Bourbon question

C

Cadman2008

Joined
Apr 20, 2010
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111
Land down under has some big advantages, and some equally big disadvantages. At any of my 4 local liquor stores the bourbon selection is Cougar, Jim Beam, Jack Daniels, Wild Turkey and Makers Mark. That's it.

I've been seeing all sorts of exotic bourbons being photographed with Busse's but the brand names are totally foreign. Anyone have a reccomendation on any of the bourbons on:

https://www.fine-wine.com.au/shop/spirits/bourbon/

or

http://www.winelistaustralia.com.au/spirits.php?liq=Bourbon

? Sorry if posting off-site links is wrong, but this seems to be the easiest way to get the info across :)

I'm just not a fan of Cougar, Turkey or Jim Beam. Makers is not bad, but when I see what you guys drink it makes me curious if I am missing out on something :)

Thanks in advance :thumbup:
 
Bourbon is, by definition, made in Kentucky, so the further you are from Kentucky, the smaller the selection. Given where you are located, it is not a surprise that your selection is small. You are at the mercy of the companies who import bourbon into your country, and given that these are business, it's all about money.
 
Cadman,

Of the links you provided, my suggestion would be to definitely give "Woodford Reserve" a try.

Woodford is one of my favorite bourbons. It has body along with some nice caramel/brown sugar flavors. I usually drink it neat, but a splash of water really brings out more character and depth as well.
 
Must be tough man...

The first website ain't too bad though - WOODFORD RESERVE would easily be my number 1 choice and its a great bourbon that I drink often (right behind Elijah Craig which is my favorite, but even hard for me to find in NYC let alone OZ!).

On that website Bulleit would be my second choice - great Bourbon as well.

Nothing like talking about bourbon at 915 in the morning :D

Good luck brother!
 
TrailWolf, you wrote:
Nothing like talking about bourbon at 915 in the morning :D
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The upside to that is that it is 5:15PM somewhere on the planet. :thumbup:
 
Oh, and although I haven't tried it myself (yet), I have heard many good things about Wild Turkey Rare Breed. Both of those sources sell it. The regular Wild Turkey 101 is good stuff, too.
 
Bourbon is, by definition, made in Kentucky
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That's actually a common misconception... It happens to be true in most cases, but is not a part of the formal definition of Bourbon. As for what's available down under and what you may like -

You mentioned that you like Makers Mark. Makers is a Wheater-bourbon, meaning the secondary grain (beyond the minimum 51% corn) is Wheat (whereas the vast majority of Bourbons use Rye as the secondary grain).

Wild Turkey, conversely, is probably the most popular of the Rye-heavy Bourbons, and will taste quite a bit different (read: spicy-er, with more bite, etc) than Makers or any other Wheat-based Bourbon. (Think Wheat bread vs Rye bread)

If you'll head over to StraightBourbon.com there are many nice folks in the forums over there, and a few of the big collectors and drinkers are also down under and can likely be of better assistance regarding what's available in your part of the world and maybe they'll meet up with you and share...

The only other Bourbons that will be similar to Makers are the other Wheaters, and that's a very short list: anything from Van Winkle, anything from Weller, and that's about it.

The many varieties from Beam (Bookers, Old Grand Dad 114, Bakers, Knob Creek, Basil Hayden... all of those are Beam-family Bourbons and are good) or the many varieties of Wild Turkey (Rare Breed is their Cask Strength expression).

From those websites you linked, I suggest (in no particular order):

* Sazerac Rye 6yr (a delicious Rye whiskey from the Buffalo Trace distillery)
* Makers Mark (the most popular of the Wheater-bourbons)
* Rare Breed (cask strength Wild Turkey)
* George T Stagg (*the* cask strength Bourbon, from the Buffalo Trace distillery)
* Bulleit (contract distilled at the Four Roses distillery for the Bulleit folks)
* Bookers (cask strength Beam)
* Bakers (basically it's older, 107proof Beam)
* Basil Hayden (a Beam product, at a lower proof, and very mellow/easy to drink)
* Henry McKenna (from the Heaven Hill distillery)
* Wild Turkey 8yr (in the US the Wild Turkey 101 is a mix of 8, 10, and 12 year whiskeys... and this is just a bottle of 8yr)
* Woodford Reserve (not my favorite, but good Bourbon)

Good luck.
 
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Hi Cadman2008 -

I just did the bourbon tour in Kentucky this past September.

Of all the bourbons that I sampled, I think the Wild Turkey "Kentucky Spirit" was the best of the bunch.

I have been drinking the Rare Breed lately, and it is very good as well, being bottled at barrel strength. I would recommend Rare Breed for sure.

Makers Mark has a new premium product called 46, it is good as well.

Jack Daniels is my normal drink of choice, and if you like sweeter whiskey, then the Gentleman Jack is for you - it is the smoothest hard liquor you will find IMO. If you want a little more strength and more character, then try the Jack Daniels Single Barrel.

Good luck and best regards -

mqqn
 
:thumbup: +1 on the Woodford Reserve it is great stuff. The Basil is good but overpriced. I have been drinking Wild Turkey 101, it is tasty, packs a punch, and is a bargain compared to some of the other stuff.
 
I will give another +1 for Woodford Reserve. I just finished the last of mine about a half hour ago and plan to get another bottle tomorrow. Great stuff.
 
I'm a big fan of Jack Daniels. Both the Gentleman Jack and Single Barrel labels are superior versions.
 
This. It's my current favorite whisk(e)y.

Picture016.jpg


Perhaps not technically Bourbon, but it's darned good stuff. The price seems awfully high, though. I paid $28 and change for a bottle last week, and I think the exchange rate is pretty close to one-to-one these days.

2006_11040010.jpg


As you can see, it goes well with Busse/Busskin knives.

By the way, since when is booze "off topic" in the Busse forum?
 
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Thanks for the info, Hogs :). Since it's had the best recommendations here I've ordered the Woodford online, but as it's the first time I've used that particular vendor I'm going to wait before I order the Saz. (Damn near $80 a bottle means caution).

Downtown, thanks for recommending straightbourbon.com, some damn good info there. Didn't know there was so much to learn about bourbon. It's piqued my interest though, WT Rare breed is widely available here, so that's my next purchase for sure. I thought Wild Turkey was more or less the same no matter what the bottle says, but from reading straightbourbon's forums it's a fair indicator of what good bourbon should taste like.

It does hurt though, when you think that 3 bottles of Woodford costs more than a Sar3 delivered to me here in Perth. @%# Australia's alcohol tax...
 
ridgeline said:
OK, I give, is the S5 floating in that pic?
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Hi ridgeline -

Notice how the air-pockets in the bottles are positioned in the bottles?

It was a cool idea for a photo by JohnTheTexican. :thumbup:

best regards -

mqqn
 
+1 for Woodford.....good stuff

I am surprised no one has mentioned it, but Jack Daniels is technically not bourbon either.
 
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