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I joined a local scotch/bourbon scouting group on Facebook, people post about unique or hard to find bottles at local shops, is kind of fun to follow along and see how quickly and often inventories change. I also signed up for a whisky tasting/raffle at a shop nearby. $50 gets me a raffle ticket, tastings, and a glass to take home. Not a ton of bottles at the tasting, but some good ones. Rock Hill farms Old rip Van Winkle 10 Old rip Van Winkle 12 George T. Stagg Elijah Craig 18 I figure it would cost me a lot more than $50 to try those at a bar, and I probably won't find a bar with all of them available. They are also having a raffle, for the right to buy a bottle of the following at MSRP. (1) EH Taylor Barrel Proof (3) Rock Hill farms (2) Old Fitzgerald 9 year BIB (2) old rip van Winkle 10 (3) old rip van Winkle 12 (3) George T Stagg (1) Elijah Craig 18 year (1) Pappy Van Winkle 15 (1) Pappy Van Winkle 20 (1) Pappy Van Winkle 23 They limited it to 50 participants, I was number 50 to sign up! I guess it lasted two hours after they sent out a newsletter. With only 50 people I have a pretty good shot of 'winning' something(18 bottles, 50 tickets). Apart from the EH Taylor and Rock Hill, I've never seen any of this on shelves and a lot of them go for pretty crazy amounts. If I won the 20 or 23 year Pappy I'd have trouble not flipping it though.
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Nov 16, 2018 04:15
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Where do people even go to or flip or buy secondary market whiskey?
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Nov 16, 2018 17:47
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Not too sure, but I would probably sell pappy if I get it. Spend $3-$400 of it stocking my whisky cabinet and put the rest towards Christmas gifts/new boat.
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Nov 16, 2018 18:19
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S.W.O.R.D. Agent posted:Where do people even go to or flip or buy secondary market whiskey? I use here https://www.just-whisky.co.uk/
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Nov 17, 2018 00:26
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There are several hundred Facebook groups for flipping. The large national one is Bourbon Secondary Market and a big raffle group is MegaFireBalls. I'm also in some local/regional ones. Then there are some private groups with their own websites. There are some real big swingers in BSM. I saw a bottle for $10k last week. Personally I only buy or trade. Life is too short to drink bad bourbon. I'm killing a Weller 12 tonight and it'll be my next trade or secondary market purchase.
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Nov 17, 2018 01:16
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I was lucky enough to get a bottle of Yoichi Single Malt recently and have really been enjoying it. I dig the smokiness of Nikka's stuff, but I don't know what other distilleries have a similar taste/process, what's something I could get stateside that would scratch that itch?
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Nov 17, 2018 18:30
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Ben Nevis  Nikka owns the Ben Nevis distillery and most of the production gets shipped to Japan for use in Nikka blends. They’re doing a poo poo job of maintaining the distillery too
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Nov 18, 2018 21:28
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Yoichi Single Malt is distilled entirely in Yoichi. Regarding Nikka's blends, though, I've heard the same and it always gets sourced back to this line from 2016's Malt Whisky Yearbook: quote:Ben Nevis is an important supplier of whisky for the owner's (Nikka) blends and for 2015, 50% of the newmake will be sent directly to Japan, primarily to be part of the popular blend, Nikka Black. Is there any other source saying the same thing? If so, I would be interested in hearing it. I've even asked Nikka themselves but they of course don't give a straight answer (i.e. they aren't flat-out denying it either). edit: also, I hear Chivas Regal Mizunara is due for a US release zmcnulty fucked around with this message at 22:27 on Nov 18, 2018 |
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Nov 18, 2018 22:18
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Picked up a bottle of Buffalo Trace bourbon cream last night and a bottle of crown Royale Noble collection. The guy at my liquor store said the Noble collection is fantastic, aged 13 years and a bourbon mash bill. Drinking the bourbon cream with some ice and root beer right now and it's pretty great. Tastes like a root beer float. I'll report back on the crown, my whisky guy at the local liquor shop has been just gushing about it. Apparently it's ok me of the top ranked whiskies for the fall of 2018 from whiskey advocate.
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Nov 18, 2018 22:34
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zmcnulty posted:
They had this at my local Costco, looked interesting. Do you know much about it?
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Nov 18, 2018 22:36
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It's been available here in Japan for a few years now. It's probably the most affordable way to find out what Mizunara is all about (for those that don't already know), given it's specifically not a Japanese whisky. Though it's pretty subtle the Mizunara does come through about halfway through the palate.
zmcnulty fucked around with this message at 01:25 on Nov 19, 2018 |
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Nov 19, 2018 01:21
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obi_ant posted:Yamazaki 12 worth it for $60? Sounds like it's too late, but I picked up a bottle for $60 a few months back and probably won't do it again (although not like I'll have the opportunity, from what I hear). It's just kind of bland and uninteresting to me. Another year of not winning the BTAC/Pappy lottery in PA. 
