingle in a barrel for three additional months before bottling. This is an interesting idea, but an idea will only get you so far, so let’s see how it tastes.

Coppercraft Straight Bourbon

Purchase Info: This bottle was provided by the producer at no charge for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $49.99.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $3.33

Details: 48.5% ABV

Nose: Red fruit, oak, caramel, and vanilla.

Mouth: Cinnamon, red fruits, caramel, vanilla, and oak.

Finish: Warm and medium to long. Notes of leather, cinnamon, caramel, and oak.

Thoughts: This is pretty damn good. I expected as much when I saw" Distilled in Indiana” on the label, but it is always nice to have confirmation. At $50 per bottle, you will need to decide for yourself if a sourced whiskey is worth that to you. I can tell you that it has a pretty stereotypical" Bourbon" flavor profile, which is nice. That’s the profile I fell in love with when I got into bourbon and the one I turn to most often when I buy bottles that aren’t just for website content. I like it.

---

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

Smooth Ambler Old Scout Bourbon, Aged 7 Years

I’d like to thank Smooth Ambler and their PR folks for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

Hey there, folks! So we are looking at a bourbon put out by a distillery in West Virginia tonight. I don’t have a lot to say about West Virginia, personally. I’ve driven through a few times, stopped at a few places, and spent the night at a couple of others. It is beautiful country, but the last time I spent the night there, the hotel advised me not to drink the water and to limit showers to the shortest duration possible due to pollution in the city’s water supply. And, well, that basically sums up my thoughts on West Virginia.

Luckily for us, this bourbon comes from Indiana. They don’t say which distillery in Indiana, but since it uses the same Mashbill as MGP’s “36% Rye” bourbon, I think we can safely assume the origin. Which is great, because MGP makes very good boubon.

Smooth Ambler distills their own whiskey as well, but they had breakout success with their curated line of Old Scout transparently-sourced bourbons and ryes back in the early 2010s. And that Old Scout line continues today with the reintroduction of a seven-year-old expression of Old Scout Bourbon. Available in stores throughout CA, CO, DC, FL, GA, IL, IN, LA, MD, MI, NC, NE, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SC, TN, TX, WI, and of course, WV, this bottle’s suggested retail price is about $65 and is bottled at 99° proof. According to the Smooth Ambler website:

When we started “scouting” for whiskey in 2011, we wanted to find worthy whiskey we enjoyed, bring it to West Virginia, and blend and bottle alongside the whiskey we made at home. In our humble (*cough*) opinion, Old Scout became the standard for sourcing whiskey by being transparent, bottling deliciousness, and sharing it widely. Well, it turns out folks liked it, and we’re very proud we get to keep the practice going. That’s exactly what led us to the legendary Old Scout 7.

So, since we haven’t looked at anything from Smooth Ambler in a while, let’s see if they still have their sourcing and blending chops, shall we?

Smooth Ambler Old Scout Bourbon, Aged 7 Years

Purchase Info: This bottle was sent by the producer at no cost for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $64.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $4.33

Details: Distilled in Indiana. 7 years old. 49.5% ABV. Non-chill filtered. Mashbill: 60% Corn, 36% Rye, and 4% Malted Barley.

Nose: Oak, brown sugar, bubble sum, and a touch of spearmint.

Mouth: Spicy and oaky with notes of cinnamon, vanilla, almond, and oak.

Finish: The flavor blossoms immediately upon swallowing. It is medium to long and warm, with notes of bubblegum, cinnamon, vanilla, and oak.

Thoughts: Dry and oaky in the mouth. Vibrant and flavorful on the finish. This bourbon is “saved” by the finish. The mouth is nice enough but unremarkable. The finish, however, is where this shines. Which, if I had my choice, is where I'd want it to be. I spend more time with the finish when I drink whiskey than I do with the mouth. All in all, this is a really good whiskey. I like it.

---

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

Wheel Horse Bourbon

Last month, during our brackets, I included exactly one bourbon that I’d never previously reviewed. It was a reader suggestion that, honestly, I had never seen for sale in Minnesota. But when I unexpectedly ran across it during my cross-metro shopping trip, I knew that it would be a shame to pass by the suggestion.

I mean, what is the point of asking for suggestions if you then turn around and ignore them?

Here is what I had to say about this during the competition.

