Best bourbon under $50?

[Brandon]

Received a bottle of Crown Royal Cask 16 today... Love the stuff!

 

[bradmedic04]

I'm enjoying some Beer Barrel bourbon as I type. This is my absolute favorite under $50.

 

[melensdad]

I had some Jefferson's OCEAN Voyage 3, single ice cube, loved it (again).

Then I had some of the 14yo OBAN Scotch. Pond swill. Nasty-a** stuff that is undrinkable. But my Scotch drinking guest enjoyed it. Not sure how that is possible. My dad was a scotch drinker too. His stuff tasted like crap too. Blech

 

[rkwhyte2]

Found a new bourbon and darned if it wasn't under twenty dollars. Whiskey Sister is the name and I find it to be quite nice. It is made in California of all places. This whiskey has a nice nose and the first sip is pleasant with a slight burn that quickly disappears. I like to drink this one neat and haven't even tried it with ice it just doesn't seem to need it. Found this one at Kroger and overall it may be one of the best under $20 bourbons I've tried. If you get a chance give it a try after all if you don't care for it you're only out $19 and change.

 

[melensdad]

Never heared of Whiskey Sister, I'll have too look that up!

I'm enjoying some Beer Barrel bourbon as I type. This is my absolute favorite under $50.

I love BEER BARREL too.

 

[sadclownwp]

I'm just seating here in front of the fire enjoying some Angel Envy in my new bourbon glasses.

Between Angels Envy (my personal favorite under 50) Beer Barrel, and that 1882? you turned me onto, well I don't think you can go wrong.

 

[Cygnus]

OK. Finally back to report on the 2 a few of you suggested. I went with Evan Williams Single Barrel and Larceny. Both are good. I like the EW Single Barrel a bit better. It seemed smoother and had less of an afterburn. The Larceny was good as well. It was better, for me, once I tried them with an ice cube. Honestly, I like Knob Creel better than both but could see going with the Single Barrel again. That is when I am not spreading the Maker's love around.

Sorry the update is late. This was supposed to be done at Thanksgiving but that got delayed by some Midnite Moon and an overserved lady......

 

[Brandon]

Picked up Willett boubon tonight. Can't wait to try this!

 

[bradmedic04]

My wife gave me a silicon ice cube tray that creates spherical ice cubes. They're big, and melt very slowly. Absolutely perfect if you like your bourbon on rocks but don't like it watery.

 

[Fenway]

Tried Devils Cut last night. I like that better than Buffalo Trace.

 

[melensdad]

My wife gave me a silicon ice cube tray that creates spherical ice cubes. They're big, and melt very slowly. Absolutely perfect if you like your bourbon on rocks but don't like it watery.

Why not use Whiskey Stones? Freeze them, they chill your drink but they don't melt. Reuse after refreezing.

 

[Fenway]

This is what I'm working with tonight based on some INGO recommendations.

 

[Fenway]

Just sipped the Russel's neat. Tastes very sweet to me. Unique compared to what I have been drinking lately. Devils Cut, 4 Roses, Buffalo Trace, Elijah Crag.

 

[melensdad]

I've never tried the Russel's Reserve, but have always wanted to try it.

The Elijah Craig 12 is a really nice, very mild, very easy to drink bourbon. Not complex. Not fancy. Just an easy sipping bourbon that is budget priced and suitable for anyone getting into bourbons, suitable for anyone on a budget, suitable for people wanting a mixer that won't overpower the drink, and yet, all those "slighted compliments" aside, its good enough for anyone who has a wide experience with bourbons too. But if you want bold flavors or complexity in your bourbon, the EC12 is not your bourbon.




For TONIGHT I thought I would depart from Bourbon and switch over to RYE. Should have stuck with BOURON, which is what I like. Experiment gone wrong? No. Just not what I favor.

Poured a bit over an ounce of each of these into 2 glasses to try them side-by-side. Without going into a full review like I've done in the past let me just say that I don't really like either of these. The darker one is worse, actually its not good. The lighter one is better, but its drinkable, not really good.

Counter intuitive, the lighter one is aged in aged casks while the darker one was stored in new casks.

I don't think I could recommend either of these. But take that with a grain of salt since I am not really a fan of Rye whiskey, so its not really fair for me to not recommend something that is outside of my wheelhouse.

Neither is what I favor. First off they are RYE whiskies, tend to spicier than I enjoy. The darker colored one is moderately hot and spicy and has lots of complex flavors; the lighter colored one is smoother, easier to drink, but less complex and flavorful but simultaneously more enjoyable for my palate.

 

[DubLNawt]

For around $50 i would go with a bottle of Bookers. I still have 2 left in 130.1 proof. Normally it's not quite that high and the proof does vary since it's uncut and unfiltered. The precise proof is printed on the label. Like it neat.

 

[Brandon]

Was not impressed with Willett's sipped on neat. Will have to try other ways later.

 

[bradmedic04]

Why not use Whiskey Stones? Freeze them, they chill your drink but they don't melt. Reuse after refreezing.

I guess I "just don't have the stones."

 

[Sailor]

This thread is dangerous.... to my liver.

I am a craft beer guy determined to try everything above.

 

[melensdad]

For around $50 i would go with a bottle of Bookers. I still have 2 left in 130.1 proof. Normally it's not quite that high and the proof does vary since it's uncut and unfiltered. The precise proof is printed on the label. Like it neat.

Bookers is good stuff. My current bottle is 130.8. It has a great bold flavor profile. Some people may find it too bold but I like it. I also like it neat.

Was not impressed with Willett's sipped on neat. Will have to try other ways later.

Neither am I.

I guess I "just don't have the stones."

Sound like a personal issue.

 

[bradmedic04]

While not bourbon, I thought I'd break out a couple gifts from the wife. The first is this 2009 Ruffino Riserva Ducale Oro Chianti. Though I'm not always impressed with Ruffino, this is delicious. Cherry and plum up front without being overly sweet, long and smooth on the tongue with a subtle finish. I drink Tuscan wines almost exclusively, and this one really knocks it out of the park.

The second gift was the giant glass. It's marketed to hold an entire bottle, and it does. I had to get at least one picture of it before pouring into the decanter to share.

Happy New Years INGO!