Residency Evil fucked around with this message at 14:44 on Nov 19, 2018 |
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Nov 19, 2018 14:42
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If you like Yamazaki, $60 is well worth it for the 12yr. Yamazaki 18 is a favorite of mine. I would never call any Yamazaki bland or uninteresting...quite the opposite as I can really appreciate the quality of the distillate. It's like a single malt scotch made by robots...it's technically faultless, but lacks the placebo and imperfection that people seek out.
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Nov 20, 2018 00:02
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DoctaFun posted:I joined a local scotch/bourbon scouting group on Facebook, people post about unique or hard to find bottles at local shops, is kind of fun to follow along and see how quickly and often inventories change. Going back to this, I'm fully prepared to not win anything in the raffle, and I don't know the format yet, but if it's a 'if we call your name, pick any available bottle', and I get some luck how would you guys rank these? PVW23 PVW20 PVW15 Stagg ORVW12 ORVW10 OFBIB EHTBP RHF Not sure where to put the stagg in relation to the Winkle's and the EC18 and OFBIB I have no idea about, except that OFBIB has an awesome bottle  . Keep in mind there's a good chance I might just try to trade/sell so I can buy a bunch of probably nearly as good bourbon and some interesting scotch. As much fun as it would be to drink a $500 bottle of bourbon, it might be more fun to spend $500 on more whiskey.
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Nov 20, 2018 03:57
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DoctaFun posted:Pappy vs. Stagg Depends on what you plan on doing with it. If you're going to open it and drink it? Stagg, Pappy 15, Pappy 23, Pappy 20 Selling on secondary or trading? Pappy 23, Pappy 20, Pappy 15, (then Stagg to keep and drink) edit: Pick the 23 if you can because you can probably get about 15 bottles of really interesting scotch for the price you'll get for it on secondary edit 2: the rest of your list is right EC18 is rarer than EHTBP but EHTBP is a better whiskey Deceptive Thinker fucked around with this message at 14:18 on Nov 20, 2018 |
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Nov 20, 2018 14:12
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If you ever get a chance to sell a Pappy, then sell it. The enjoyment you will get from the cash will far outweigh the potential enjoyment of drinking it.
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Nov 20, 2018 14:50
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Weltlich posted:If you ever get a chance to sell a Pappy, then sell it. The enjoyment you will get from the cash will far outweigh the potential enjoyment of drinking it. Thats exactly what I'm thinking, there's no way I'll get $100 of enjoyment per ounce or whatever that works out to be. As much as I'd love to try it, I think I've had enough whisky to know that it's not going to be some magic elixir. It's probably very very good, but I don't know, once you get above like $60 on bourbon, I don't know if it's really worth it. BTW, I tried the crown Royal Noble collection last night, it is very good. Nice finish, rich mouthfeel, not overly sweet in my opinion, but very smooth. I think it plays really well at the $60 it sells for around here.
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Nov 20, 2018 15:20
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Any whiskey drinkers in Ontario? I'm extremely limited by what I can get right now. Japanese-wise, I'm only able to get Toki or Hibiki Harmony through online order, nothing much else. In terms of Bourbon, the best I've found is Elijah Craig 12 year. Scotch isn't so much of an issue. Is Stagg Jr good enough to account for not being able to get a hold of George T Stagg? Right now, I'm drinking Bulleit's Rye while I'm waiting on an online order of Rittenhouse because my city doesn't have anything better.
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Nov 20, 2018 16:04
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Weltlich posted:If you ever get a chance to sell a Pappy, then sell it. The enjoyment you will get from the cash will far outweigh the potential enjoyment of drinking it. Personally, having a Pappy and being able to share it with people who understand and can appreciate the experience is better than money. Also, I really love it and there's nothing better imo.