Wheel Horse Bourbon is a new one to me. It was suggested by a reader in the last giveaway. I don’t know too much about it, but I know that it was distilled at the Green River Distilling Company in Owensboro, Kentucky. This property has been distilling whiskey off and on since the late 1800s. It was the home of “The Whiskey Without A Headache” until Prohibition. After Prohibition, it was run by the Medley Family until the 1980s. The property was briefly the OZ Tyler Distillery, making some truly terrible whiskey, before being renamed to Green River in 2019 and deciding to stop using the TerrePure process for the future whiskeys they were making there. I was thrilled to read this, which made me decide to take another chance on the whiskey produced there.

Now let’s see how it does in a proper tasting without the influence of another bourbon clouding my tastebuds.

Wheel Horse Bourbon

Purchase Info: $25.96 for a 750 mL bottle at Top Ten Liquors in Chanhassen, MN.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $1.73

Details: 50.5% ABV. 4 years old

Nose: Strong notes of soapy anise lead off with caramel and lumber underneath.

Mouth: Notes of clove, cinnamon, herbal mint, and oak.

Finish: On the longer side of medium length and warm. Lingering notes of anise, clove, red fruit, minerals, and oak.

Thoughts: This one could be divisive. It's not bad at all, but the strong herbal baking spice notes could put some people off. I like it enough to give the rye a try, but probably not enough to buy it again unless I'm looking to use it in a cocktail that would play well with anise and clove notes. I will give this a neutral rating because it doesn’t quite align with my palate, but you may love it. .

---

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

11th Annual BourbonGuy.com Brackets: The Championship Rounds

Welcome back, folks! We are now at the end of the 2024 contest. Eight whiskeys entered the arena. Four have fallen by the wayside. There have been some delicious treats, with not a single stinker in the bunch. Let’s see how it all ends and see if we’ve learned anything along the way. First, we have the Round Two matchups.

Division 2: Whiskey A (Buffalo Trace) vs. Whiskey B (George Dickel Bourbon)

Pre-Reveal Thoughts: The noses are pretty similar. “A” is more vibrant, “B” is nuttier. In the mouth, “A” is very nicely balanced with a nice sweetness. “B” is spicier, also with a nice flavor.

Winner: “B” (George Dickel Bourbon) moves on to the Championship Round based on the nice spiciness.

---

Division 1: Whiskey A (Old Forester 100 Proof) vs. Whiskey B (Old Grand-Dad 114 Proof)

Pre-Reveal Thoughts: The nose on “B” has more caramel and nuttiness. The nose on “A” is more muted with a faint medicinal note. “B” is very spicy on the month. “A” has notes of red fruit and marzipan.

Winner: “B” is spicier, but that spiciness overwhelms the other notes. “A” is more well-rounded, which I prefer. “A” (Old Forester 100 proof) moves on to the Championship Round

---

Championship Round: Whiskey A (George Dickel Bourbon) vs. Whiskey B (Old Forester 100 Proof)

Pre-Reveal Thoughts: The nose on “A” shows more caramel and vanilla versus the fruit notes on “B.” The mouth on “A” is showing spice, caramel, and oak. “B” shows more fruit. It’s close, but I think “A” pulls ahead based on the oak and spice.

Winner: “A” (George Dickel Bourbon)

Congrats to George Dickel 8-Year-Old Bourbon, the 2024 BourbonGuy.com Bracket Champion!

---

Lessons Learned:

This was an interesting contest for me. I like contests where I know I won’t need to brace myself before taking the first sip in a tasting. Every one of the bourbons was good. I don’t think I’d say there is anything in here that would warrant a “meh/neutral” rating if it were being tasted alone. That might be a first.

So, what did I learn about each of these?

Ok, right off the bat, I expected a little blowback on George Dickel Bourbon even being in the contest. I got it last year when I included their Bottled-in-Bond Whiskey, and I honestly expected the same this year. I am personally shocked that Dickel won the contest. I honestly expected Old Forester 100 proof to win based on what I thought my personal preferences were. That said, upon reflection, I’m not shocked that the only age-stated bourbon in the batch won the whole thing. It’s hard to beat time in a barrel for making good whiskey. Add in the fact that it was less than $25 and less than 100 proof, and the whole thing just makes me happy. I love an underdog story.

