I almost never indulge myself beyond what’s on sale this week at the liquor store but Christmas is coming up and I want to give myself a small gift. Still, I’m never rolling in money and I’m inherently frugal so I’ll limit my gift to right around $30.
So, if I want to gift myself with a .75 Liter bottle of sippin’ whiskey/bourbon/etc and limit it to just about $30, what should I try?
Do you have a preferred whiskey style? Bourbon? Scotch? Irish whiskey? Rye?
I guess the Tennessee/Kentucky bourbon styles are what I usually drink but I’m willilng to expand my horizons. Not too smoky - crisp - a hint of vanilla tones is appreciated.
I usually drink it neat or on the rocks.
I know there are better bourbons out there, but in your price range, Maker’s Mark is not a bad choice.
I was going to say this too. I’m not a bourbon fan myself (I prefer Scotch), but I don’t mind Maker’s at all. Someone here on the boards referred to it, saying it’s a bourbon you never have to apologize for. That sounds about right to me. It’s nice on the rocks, or with Coke or sour.
Have you tried Crown Royal? Back when I used to drink, I went to the liquor store and asked for advice on the smoothest-tasting whiskey they had. All the others I’d tried were varying degrees of nasty. The man recommended Crown Royal, and he was right about it being mellow and non-cringe-inducing. He said there were one or two that were older, but they didn’t taste the same, and advised against them.
Maker’s Mark is very good. I know I’ve mentioned it elsewhere today, but Basil Hayden’s is another good bourbon.
The Superhero and I visited a friend in Louisville, KY this summer and she and her friends are big fans of bourbon. We did some bourbon tasting while we were there and were told that one of her friends, who considers himself relatively knowledgable about bourbon, tasted many, many bourbons to determine the one bourbon that was the best quality for the lowest price. His verdict? Old Forester. The Superhero tried the Old Forester and really liked it - he likes Woodford Reserve as well, but it’s a lot more expensive. Hell, I even kind of like the Old Forester and I don’t like bourbon or whiskey much at all!
I don’t know how it is anywhere else, but Woodford Reserve comes in at about $30 around here for a fifth. Hard to beat at that price.
As mentioned above, you can’t go wrong with Maker’s.
I don’t like Maker’s Mark, but Woodford Reserve is an excellent bourbon. If you’re looking for an inexpensive single malt scotch, try to find a 10 year-old Speyburn.
This is good whisky for the price. It’s a scotch blend. Single malts have gotten exorbinant.
I think that the best values are in blends. . .and that goes for wine, too.
I’m not a bourbon fan but this is the one I stock in my liquor cabinet. I’d agree with Trunk that unless you’re prepared to spend an arm and a leg, a blended whiskey is the way to go, and what blending loses in purity it gains in consistency. There are some blended Scotch and Irish whiskeys that are quite good and very complex. My old standard is always Bushmills “Black Bush”, which is almost a pure single malt blended with a small amount of a single grain blended in. It’ll probably come in slightly over your $30 pricetag, but the extra couple bucks is worth it, IMHO.
Stranger
Knob Creek Kentucky straight bourbon is hard to beat at any price. In most markets, it’s under $30. It’s a rich, full flavor, and it won’t try to skin your tongue. The drinker who thinks whisky ought to be brutal won’t like Knob Creek.
Moved from IMHO to CS.
I’ll second both of those thoughts. I keep the Woodford around for guests.
I like Wild Turkey 101 for my “everyday” bourbon. Not terribly exotic, but it suits me fine. However, they make WT “Rare Breed” which is highly regarded and pretty much in your price range. I’ve never had it; perhaps it is time to rectify that.
I’m a Maker’s Mark ambassador, so I guess I should give it my vote as well.
Anyone know what Red Breast retails for? That’s a very nice one. And I’d second Basil Hayden.
Try some scotch, you may start liking it.
I am not a big bourban fan, so I’ll recomend some scotch:
Black Label usualy tops the list as best quality per price whisky.
I believe Glenfiddich 12 years is about 30 dollars, that’s also worth a try.
Maker’s Mark is my usual “go-to” bourbon for anyone old enough to have graduated past Jack Daniels.
HOWEVER! If you can lay your hands on Jack Daniels Single Barrel for under $30, give it a shot. (heh!) (It’s usually $35-40 a bottle) A couple years ago, the local grocery store got tired of looking at it, and they dumped their stock at $15 a bottle. I really enjoyed helping them get rid of four bottles!
Old Weller Antique.
Trust me on this one.
It’s in the ~US$40 range. Nice, but a little out of the o.p.'s price range.
By “Black Label” I assume you’re referring to Johnny Walker Black Label. To each his own, but I find it tolerable over the rocks at best. I have yet to find a decent Scotch under $30. The Aberlour 12 year is pretty decent for a Highland Scotch, and I can catch it on sale for about US$32 sometimes, the Glenmorangie 10 Year isn’t bad (though it’s swill compared to their 12 Year Cask Aged whiskys), and the McCallan 12 Year is quite good. I keep a bottle of Laphroaig Quarter Cask around when I want something really peaty.
Stranger