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Nov 20, 2018 18:53
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Gravitee posted:Personally, having a Pappy and being able to share it with people who understand and can appreciate the experience is better than money. Also, I really love it and there's nothing better imo. I'll put you first on the contact list if I ever get a bottle then! Edit: That is to say that if you truly enjoy it, then go for it. I've had it, and I think it's very good, but personally it's not my favorite. If folks love something, and are willing to pay the price, then more power to them. I'll grab a bottle of Jeff. Pres. 18 and be just as happy, though. Weltlich fucked around with this message at 19:00 on Nov 20, 2018 |
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Nov 20, 2018 18:56
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virinvictus posted:Any whiskey drinkers in Ontario? Not knowing what you've got available, my best advice is to start cheap and work your way up. I'm surprised you're drinking Bulleit and not a good Canadian Rye. Look for: Pike's Creek (~$40) Lot 40 (~$60) Masterson's 10 (~$60) Alberta Premium (~$30)
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Nov 20, 2018 19:55
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Weltlich posted:Not knowing what you've got available, my best advice is to start cheap and work your way up. Strangely, I haven’t had any of those. I’ve had 40 Creek (both their standard and their Confederation Oak Reserve), Canadian Club, and Crown Royal. Everything I’ve read on spirits so far state that most Canadian Rye is barely rye, in the standard sense. Hell, even most cocktail guides I’ve come across specifically state American Rye is the way to go. Edit: I’ll grab one of each of those bottles if my location of LCBO has it. (Also, I only have available to me what LCBO offers, otherwise I can’t get it delivered).
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Nov 20, 2018 20:00
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virinvictus posted:Strangely, I haven’t had any of those. I’ve had 40 Creek (both their standard and their Confederation Oak Reserve), Canadian Club, and Crown Royal. Well, it is certainly not Rye to the TTB (the federal level US controlling agency for liquor) standards in many cases, but that doesn't mean that it's any less good. (It does make it a point of contention with US distillers, though!). Canadian whiskies are generally single-grain mash bills, aged separately, then combined at the end of their barrel-days to blend a final product. So if you go into a Canadian whiskey distillery, they'll have barrels of pure rye, wheat, corn, and barley whiskey all over the place. From a distillation standpoint this is a smart move, because all grains have different gelatinization temperature, and making a blended-grain mash can get tricky when you're doing protein rests and stops all over the place to try and get each grain to convert out to sugar. From a blending standpoint, Canadian whiskies are nightmares because good luck keeping consistency unless you have a 1000+ barrel rick house to pick-and-choose from when you're trying to bottle. Anyhow, I would gladly mix or sip any of the ones I listed. If you're looking for a "straight rye" with that super snappy/peppery finish then yeah, stick to American ryes, but Canadian ryes can be really complex and wonderful in their own right, and often bargains.
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Nov 20, 2018 20:12
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Speaking of Pike Creek. Has anyone tasted their Rum cask finish? It showed up at the local MONOPOLY and I'm curious....
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Nov 20, 2018 20:18
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I got this as a gift: http://www.steindistillery.com/steinshine/ I like scotch. I love Irish whiskey. I love bourbon. I super-love rye. Not too fond of Steinshine. Not gonna drink it straight but hate to see stuff go to waste (esp gift from family). Cocktail suggestions? How do I make best use of this?
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Nov 21, 2018 08:05
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Isn't that just lovely vodka? Put it in whatever masks the taste so you can get drunk...
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Nov 21, 2018 11:38
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Are there any of the rare bourbons that are actually worth their market price or at least worth buying once in a lifetime at market price to try? I'm in NYC and some of the stores actually have Pappy, Stagg, William Larue Weller etc. but at breathtaking market prices. I've been underwhelmed by the reviews of the Van Winkle Special Reserve Lot B and the next steps up start hitting 4 figures. To give you an idea of what my tastes are. I generally used to drink Woodford as my general go to bourbon but have been trying the Buffalo Trace products lately. I've like both Buffalo Trace and Eagle Rare but my current drinking whiskeys are Knob Creek Single Barrel Reserve and EH Taylor Straight Rye both of which I really like despite being on such different ends of the spectrum. I have some Michters that I only use for mixing but I don't really like it on it's own. And I have Hudson Baby Bourbon and Four Grains, both of which I really dislike. I don't have any experience with the wheated bourbons. Yuns fucked around with this message at 12:39 on Nov 21, 2018 |
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Nov 21, 2018 12:03
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Yuns posted:Are there any of the rare bourbons that are actually worth their market price or at least worth buying once in a lifetime at market price to try? I'm in NYC and some of the stores actually have Pappy, Stagg, William Larue Weller etc. but at breathtaking market prices. I've been underwhelmed by the reviews of the Van Winkle Special Reserve Lot B and the next steps up start hitting 4 figures. If you don't want to buy a whole bottle, you may want to check out quality whiskey bars like Maysville. They sometimes have pours of rare and expensive drinks.
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Nov 21, 2018 14:40
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Yuns posted:Are there any of the rare bourbons that are actually worth their market price or at least worth buying once in a lifetime at market price to try? I'm in NYC and some of the stores actually have Pappy, Stagg, William Larue Weller etc. but at breathtaking market prices. I've been underwhelmed by the reviews of the Van Winkle Special Reserve Lot B and the next steps up start hitting 4 figures. If you want a good expression of a wheated bourbon, then look for a bottle of Jefferson's Presidential Select. It will probably go for anywhere between ~$100-150 for the 18yr expression, ~$500 to 700 for the 16yr, or and ~$1300-1700 for the 17 yr. (Why? Because it's one of the last of the true Stitzel-Wellers left.) It's one of the few rare's that I'd seriously consider snatching up if the price is right.