Moving over to the other Championship contender, as stated above, Old Forester 100 Proof would have been my favorite to win the contest at the outset. Not only does it sit in my favorite proof point, but it was also the most expensive of the bunch. Not that price always correlates to quality (that’s one of the reasons we run this contest each year), but it certainly correlates to how much a company thinks people would be willing to pay for something. And that has at least a passing relationship with how good something is, especially with a product that has been on the market for a long time like this. That said, it came in second and won its division. It’s a good bourbon and one that is often on my shelf.

Newcomer Wheel Horse Bourbon handled itself admirably. It didn’t quite have the gusto to knock off a competitor with lots of age on it, but it should hold its head up high. It lost to the eventual champion this year. That’s nothing to sneeze at. It’s good whiskey and a good value. It may have advanced if it had had a different matchup in the first round. I think I’ll be doing a full review of this one in the near future if I don’t drink it all first.

Elijah Craig is a great bourbon. It is more delicate than other bourbons in this list, having neither the age nor the proof of other contestants. Because of that, it doesn’t surprise me that it lost in the first round. But with no comparisons, I'm a happy camper if this is in my glass.

When I think of Buffalo Trace, the old chant from high school sports of “O-Ver-Rate-Ed clap clap clapclapclap.” That isn’t to say that it is a stinker or even a “meh” bourbon. No, it is very good. But when I get comments from people saying that it goes for $50 in their neck of the woods, it’s hard to take it seriously these days. Especially when contrasted with other comparable products. Sazerac won the PR lottery when they got the contract to have Pappy chosen from among their stocks oh-so-many years ago.

I’m just going to copy and paste what I said last year about Old Tub, as nothing has changed in my assessment: “Old Tub reminded me that Jim Beam makes good whiskey. It just needs some proof. Go below 100° proof, and it gets way too nutty for many folks, including me, when the mood isn’t right.”

I didn’t learn much from Old Grand-Dad 114 that I didn’t already know. I knew it was a great bourbon that didn’t cost much, and nothing about that has changed. The proof adds a nice spice to what might otherwise be a lackluster bourbon that would be too grain-forward for my personal tastes. That’s why I like Bonded and 114 so much better than the 80 proof.

Finally, Ezra Brooks 99 is right there with the other bourbons in this group. It was great as a 90° proof. And with that great base, the proof bump makes it an absolute winner. Sure, the price is higher than the now-discontinued 90, but I think the quality went up more. If I’m not buying for content, this is one that I pick up a lot.

Ok, so we have one further contest to take a look at before we put the brackets to bed this year. I retired Wild Turkey 101 from the yearly bracket contest a few years ago. It won every time it appeared until I paired it against other, more expensive, 100-ish proof bourbons during the pandemic. It is literally the GOAT when it comes to inexpensive bourbon. One of the guys I talk to at a local liquor store describes more expensive bourbons using Wild Turkey 101 as the measuring stick. “Is this worth four bottles of Wild Turkey 101?” And I love that. So, I decided to bring it out of retirement to see how this year’s winner stacked up against the old bird. (You may notice it hiding in the back of the photo above.)

Emeritus Round: Whiskey A (George Dickel Bourbon) vs. Whiskey B (Wild Turkey 101)

Pre-Reveal Thoughts: “A” has a lot of oak on both the nose and mouth, along with toffee on the mouth. “B” shows nice cinnamon on the nose and mouth along with some caramel on the mouth. Both have a nice spice.

Winner: Very close, but I'm leaning toward “B” (Wild Turkey) in the Emeritus Contest.

Now that we are done, it’s time to turn the page to the future. Next week, we will look at the samples that have been stacking up while the contest was going on. As much fun as this was, it’s fun to try new bourbons, too.

Once again, congrats to George Dickel 8-Year-Old Bourbon on their 2024 Championship!

---

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

11th Annual BourbonGuy.com Brackets: Round 1: George Dickel Bourbon vs. Wheel Horse Bourbon

Hello again, my friends! Let’s continue with the brackets, shall we?

If you’ve been following along, you know that these were tasted in an order only known to my wife, which was another bit of obfuscation to hide what was being tasted. So Round 1 of the 2024 BourbonGuy.com Brackets finishes up with Division 2’s Number 2 seed, Wheel Horse Bourbon, taking on Number 3 seed George Dickel Bourbon.