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Nov 21, 2018 15:14
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TobinHatesYou posted:If you like Yamazaki, $60 is well worth it for the 12yr. Yamazaki 18 is a favorite of mine. I would never call any Yamazaki bland or uninteresting...quite the opposite as I can really appreciate the quality of the distillate. It's like a single malt scotch made by robots...it's technically faultless, but lacks the placebo and imperfection that people seek out. Yamazaki 18 is very enjoyable to me: a person who hasn't tried a lot of scotches and thinks that some of them taste like a tire fire in a dental office. Glenmorangie 18 was my favorite before I tried Yamazaki. I like it so much I drunkenly made the poor decision of making it my drink of choice for a drinking game. 
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Nov 21, 2018 15:21
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Yuns posted:Are there any of the rare bourbons that are actually worth their market price or at least worth buying once in a lifetime at market price to try? I'm in NYC and some of the stores actually have Pappy, Stagg, William Larue Weller etc. but at breathtaking market prices. I've been underwhelmed by the reviews of the Van Winkle Special Reserve Lot B and the next steps up start hitting 4 figures. I love the Elijah Craigs. The more I pay the more value I get out of it. Going from 19 to 23 is like +150 or so but the taste changes so much for the better. I do cheat a bit since me and a group of hacker type people go on a bourbon tour every year in Kentucky when we go to Derbycon. Heaven Hill always has at least the 19 year it seems plus he is willing to take us to stores off route to look for good and rare deals. We are also looking into getting on the list of private batches for our group at Willet.
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Nov 21, 2018 15:56
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General Emergency posted:Isn't that just lovely vodka? Put it in whatever masks the taste so you can get drunk... I wish it were lovely vodka, that would be easy. But Steinshine is a corn whiskey with a pronounced flavor, difficult to mask. So need something to marry and make it taste better. You are correct about desired endgame, tho.
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Nov 21, 2018 16:37
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Thanks for the tips. I'm willing to spend a lot once in a lifetime for something truly amazing but don't want to feel ripped off or like I could have gotten something just as good or better for way less. It's so hard to read what is just hype.
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Nov 21, 2018 18:14
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Sir Nose posted:I wish it were lovely vodka, that would be easy. But Steinshine is a corn whiskey with a pronounced flavor, difficult to mask. So need something to marry and make it taste better. You are correct about desired endgame, tho. Whiskey is aged, Steinshine isn't aged and is really just vodka/moonshine/white dog, treat it like corn vodka.
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Nov 21, 2018 18:18
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Yuns posted:Are there any of the rare bourbons that are actually worth their market price or at least worth buying once in a lifetime at market price to try? I'm in NYC and some of the stores actually have Pappy, Stagg, William Larue Weller etc. but at breathtaking market prices. I've been underwhelmed by the reviews of the Van Winkle Special Reserve Lot B and the next steps up start hitting 4 figures. I'd say start with Weller Antique. It's affordable enough to tell you if you like wheaters. I don't, so Pappy would be a massive waste of time and money for me.
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Nov 21, 2018 20:42
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Stultus Maximus posted:I'd say start with Weller Antique. It's affordable enough to tell you if you like wheaters. I don't, so Pappy would be a massive waste of time and money for me. This is true, but Antique is still hard to find on the shelf. And as someone mentioned, go to a bar with a good selection and try an ounce or two of different things. Or join a bourbon group and trade/buy samples. I'm doing a sample trade right now in my local group. I hated most of the stuff I got but that's ok because now I know not to waste my money on things.
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Nov 21, 2018 20:51
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I hear nothing but good things about regular Weller; so I picked up a bottle. Anything special about it being “wheated”?
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Nov 21, 2018 22:42
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It means they use wheat instead of rye in the mash, giving it some different flavors. Usually less of the "spice" notes typical of rye.
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Nov 21, 2018 23:21
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Enigma posted:It means they use wheat instead of rye in the mash, giving it some different flavors. Usually less of the "spice" notes typical of rye. So if I’m understanding correctly, the main ingredients... Bourbon = corn Rye Bourbon = rye Wheated Bourbon = wheat
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Nov 22, 2018 00:13
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obi_ant posted:So if I’m understanding correctly, the main ingredients... Also Barley. Here's a little bit of a breakdown of different grains and what you get: https://blog.distiller.com/whiskey-grains/
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Nov 22, 2018 00:17
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