Wheel Horse Bourbon is a new one to me. It was suggested by a reader in the last giveaway. I don’t know too much about it, but I know that it was distilled at the Green River Distilling Company in Owensboro, Kentucky. This property has been distilling whiskey off and on since the late 1800s. It was the home of “The Whiskey Without A Headache” until Prohibition. After Prohibition, it was run by the Medley Family until the 1980s. The property was briefly the OZ Tyler Distillery, making some truly terrible whiskey, before being renamed to Green River in 2019 and deciding to stop using the TerrePure process for the future whiskeys they were making there. I was thrilled to read this, which made me decide to take another chance on the whiskey produced there. I bought this bottle at Top Ten Liquors in Chanhassen, MN. It costs $25.96 for a 750 mL bottle or $1.73 per pour.

Their opponent is another bourbon that doesn’t come from a traditional Kentucky Bourbon background. In this case, it is because it is made in Tennessee instead of Kentucky. George Dickel Bourbon is eight years old and is one of the most inexpensive age-stated eight-year-old bourbons on the shelf. Other bourbons include eight-year-old juice in that price range, but they don’t age state it. That gives them the flexibility to swap in younger bourbons as needed, but there is something reassuring about a bourbon willing to tell you it’s age. This bottle cost $24.99 for a 750 mL bottle at France44 in Minneapolis, MN or $1.67 per pour.

All of the competitions this year were tasted blind and we knew the winner of the competition prior to any reveal. Notes, thoughts, and conclusions were all from before we knew what was what. Needless to say, some of my conclusions were surprising to me. Tasting notes may be a little unusual since they were being tasted at the same time and probably influenced the perceptions of one another.

Whiskey A (Wheel Horse Bourbon)

Price Per Drink (50 mL): $1.73

Details: 50.5% ABV.

Nose: Cinnamon, vanilla, mint, and oak.

Mouth: Spicy cinnamon, mint, a hint of black tea, and some caramel.

Finish: Hot and medium length. Notes of Cinnamon, honey, and tannic oak.

Whiskey B (George Dickel Bourbon)

Price Per Drink (50 mL): $1.67

Details: 45% ABV.

Nose: Black tea, honey, and oak.

Mouth: Honey, caramel, cinnamon and citrus.

Finish: Warm and on the longer side of medium. Notes of oak, caramel, and cinnamon.

Thoughts:

Pre-Reveal Thoughts: This is the first competition this year with a clear winner. Don't get me wrong, both of these are tasty. But “B” has a more "stereotypical bourbon" sort of flavor profile. Which is what I like, as you might have guessed by the fact that I've been excited by bourbon for well over a decade. “A” is just a bit too hot relative to the more balanced “B.”

Post-Reveal Thoughts: When I set up the brackets, this was the one competition where I had no clue what was going to happen. It’s a new-to-me bourbon versus a Tennessee bourbon. I like Dickel, but I was pretty sure it wouldn’t do much in the competition. Of course, with me not really knowing much about its opponent, it was impossible to predict the outcome. And though I was initially surprised, after some thought, it makes sense. I like Dickel, and I like bourbon in the six- to eight-year-old range.

Winner: George Dickel Bourbon is advancing to round 2.

Next time we will cover round two and the Championship round to find out who wins. Let me know your guesses down in the comment section below.

---

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

11th Annual BourbonGuy.com Brackets: The “Not Quite Bottom-Shelf” Edition

Welcome back, my friends, to my favorite posts of the year. It’s bracket time!

Historically, this has been a series where we take a look at the cheapest of the cheapest bourbons, pit them against each other, and decide which you should pick up and which you should leave down on that bottom shelf. The 2022 edition broke me; I dumped out about 7 liters of bourbon, so last year, I tossed out all pricing requirements and did a series of Bonded Bourbons. This year, I’m reinstating the price requirements, but I’ve decided to keep them a bit “relaxed.” My goal was to find readily available bourbons all at about the same price point, in this case, the $20 to $30 price range.

Here is how we set everything up. And it is an oh-so-simple process. I seed the whiskey in the bracket, in this case, by price. Then, I pour 200 mL bottles of each contestant whiskey and label them with a nonsense name. Finally, I make a separate bracket with the nonsense names and give that and the 200 mL bottles to my wife. After that, she takes care of everything. She has no idea what is in each bottle due to the nonsense name. She pours and keeps track of the winners while we do our tastings. And all I need to do is taste and write. It’s a pretty slick system.

So, who are the participants, and how did they get chosen?

Well, every year, I try to put in limitations that will force me to choose a new set of participants. Well, mostly new, anyway. We still have four this year that were in previous editions. Because the “bottom-shelf” ones have gotten so much worse than they used to be due to inflation and strategic price increases, this year, I limited myself to only bourbons priced between $20 and $30 for a 750 mL bottle. This allowed me to get some names that are familiar to the general public but that might be overlooked due to the general public’s idea that “more expensive equals better whiskey.” A while back, I also asked what you guys wanted to see included as part of a giveaway. I included as many of those as I could. Some weren’t available in my market. Others were quite expensive. Some had just been in so many contests that I looked for fresh faces. But I included what I could.

The contestants were seeded by price. If there was more than one at the same price, the tie was broken by proof.

• Division 1, Seed 1: Old Forester 100: This was purchased at South Lyndale Liquors in Minneapolis, MN, for $27.99 or $0.037 per milliliter.

• Division 2, Seed 1: Buffalo Trace: This was purchased at Total Wine in Burnsville, MN, for $27.99 or $0.037 per milliliter.

• Division 1, Seed 2: Old Grand-Dad 114: A reader suggested Old Grand-Dad Bonded, but since I saw this fit the price constraints, I upgraded. This was purchased at Total Wine in Burnsville, MN, for $26.99 or $0.036 per milliliter.

• Division 2, Seed 2: Wheel Horse Bourbon: This was a reader suggestion. It was purchased at Top Ten Liquors in Chanhassan, MN, for $25.96 or $0.035 per milliliter.

• Division 1, Seed 3: Ezra Brooks 99: This was purchased at South Lyndale Liquors in Minneapolis, MN, for $24.99 or $0.033 per milliliter.

• Division 2, Seed 3: George Dickel Bourbon: This was purchased at France 44 in Minneapolis, MN, for $24.99 or $0.033 per milliliter.

• Division 1, Seed 4: Elijah Craig: This was purchased at Top Ten Liquors in Chanhassen, MN, for $24.96 or $0.033 per milliliter.

• Division 2, Seed 4: Old Tub: This was a reader suggestion. It was purchased at France 44 in Minneapolis, MN, for $21.99 or $0.029 per milliliter.

I’m going to tell you right now, that there were some real surprises here. I was honestly shocked at the winner. But that is for the future. In the mean time, who you got? Let us know down in the comments.

---

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.

High West Cask Collection, South Lyndale Liquors Selection

Happy Friday! Yeah…about that. I had a tax appointment last night and completely forgot about writing anything. Sorry about that.

Next week, we start one of my favorite series of the year: The BoubonGuy.com Brackets. While I was out picking up all of the contestants from around the area, I also kept an eye out for other tasty treats that I could write about. This is how today’s bourbon ended up in my cart.

I was at South Lyndale Liquors in Minneapolis, picking up a couple of inexpensive items, and noticed this sitting on a barrel near the checkouts. Having noticed that I hadn’t covered anything from High West in a while—yes, I picked this up prior to the High West sample from the last post arriving on my doorstep—I picked it up. Especially since I tend to really like the store picks that South Lyndale gets. I don’t have much information about this one. All I really know is that this particular bottle of whiskey is a bourbon finished in Cabernet Sauvignon barrels.

But despite that, let’s take a look at it. I’ve seen barrel picks of High West Cask Collection, Cabernet Sauvignon Finish in a few of the local liquor stores, so it might be nice to see if it is worth picking up.

High West Cask Collection, South Lyndale Liquors Selection

Purchase Info: $64.99 for a 750 mL bottle at South Lyndale Liquors, Minneapolis, MN

Price per Drink (50 mL): $4.33

Details: Blend of Straight whiskeys finished in Cabernet Sauvignon barrels. 50% ABV

Nose: Floral vanilla, brown sugar, red fruit, and oak.

Mouth: Cinnamon, nutmeg, sweet red fruit, vanilla, tobacco, and oak.

Finish: Spicy and medium length. Notes of red fruit, baking spice, and tobacco.

Thoughts: This is good? The wine cask accentuates the red fruit and tobacco notes. It has a bit of dryness to it, which is balanced by sweet, floral vanilla notes. All in all, I'm very happy with this purchase.

---

If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.